KEY REQUIREMENTS



• You must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Background investigation, credit check, and drug test required.
• You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.

As a Legal Assistant (OA) in the Civil Division in the United States Attorney's Office (USAO) for the District of Columbia, you will be responsible for:

• Examining, preparing and processing a variety of technical legal documents, e.g., complaints, motions, orders, answers, pleadings, subpoenas, and libels;
• Providing assistance to attorneys in trial preparation;
• Assembling exhibits, affidavits, and other legal documents;
• Assembling and organizing files and records material for disposition or transfer to records depository;
• Maintaining calendar of assigned active cases;
• Tracking filing, hearing, and trials dates, and scheduling conference and interviews;
• Arranging travel by preparing itinerary and securing transportation and hotel reservations; and
• Producing a variety of written documents and materials using a wide range of office software applications.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Travel Required: None.

GS-6: To be eligible at the GS-6 level, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level.

Specialized experience is defined as experience reviewing legal documents such as complaints, motions, orders, answers, pleadings, subpoenas, and libels for completeness of information; retrieving and assembling information for hearing and/or trial use; researching a variety of legal sources to obtain and/or verify information; and using automated software to produce legal related reports, documents, correspondence and related material.

To be qualified, you must type at least 40 words per minute based on a 5 minute sample with three or fewer errors. (A typing test may later be required.)

If selected, you may be required to complete a one year probationary period.

You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ’s Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the Occupational Questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If it is determined you meet minimum qualification requirements, your application will then be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified Within these categories, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

You will be rated on the following Competencies:

Self-Management:  Sets well-defined and realistic personal goals; monitors progress and is motivated to achieve; manages own time and deals with stress effectively.

Speaking: Uses correct English grammar to organize and communicate ideas in words that are appropriate to listeners and situations; uses body language appropriately.

Teamwork:  Encourages and facilitates cooperation, pride, trust, and group identity; fosters commitment and team spirit; works with others to achieve goals.

Writing: Uses correct English grammar, punctuation, and spelling to communicate thoughts, ideas, information, and messages in writing.

Flexibility:  Adapts quickly to changes.

Legal, Government, and Jurisprudence: Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, legal practices and documents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, government organization and functions, and the democratic political process.

Technology Application: Uses machines, tools, or equipment effectively; uses computers and computer applications to analyze and communicate information in the appropriate format.

Managing and Organizing Information: Identifies a need; gathers, organizes, and maintains information; determines its importance and accuracy, and communicates it by a variety of methods.

The Occupational Questionnaire will take you approximately 20 minutes to complete. To preview the Occupational Questionnaire, click the following link View Assessment Questions

Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized.

The Department of Justice offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation; sick leave; holidays; telework; life insurance; health benefits; and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System. This link provides an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal employees:

http://www.usajobs.gov/ResourceCenter/Index/Interactive/Benefits 

OTHER INFORMATION:

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) - The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in the announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and receive a score of 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide proof of eligibility to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/ctap/index.asp

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) - The CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility, 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement, and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and receive a score of 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/ctap/index.asp.

Veterans' Preference- If you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming in your application and submit the appropriate documentation, as specified below.

•In order to verify your Veterans' Preference entitlement, please submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty); official statement of service from your command if you are currently on active duty; or other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that shows your military service was performed under honorable conditions.
•In addition, if you are a disabled veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, or widow/widower if a veteran, the spouse of a disabled veteran or the natural mother of a disabled or deceased veteran, you must submit a signed and dated Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference," and the other required documentation identified on the reverse side of the SF-15 to support your preference claim.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See www.sss.gov.

Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

EEO Statement: The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, status as a parent, genetic information, disability, age, membership or nonmembership in an employee organization, or on the basis of personal favoritism.

You may apply online or fax in your documents. Applying online is the quickest and most convenient way to process your application and track your status.

The complete Application Package to include all Required Documents listed below must be submitted by 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time on Friday, October 05, 2012.

To begin the online process, follow these steps:

1. Click the Apply Online button at the upper right hand corner of this screen.  You will either need to create an Application Manager account or log in with your current user id and password.  Once you log in, follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire. You must click the Submit My Answers button at the end of this process.
2. To fax supporting documents that you are unable to upload, complete this cover page,http://staffing.opm.gov/pdf/usascover.pdf and use the following Vacancy ID, 759536 Fax your documents to 1-(478)-757-3144. You can verify that your uploaded documents are attached to your application by checking the Details tab of your Application Manager account for this vacancy announcement. Your documents will display under the Details tab in the Document area. Faxed documents will take 2-3 business days to process. Documents submitted with missing information may not be processed.

If you cannot apply online, follow these steps:

1. Print a copy of this vacancy announcement.
2. Print the Occupational Questionnaire using the link here so that you can read the questions offline.View Occupational Questionnaire.
3. Print the OPM Form 1203-FX, in order to provide your responses to the Occupational Questionnaire. You may obtain the form by using this URL link, http://www.opm.gov/Forms/pdf_fill/OPM1203fx.pdf. You may omit any optional information; however, you must provide responses to all required questions.
4. Be sure to double check your application before submission. Fax the completed 1203-FX, resume, and supporting documents to 1-(478)-757-3144.Your 1203-FX will serve as a cover page for your fax transmission. Faxed documents will take 2-3 business days to process. Documents submitted with missing information may not be processed.

THIS JOB WILL CLOSE ON OCTOBER 12, 2012, OR THE DAY WE RECEIVE THE 75TH APPLICATION, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes:

• Your responses to the Occupational Questionnaire. (Online or 1203-FX)
• Required: Your resume showing relevant experience and dates of employment (cover letter optional).
• Required, if applicable: Veterans' Preference documentation. (See Benefits and Other Information section for details.)
• Required, if applicable: CTAP/ICTAP documentation (a copy of a separation notice or other proof of eligibility for priority selection; a copy of an SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, showing current position, grade, promotion potential, and duty location; AND a copy of your most recent performance appraisal.)

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation, to include a credit check, and a drug test by urinalysis. We expect to make a final job offer within 80 days after the closing date of the announcement.