Paralegal Specialist

Summary

The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland's (USAO-MD) mission is to enforce and defend the laws of the United States of America through the prosecution of criminal cases brought by the Federal government; the prosecution and defense of civil cases in which the United States is a party; and the collection of debts owed to the Federal government that are administratively uncollectible.

This job is open to
Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees who meet the definition of a "surplus" or "displaced" employee.

Family of overseas employees

Family members of a federal employee or uniformed service member who is or was, working overseas.

Federal employees - Competitive service

Current or former competitive service federal employees.

Individuals with disabilities

Land & base management

Certain current or former term or temporary federal employees of a land or base management agency.

Military spouses

Peace Corps & AmeriCorps Vista

Special authorities

Individuals eligible under a special authority not listed above, but defined in the federal hiring regulations.

Veterans

Clarification from the agency

Duties

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

**Typical work assignments will include**:
Preparation of monthly reports in both Consolidated Asset Tracking System (CATS) for asset forfeiture and Consolidated Debt Collection System (CDCS) for financial litigation.
Performs substantive research, evaluation and analysis related to asset forfeiture and financial litigation.
Drats legal and administrative briefs, motions, and correspondence for Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) review.
Initiates contact with debtors concerning payment of their obligations, their ability to pay, and negotiates written payment schedules to assure successful collection of debts.
Prepares and organizes documentation and evidence for production as discovery and for use in trial.
Compiles case files for AUSAs and coordinates with points of contact to obtain copies of all documentation pertinent to the case or claim.

**Requirements**:
Conditions of Employment
You must successfully pass a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
A probationary period may be required.
A pre-employment drug test may be required.
All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position.
Must provide resume and supporting documents (See required documents).

**Qualifications**:
**MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS**: To be considered mínimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level in which you are applying:
**To qualify at the GS-09 level, you must possess**:
**Specialized Experience**: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service performing (obtained in either the public or private sectors) three (3) of the four (4) duties listed below:
Performing legal research and/or analysis for financial litigation case development or documentation;
Composing legal documents and/or correspondence;
Utilizing policies and/or regulations concerning debt collections to negotiate or interview debtors;
Retrieving data from legal and/or administrative databases.
OR a master's or equivalent graduate degree OR two (2) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree OR I have an LL.B. or J.D., in a directly related field. (Must submit transcripts.)

OR a combination of the above described graduate education and specialized experience. To combine education and experience, first determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level. Then determine your education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level. Finally, add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education beyond the first year (18 semester hours) may be used when combining education and experience for this option. (Must submit transcripts.)

**To qualify at the GS-11 level, you must possess**:
**Specialized Experience**: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service performing (obtained in either the public or private sectors) three (3) of the four (4) duties listed below:
Performing fact gathering and/or problem analysis related to asset forfeiture or financial litigation;
Interprets, applies and/or explains laws, regulations or policies related to asse