Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. GC-25-IMP-12765316 Department Government Accountability Office
Salary $119,302.00 to $189,778.00 Grade 1 to 1
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 7/18/2025 Close Date 7/31/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Status Candidates
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

This position is located in the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Office of General Counsel (OGC). As a Supervisory Paralegal Specialist, you will oversee the programs and supervise the administrative and paralegal staff within OGC. Additionally, you will conduct a broad range of legal research and information functions to support of OGC's mission and objectives. This position will serve as the manager for OGC's Appropriations Law Support Branch.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Internal to GAO employees on permanent appointments.

Duties

As a Supervisory Paralegal Specialist, MS 0950-1, your typical work assignment may include the following:

  • Provides direct supervision and serves as the designated performance manager for Paralegal Specialist, Legal Technicians, student interns, and other staff who may be assigned to the team.
  • Assigns work, establishes performance criteria and standards, evaluates performance, provides technical and administrative advice, resolves conflicts, provides staff development and training, initiates improvement plans and takes disciplinary actions as needed.
  • Coordinates and oversees the work of subordinate staff to provide editorial and legal research support and several critical functions in the preparation of reports, decisions, opinions, rules, and other publications of the Office of General Counsel, including distributing legal decisions to congressional staff, agencies, parties to bid protests, and the public.
  • Assists in the implementation of GAO's statutory functions, including by reviewing external submissions and entering information into agency databases.
  • Manages and coordinates external training and speaking events for OGC instructors in the group's area of responsibility, which may include setting dates, creating instructors' teaching schedule, facilitating the Interagency Agreement (IAA) process by reviewing and
    approving forms and agreements and visiting agencies to coordinate logistics for in-person events.
  • Serves as the primary point of contact for internal and external stakeholders

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

You must meet all qualification requirements before the announcement closes.

1. You must be a U.S. citizen.
2. You may be required to submit a financial disclosure statement.
3. You must be suitable for federal employment.
4. Registered for Selective Service, if applicable. (www.sss.gov).
5. Completion of a one year supervisory probationary period may be required.

Qualifications

You may qualify at the MS-I band level, if you fulfill the following qualification requirement:

You must have at least one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience at the next lower band level, equivalent to the PE-II, PT-II, or GS-13 level in the federal service, which has equipped the applicant with the skills and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of the position.

Specialized experience is defined as experience:
1)
applying management techniques, methods, theories, or principles concepts for the accomplishment of program objectives with combined technical and administrative oversight. (This experience may have been gained through work experience as a project/program manager, team lead or project/program lead, technical advisor, or senior specialist/analyst that included managing resources, providing support to managers, mentoring team members, providing day to day guidance training and/or oversight of peers or others);
2) conducting detailed legal research, including laws, regulations, case law, directives and legislative history;
3) drafting legal documents; and
4) providing liaison support to legal counsel in carrying out their responsibilities.

Education

This position does not have an education requirement.

Additional information

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

If you meet the qualification requirements stated above, you will be further rated based on your responses to the vacancy questions. Please make sure that your responses to the vacancy questions are supported in your resume. Please follow all instructions carefully. If you provide incomplete answers, fail to provide a narrative response to any vacancy question(s) that requires further explanation, or if your response to a vacancy question is "see resume", your rating may be affected or you may be determined ineligible.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

  • Decision making
  • Legal, Government and Jurisprudence
  • Written & Oral Communication
  • Research
  • Knowledge and proficiency in legal research tools and software

Required Documents

You must provide a complete application package which includes:

- Resume: must be created using the USAJOBS resume builder and show relevant work experience.
- Current GAO employees must submit their most recent Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50 or equivalent) showing tenure, type of service (competitive/excepted), as well as the highest grade/band held. The SF-50 must show that you are currently a GAO employee.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.

A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration.

- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.

- Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.

- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.

- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. 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/.

If you are unable to apply online, please contact LaDonna Daniels or at Danielslm@gao.gov or 202-512-5659 by 4 p.m. on the closing date of the announcement.

For technical issue with USAJOBS: Please refer to the USAJOBS help page.

Agency contact information

LaDonna Daniels
Address
Government Accountability Office
Human Capital Office
441 G Street NW
Washington, DC 20548
US

Next steps

After the closing date of this announcement, GAO's Human Capital Office will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications by reviewing your assessment questionnaire and resume to complete an analysis. Please be as complete and thorough as possible. If your application is rated "best-qualified," your name will be referred to the selecting official for consideration. At this point you may be contacted for an interview.

If you do not meet the key requirements and/or basic qualifications or you fail to submit all required application materials, your application will not be considered.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.