Paralegal Specialist - Environmental Enforcement Section

Offices, Boards and Divisions; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 56,000 - 89,000; Full time

Job summary

Offices, Boards and Divisions in Denver supports the Environmental Enforcement Section by providing paralegal support to attorneys in all aspects of affirmative civil litigation. The role involves assisting with federal civil actions intended to protect public health and the environment from pollution, including handling litigation materials and databases.

The position requires one of several qualification paths at GS-7 or GS-9 levels, with relevant education or experience.

Qualifications

• Experience providing litigation support in a legal environment or using litigation software to identify relevant documents.
• Eligibility for Superior Academic Achievement per the vacancy criteria.
• Graduate education that demonstrates the knowledge and abilities for the role.

Responsibilities

• Provide paralegal support to Section's attorneys in all aspects of affirmative civil litigation.

Skills

Litigation support

Legal databases

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement

Master's degree or LL.B/J.D

Tools

Litigation software

Legal databases

Job description

The Environmental Enforcement Section is responsible for bringing civil judicial actions under federal laws enacted to protect public health and the environment from pollution. Our attorneys pursue enforcement actions that result in significant benefits for public health, from reducing air pollution to cleaning up contaminated lands and waterways. The incumbent will provide paralegal support to the Section's attorneys in all aspects of affirmative civil litigation.

To qualify for this position at GS-7, you must have one of the following:

1. At least one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-5 Federal grade level providing litigation support in a legal environment. Examples of specialized experience include, but are not limited to, using litigation software to identify documents potentially relevant to litigation cases or maintaining legal databases used to track the production and receipt of documents, or
2. A bachelor's degree and Superior Academic Achievement (See below),
3. One full year of graduate level education that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work, or
4. A combination of education and specialized experience described above, that together meet 100% of the qualification requirements for this position.

Superior Academic Achievement: This provision applies to persons who have completed all the requirements for a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university as evidenced by one of three methods described below (within a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled).

1. Class standing -- Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses.
2. Grade-point average (G.P.A.) -- Applicants must have a grade-point average of: a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum. Grade-point averages are to be rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.
3. Election to membership in a national scholastic honor society -- Applicants can be considered eligible based on membership in one of the national scholastic honor societies.

To qualify for this position at GS-9, you must have one of the following:

1. At least one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-7 Federal grade level or above utilizing automated legal databases to verify legal citations and statutory references; analyzing and organizing factual, legal, and archival records; providing assistance to attorneys in preparation for hearings and/or trials; and creating and maintaining litigation databases for management of case materials; or
2. A master's or equivalent graduate degree or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education, or LL.B or J.D. Such education demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of a Paralegal Specialist; or
3. A combination of graduate education and experience described above that meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position. (Only graduate education in excess of the first full year may be used in this calculation).

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps; AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skill and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Time in Grade

Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements (one year at the next lower grade) by the closing date of announcement.

YOUR RESUME MUST support your responses to the online questionnaire and provide specific details as to how your experience meets the specialized experience as described in the vacancy announcement if you are using experience to meet all or part of the qualification requirements.

Please ensure that your resume includes the month and year that you began and ended each position held or that position will not be credited toward meeting the specialized experience requirement. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Failure to provide details will result in an ineligible rating. Your latest resume submitted for this vacancy announcement will be used to determine qualifications and supersedes previous submissions.

Only experience obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

The possible salary range for Denver, CO.:

• GS-7 ($56,262 - $73,142)
• GS-9 ($68,819 - $89,470)

The possible salary range for Washington D.C.:

• GS-7 ($57,736 - $75,059)
• GS-9 ($70,623 - $91,815)