Paralegal Specialist
What you'd do
The Paralegal Specialist position is located in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), in various offices throughout the Office of General Counsel (OGC). The mission is to provide legal advice and services to the SECVA and all organizational components of the Department. The General Counsel is, by statute, the Department's Chief Legal Officer.
Major duties
Major duties include, but are not limited to the following: Provides direct legal services to internal and external stakeholders on case and/or program assignments, including, but not limited to, handling, from start to finish or as otherwise assigned in support of Medical Care Recoveries and related program goals. Case development will include, but not be limited to, gathering all relevant facts and information needed for case processing, conducting research and applying the same to the issues presented, and negotiating settlements/compromises within authority with minimal direction and oversight. Maintains complete, accurate, and timely case documentation in the case management system in compliance with office requirements and conventions. Demonstrates a team-based, collaborative approach to providing coverage, information sharing, and issue resolution. Exercises good judgment in consulting with OGC managers and non-supervisory staff when faced with obstacles, novel issues, or complex issues. Utilizes all available research systems, resources, and tools, including AI and technology tools, in conducting research and writing on assigned cases and/or programs. Regularly meets deadlines and delivers quality, effective work product by performing substantive case work and by applying strong time management and organizational skills to competing priorities. Provides a wide range of legal support and administrative services to support OGC management and operations Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: PD33068A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Permanent Change of Station (PCS):Not Authorized
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/31/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to some former Federal employees applying for reinstatement, as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. See the Required Document section below for more information regarding the SF-50s needed to verify time-in-grade. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-09 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Evaluates and makes final determinations or recommendations on the client requests, complaints, and claims, as authorized; Keeps supervisor or attorney informed of actions involving potentially controversial issues or issues with far-reaching implications; Obtains, analyzes, develops and applies relevant facts and law to assigned work. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree OR 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree OR LL.B. OR J.D., if related. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and graduate education beyond the first full year. 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; religions; 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. Note: Resume must include job title and employer name, number of hours worked per week, start and end dates (including month and year), list of duties and responsibilities for each position held. In addition, if the experience was a federal position, you must list series and grade for each position held. Failure to include this information may result in an ineligible rating. A full year of work is considered to be 40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work primarily sedentary and may involve some slight physical effort such as using a computer at a desk, sitting in conferences/meetings, standing, walking, bending, pushing a small cart, carrying light items, lifting moderate weighty items. Typing and data entry using a keyboard is required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be found well qualified, applicants must meet the following qualifications: Investigating, analyzing, and resolving issues in assigned work. Supporting legal service delivery on assigned matters, including but not limited to, fact finding, problem analysis, problem solving, legal writing, and summarizing regulations and policies. Interpretating and implementing of existing policy and standards for the assigned areas. . Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as a radius of 50 miles from varies locations. This includes all locations that fall within a 50-mile driving distance from local VA offices in these locations..
Before you apply
Federal applications are different: your resume should be 3–5 pages and mirror the language of this announcement. Read our federal resume guide first — it's the #1 reason qualified people get screened out.
Don't miss the next one.
Get an email the moment a similar federal job opens — postings can close in as little as 5 days.