Legal Administrative Specialist (Case Manager) Bilingual

Summary

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorneys' Offices, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/. As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement. This position is also being announced to applicants eligible to apply through Merit Staffing procedures under 26-WDTX-13056484-MS. .

Duties

• If selected for this position, you will join a well-respected team responsible for providing a wide range of legal support services to one or more Assistant U.S. Attorneys (AUSAs) involved in criminal and civil enforcements and collections associated with Financial Litigation. As a Bilingual Legal Administrative Specialist, you will: Receive, examine, and evaluate criminal proceeding cases, either pre-collection as referred by the Financial Litigation AUSA or post-conviction. Search a variety of databases for deed records, liens, determine lienholders priority, obtain copies of deeds and/or trust documents as appropriate. Prepare and maintain a variety of court-related documents, e.g., discovery letters, exhibit lists, jury instructions, trial subpoenas, etc. Prepare a variety of substantive legal documents to include preparation of subpoenas, various motions, garnishments, and other legal actions to effect necessary post-judgment action regarding debts owed to victims and the U.S. government. Process debt collection claims referred from client agencies. Propose debt compromises, write-offs, and referral of claims back to the originating agency. Monitor the progress of pending cases and initiates action to ensure that legal pleadings, forms, reports, correspondence, and other documents are prepared and submitted within established deadlines. Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Qualifications

To be eligible at the GS-7 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below: Specialized Experience, Education, OR a Combination of Education and Experience. Specialized Experience: One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level. Specialized experience is defined as experience providing assistance to attorneys by preparing legal documents needed for litigation; researching a variety of legal and non-legal sources to obtain and/or verify information; making proposal and recommendation actions such as settlements and write-offs; and using automated software to produce legal related reports, documents, correspondence and related materials. OR Education: Successful completion of one (1) full year of graduate education (18 semester hours or the number of units your school uses to describe one graduate year of academic study) leading to a master's degree in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Law); which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do legal administrative specialist work. OR Superior Academic Achievement: A full four year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree (or expect to complete within 9 months) in a related field (Criminal Justice, Law), and meet one of the following superior academic achievement provisions: (1) class standing in the upper one-third of the graduating class; (2) a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher as recorded on the official transcript, or computed based on courses completed during the final two full years of the curriculum; (3) a GPA of 3.5 or higher based on the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in a major field completed during the final two years of curriculum; or (4) election to a membership in a national scholastic honor society. OR Combining Education and Experience: Combination of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements. In order to qualify based on a combination, graduate education must be in excess of 1 full year. To be eligible at the GS-9 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below: Specialized Experience, Education, OR a Combination of Education and Experience. Specialized Experience: One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has provided the ability to perform legal support work in the area of debt collection. Such experience may be preparing legal documents including various motions and garnishments; reviewing claims and supporting documentation; determining the adequacy of the claims; initiating contact with debtors; and processing various actions such as debt compromises, write-offs, and referrals. OR Education: One of the following types of education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Law): a Master's or equivalent graduate degree (such as an LL.B. or J.D.); OR 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree. Education at the graduate level must be in an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of the position. OR Combining Education and Experience: Combinations of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements. In order to qualify based on a combination, graduate education must be in excess of 1 full year. Selective Placement Factor: A selective placement factor is determined to be essential for successful performance in this position. Those candidates who do not meet the following selective placement factor will be rated "not qualified" for the position. List Selective Placement Factor(s) here. Language proficiency in both English and Spanish to read, write, converse, and understand in both languages. 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/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. 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/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Education

All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see http://www.ed.gov OR Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online assessment and submission of all the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/18/2026 the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: 1. To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button. 2. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. 3. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59PM (ET) on 09/18/2026. 4. After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you both on screen and via email notification. 5. If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements (https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=USA_Hire_System_Requirements) 6. Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account. To preview the Assessment Questionnaire, please click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13056483 To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://usajobs.gov). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. Reasonable Accommodation Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire.