Legal Administrative Specialist (Case Manager)

Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys and the Office of the U.S. Attorneys•Las Cruces, NM

About The Position

The Legal Administrative Specialist serves as a Case Manager in the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico, providing legal and administrative services to one or more Assistant United States Attorneys working on criminal matters. The role manages discovery in paper and electronic formats, prepares written summaries of evidence, and drafts and proofreads correspondence requiring knowledge of legal procedures and terminology. The specialist consults with case team members and Litigation Support personnel to plan discovery and evidence review, and prepares or coordinates discovery productions to meet deadlines. The role also provides case administration and courtroom support, including using trial presentation software and courtroom equipment, tracking exhibits admitted into evidence, and managing witnesses. Responsibilities and assignment complexity increase as training and experience progress.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
Must register for Selective Service, if applicable.
Must meet the qualification requirements by the announcement closing date.
GS-07 eligibility requires one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-05, qualifying education, or a combination of education and experience. Specialized experience includes legal and administrative support to attorneys; routine legal document preparation and processing; litigation support and case-information organization; discovery preparation such as scanning and tagging documents; court preparation such as exhibits and witness or exhibit lists; and file maintenance.
GS-07 education may be met by one full year of progressively higher-level graduate education in a related field leading to a master's degree, or a bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement. A qualifying combination of specialized experience and graduate education may also be used.
GS-09 eligibility requires one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least GS-07, qualifying education, or a combination of education and experience. Specialized experience includes legal and administrative support; examining, preparing, editing, cite-checking, and processing legal documents; tracking cases; evaluating, producing, and presenting discovery; providing training and support in legal databases and software; assisting with trial preparation; factual legal research; receiving visitors and telephone calls; and maintaining files.
GS-09 education may be met by a master's or equivalent graduate degree in a related field, or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree. A qualifying combination of specialized experience and graduate education may also be used.
Academic degrees and coursework used to meet education requirements must be from an accredited or pre-accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Foreign education must be shown to be comparable to U.S. accredited education, with supporting evaluation documentation; documentation must be in English or include an English translation.
Initial appointment is conditioned on satisfactory pre-employment adjudication, including fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing; continued employment is subject to a favorable background investigation.
May be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
Transcripts are required when qualifying through education.

Responsibilities

Manage discovery in paper, PDF, image, audio, video, forensic-report, proprietary, and other electronic formats.
Organize and prepare written summaries of witness statements and testimony, audio or video recordings, and documentary evidence.
Compose and proofread correspondence that does not require legal interpretation but requires knowledge of legal procedures and specialized terminology.
Consult with case team members and Litigation Support personnel to determine discovery and evidence-review requirements.
Prepare discovery productions independently or coordinate their preparation by appropriate staff or vendors to meet production deadlines.
Provide general administrative support for assigned cases.
Support Assistant United States Attorneys during court proceedings and live case presentations, including operating trial presentation software and courtroom equipment to display exhibits or demonstratives, tracking exhibits admitted into evidence, and managing witnesses.