About the Position: This position is located within the US Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District, Office of Counsel, where you will exercise discretion and independent judgment in the application of laws, regulations, precedents, and agency practices, and apply a working knowledge of the forms, content, and uses of legal documents and the steps and procedures involved in processing legal actions pertaining to the legal affairs of the District.

Duties

Researches and analyzes factual and legal questions which present a variety of issues. Researches and assists with drafting litigation reports, motions, briefs, discovery, and pleadings. Receives, processes, researches, and analyzes Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, including initiating letters in response to requests and preparing legal analyses supporting recommended denials for submission. Processes tort claims under the Federal Tort Claims Acts, including correspondence, provision and analysis of claim forms, gathering and evaluation of evidence, creating draft litigation risk memos, and managing relevant claims databases. Renders assistance with and compiles Rule 4 and other administrative and litigation records, exhibits, including visual aids, and provides exhibits to the parties and the Judge. Communicates and manages litigations holds on records within the district. Performs a variety of administrative or other legal support functions as identified by the supervisor which are necessary for full performance in the Position. Performs intake of work requests from the organization, tracks and reports completion of such work requests to supervisor and legal team. Reviews contractor payrolls for compliance with Davis Bacon Act and Service Contract Act wages and assists with investigations where labor standards violations are found.

Requirements

• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• Appointment to this position is subject to a one-year probationary period unless the appointee has previously met the requirements as described in 5 CFR Part 315

Qualifications

Who May Apply: Only applicants who meet one of the employment authority categories below are eligible to apply for this job. You will be asked to identify which category or categories you meet, and to provide documents which prove you meet the category or categories you selected. See Proof of Eligibility for an extensive list of document requirements for all employment authorities. Current Civilian Employees of the OrganizationCurrent Department of Army Civilian EmployeesDomestic Defense Industrial Base/Major Range and Test Facilities Base Civilian Personnel WorkforceExecutive Order (E.O.) 12721Interagency Career Transition Assistance PlanLand Management Workforce Flexibility ActMilitary Spouses, under Executive Order (E.O.) 13473Priority Placement Program, DoD Military Spouse Preference (MSP) EligibleVeterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) of 1998 In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or 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. GS-07 Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes performing paralegal or legal work, applying a basic knowledge of legal research and the ability to interpret legal decisions; drafting a variety of legal documents and correspondences; assisting with preparation of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request responses; assisting with Tort Claims and/or maintaining a Tort Claims journal: assisting in enforcement of federal labor standards though payroll reviews; assisting in trial preparation by compiling, organizing and indexing various evidentiary exhibits; utilizing various computerized database programs to organize documents. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the second lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-05). OR One full year of graduate level education in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position. OR Superior Academic Achievement: Successful completion of all the requirements for a bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement. In order to be creditable under this provision, Superior Academic Achievement must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled, such as that identified in Education above. Superior Academic Achievement is based on: (1) Class Standing - Applicants must be in the upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, such as the College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration, based on completed courses; OR (2) Grade-Point Average (G.P.A.) - Applicants must have a grade-point average of either (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum.; OR (3) Honor Society Membership - Applicants may be considered eligible based on membership in one of the approved national scholastic honor societies listed by the Association of College Honor Societies (https://www.achsnatl.org/). OR A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) by 18. Add the two percentages. You will be evaluated on the basis of your level of competency in the following areas: Information ManagementLegal, Government and JurisprudenceTeamwork Time in Grade Requirement: For GS-07 - Applicants who have held a General Schedule (GS) position within the last 52 weeks must have 52 weeks of Federal service at the next lower grade or equivalent (GS-05).

Education

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Contacts

• Address RH-W2SJ06 US ARMY ENGINEER DISTRICT-KANSAS CITY DO NOT MAIL Kansas City, MO 64106 US
• Name: Army Applicant Help Desk
• Email: [email protected]