Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results

Legal Assistant (Legal Access Officer)

Department of Justice
Justice, Bureau of Prisons/Federal Prison System
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Corrections professionals who foster a humane and secure environment and ensure public safety by preparing individuals for successful reentry into our communities.

Overview

Help
Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
11/10/2025 to 11/25/2025
Salary
$66,334 to - $84,996 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 08
Location
Seatac, WA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Travel may be required for training and/or work related issues.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
08
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
SET-2026-0011
Control number
849827600

This job is open to

Help

Clarification from the agency

• THIS IS A DELEGATED EXAMINING ANNOUNCEMENT OPEN TO ALL U.S. CITIZENS. • Duty Location: FDC Seatac, WA • NOTE: A 13% group retention incentive may be offered to selectee(s) who meet the criteria.

Duties

Help

Responsible for maintaining and addressing legal access for legal visits, legal phone calls, legal correspondence, access to discovery, legal access in emergent situations and access for populations with specific needs.

Support the implementation of policies, programs, and procedures related to legal access and will have a significant impact on the formulation or execution of institutional decisions on legal access.

Independently handles inquiries regarding legal access and serves as a resource to staff at their location, and to the public concerning legal access in the facility. This includes supporting the facility in providing a consistent process for communication around unexpected cancellation of legal visitation or scheduled legal calls by the facility.

Elevate legal access as an operational priority in the facility, improve legal access during the detention process, including access to counsel under the constitution, and may involve direct assistance to institutional staff by performing a segment of their work to achieve that goal.

Along with all other correctional institution employees, incumbent is charged with responsibility for maintaining security of the institution. The staffs correctional responsibilities precede all others required by this position and are performed on a regular and recurring basis.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is Required.
  • See Special Conditions of Employment Section.
  • Selective Service Requirement: http://www.sss.gov

Career Transition Programs (CTAP or ICTAP): These programs apply to Federal and/or DOJ employees who meet the definition of surplus or displaced from a position in the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must:

  • 1. Meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria;
  • 2. Be rated well-qualified for the position, scoring at least half of the total possible points for the vacancy KSAs or competencies; and
  • 3. Submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility.

NOTE: Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must complete all assessment questions to be rated under the established category rating criteria.

Qualifications

To be considered for the position, you must meet the following qualification requirements:

Education:

As a general rule, education is not creditable above GL-05 for most positions covered by this standard; however, graduate education may be credited in those few instances where the graduate education is directly related to the work of the position.

OR

Experience:

You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade level. To be creditable, this experience must have equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to successfully perform the duties of the position and must typically be in or related to the position to be filled.

Some examples of this qualifying experience are:

  • Experience with independently analyzing and interpreting information or sources relative to legal access and making appropriate recommendations to stakeholders.
  • Experience understanding criminal trial process as it relates to legal access and distinguishing between a variety of legal instruments including court order, petitions and complaints, Habeas, Bivens, Tort, Mandamus and various injunctive relief requests.
  • Experience serving as liaison between a facility and external stakeholders for legal access.
  • Experience with public speaking and communication, related to navigating complex legal access situations, and identifying ways to improve processes.

If applicable, credit will be given for paid and unpaid experience. To receive proper credit, you must show the actual time (such as the number of hours worked per week) spent in activities.

**Your eligibility for consideration will be based on your responses to the questions in the application.**

Education

See Qualifications Section for education requirements, if applicable.

ONLY if education is a requirement/substitution for specialized experience, applicant MUST upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement. Transcripts MUST be uploaded and electronically linked from USAJOBS at the time you apply and MUST include identifying information to include School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, Click Here.

Foreign Education: For information regarding foreign education requirements, please see Foreign Diploma and Credit Recognition at the U.S. Department of Education website: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.

If you are selected for this position and qualified based on education (i.e. basic education requirement and/or substitution of education), you will be required to provide an OFFICIAL transcript prior to your first day on duty.

Additional information

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 3307, a maximum entry age of 36 has been established for original appointment to a position in a Bureau of Prisons institution. If you are above the maximum entry age and have prior federal law enforcement coverage, you MUST submit an SF-50 to verify prior coverage. 

Qualified Preference Eligible Veterans may be exempt from meeting the maximum age. Please refer to the Required Documents Section for the appropriate documentation to submit to validate veteran eligibility.

Special Conditions of Employment Section:

Appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of a pre-employment and panel interview, urinalysis, physical, and background investigation.

All applicants are subject to and must satisfactorily pass all screening requirements in relation to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and credit check.

All applicants not currently working in an institution will be required to complete a qualification inquiry regarding convictions of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence in order to be authorized to carry a firearm.

The Core Value Assessment (CVA) is an in-person assessment that must be facilitated at a Bureau of Prisons Human Resource Servicing office. On the day of the scheduled interview, a CVA will be administered. The applicant assessment must be completed within a 70-minute time period and a passing score of 68 must be obtained. Further employment consideration will not be extended if the applicant fails to complete the examination or fails to achieve a passing score. Note: The Core Value Assessment will not be administered to current BOP employees.

Successful completion of the "Introduction to Correctional Techniques", three-week training course at Glynco, Georgia is required. 

Additional selections may be made if vacancies occur within the life of the certificate.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Exceptions may apply. See 5 CFR part 11.

NOTE: A 13% group retention incentive may be offered to selectee(s) who meet the criteria.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Based upon your responses to the assessment questions during the application process, your application will be placed into one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Applications will be reviewed from the top quality category. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement. If you are found qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to the responses you provided on the online assessment.

NOTE: Candidates within the top quality category and who are eligible for veterans preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

If you are entitled to veterans preference, you should indicate the type of veterans preference you are claiming on your resume. Although veterans preference points are not assigned under the category rating procedures described under "How You Will Be Evaluated", veterans preference eligibles are listed ahead of non-veterans within each category for which they are qualified.

Preference eligibles who meet the minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed in the highest quality category (except in the case of scientific or professional positions at the GS-9 level or higher). As noted above, an agency may not select a non-preference eligible in lieu of a preference eligible in the same category unless there are grounds for a passover and the agency has complied with the passover procedures at 5 U.S.C. § 3318(b).

What Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities are Required for this Position?

The following Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) are required:

  • Ability to plan, organize, and determine priorities.
  • Ability to analyze and interpret information and make recommendations.
  • Ability to communicate in writing, interpret, and edit written documentation.
  • Ability to communicate orally.

You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.