Paralegal Specialist

Summary

About the Position: As a Paralegal Specialist you will managing District FOIA/Privacy Act operations and providing complex litigation support. Analyzes legal issues, conducts in-depth research, and drafts pleadings, briefs, and reports across contract, tort, labor, and environmental matters. Coordinates discovery and pretrial preparation while administering automated legal management, matter tracking, and e-discovery systems for legal staff.

Duties

• Process, analyze, and evaluate FOIA/Privacy Act requests, determines releasability, applies statutory exemptions, coordinates with counsel, and tracks appeals.
• Perform in-depth legal research and factual investigations using automated legal databases and legal references to evaluate precedents, statutory authorities, and complex legal issues.
• Draft legal documents, pleadings, briefs, discovery requests, motions, and litigation reports requiring detailed analysis of laws, regulations, and procedure to assist staff attorneys.
• Coordinate litigation support, discovery, witness/expert interviews, and deposition/trial logistics across contractual, tort, environmental, labor, and civil litigation matters.
• Manage automated legal systems and e-discovery tools, overseeing matter tracking, case management databases, litigation data capture, and training legal personnel on IT platforms.

Qualifications

Who May Apply: US Citizens In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document. Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes 1.) Analyzing, processing, and determining the releasability of complex Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act requests, including applying legal exemptions and preparing initial denial determinations; 2) Conducting comprehensive legal and factual research using automated databases and legal resources to analyze precedents, statutes, and agency regulations; 3.) Drafting legal documents, including pleadings, briefs, discovery requests/responses, litigation reports, and legal memoranda in support of ongoing litigation; 4.) Assisting attorneys with trial preparation, witness interviews, discovery coordination, e-discovery processes, and pretrial proceedings; and 5.)Utilizing and maintaining automated legal case management, matter tracking, and e-discovery databases. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-11).Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. As a reminder, your resume must be two pages or less and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. For additional information, refer to the 'Required Documents' section. To preview the application questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13055649 Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/18/2026. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. For more general information, system requirements, reasonable accommodation information, and to request assistance regarding the USA Hire Assessments, review the following resources: https://appsupport.usastaffing.gov/hc/en-us/sections/28980562523540-USA-Hire-Assessments To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: Click on this: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/application/status. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.