Paralegal

Summary

The Division of Enforcement is seeking a early-career Paralegal Specialist (Paralegal). As a Paralegal, you will provide investigative and litigation support to staff engaged in developing and prosecuting administrative and civil cases involving violations of federal securities laws.

Duties

In this role as a Paralegal, you will be responsible for: Providing legal research assistance on enforcement investigations. Analyzing information obtained from case files, reports, and testimony regarding alleged or suspected violations of the federal securities laws. Independently reviewing, processing and preparing documents covering diverse and complex legal issues or problems as a case progresses through the investigative system. Performing extensive, specialized, independent research on complex legal and factual issues to locate appropriate data, legislative history, precedents, and policies having a bearing on specific legal issues. Researching court rules in state and federal courts throughout the country where the Commission conducts litigation, as well as other agencies such as the Department of Justice, to ascertain the appropriate form, content, and due date of filings. Providing paralegal support for trial attorneys by drafting and reviewing legal documents, managing discovery and trial preparation, and preparing and filing court documents via Case Management/Electronic Case Filing (CM/ECF) and other electronic filing systems, in compliance with court rules, deadlines, and Commission procedures. Researching and analyzing agency statutes, legal decisions, rulings, opinions, complex points of law, precedent cases, and administrative and judicial decisions or opinions. Preparing replies to correspondence, researching specific problems when sources of information maintained for the purpose are inadequate, and coordinating proposed replies with the organizational units responsible for the areas of the law involved.

Qualifications

Time-in-grade for this announcement is one year at the GS/SK-11 level. Applicants are responsible for confirming all required materials are submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please check the How You Will Be Evaluated and Required Documents sections carefully, as missing documents will render the application incomplete and ineligible for review. Qualifying experience may be obtained in the private or public sector. 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 skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must also meet the minimum qualification requirement SK-12: Applicant must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS/SK-11 level: Researching the laws; AND Preparing legal documents and memoranda, managing investigative documents and case files; AND Using application software and online legal research tools; AND Providing all aspects of investigative, courtroom and pretrial litigation support that includes preparing, analyzing, and processing legal documents, and utilizing electronic discovery and other electronic technologies to perform legal research to assist in an investigation or at trial or other courtroom proceedings. ACCOMPLISHMENT RECORD COMPETENCIES: Your Accomplishment Record narratives should address the following competencies. See the How You Will Be Evaluated section below for more information: Competency 1: Legal and Factual Research and Analysis - Conducts legal and factual research and analysis; compiles materials (e.g., discovery, precedents, background investigations, datasets) for attorneys' use. Competency 2: Workload Management - Effectively prioritizes workload in a way that accommodates unforeseen developments and achieves successful outcomes. Competency 3: Legal and Investigative Documentation - Drafts, prepares, processes, and maintains legal and/or investigative documents. Competency 4: Case Management - Manages cases efficiently using best practices.