This position serves as a Legal Administrative Specialist, located in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Pardon Attorney (PARDON) in Washington, DC. The primary purpose of this position is to review and investigate applications for the restoration of firearm rights and executive clemency, prepare cases for attorney evaluation, provide legal assistance and some research on various related matters, and carry out special projects at the direction of a team group leader.
Summary
This position serves as a Legal Administrative Specialist, located in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Pardon Attorney (PARDON) in Washington, DC. The primary purpose of this position is to review and investigate applications for the restoration of firearm rights and executive clemency, prepare cases for attorney evaluation, provide legal assistance and some research on various related matters, and carry out special projects at the direction of a team group leader.
This position is being advertised under delegated examining procedures and is open to all U.S. Citizens. Preference for eligible veterans will be applied.
As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.
The primary purpose of the Legal Administrative Specialist position is to provide The Office of the Pardon Attorney (PARDON) staff with essential clerical and administrative legal support services and correspondence management.
Serve as a subject matter expert, authoritative resource, and point of contact on complex matters concerning statutes/laws, regulatory requirements, decisions, policies, practices, precedents and legal issues pertaining to federal programs, including 18 U.S.C. ยง 925(c) programs, the National Firearms Act, executive clemency and others
Independently perform legal research and comprehensive analysis of sensitive, highly complex requests/inquiries, related broad issues/problems involved, and details to effectively, appropriately, and efficiently respond
Identify, interpret, analyze, and apply applicable case law, legal precedents, legal decisions/opinions, prior determinations, court rulings, legislative history, Federal and state statutes, regulations, Uniform Code of Military Justice, and other related material for clarification of laws and uses in the successful disposition of important matters or investigations addressed to The Office of the Pardon Attorney
Compose other report and various correspondence such as memos involving terminology, clarifications or changes of law for all PARDON employees and external agencies to utilize in making their determinations
You will be required to complete a pre-employment security investigation and background check which includes a drug screening.
You may be required to complete a one-year probationary or trial period.
Selective Service registration is required for males born on, or after, December 31st 1959. Those not registered should have an approved exemption on file.
You must meet all eligibility requirements by the closing date of this announcement and continue to meet these requirements throughout the hiring process. Offers can be rescinded if requirements are not met.
Additional selections may be made from this announcement, at any time, if openings occur in other offices serviced by Justice Management Division, HR Operations.
A USA Hire assessment is required. An email will be sent with additional information after you submit your application. You will have 48 hours from the closing date of this announcement to complete the assessment.
Qualifications
To qualify for the position of Legal Administrative Specialist, (GS-0901-12), you must meet the basic qualification requirements listed below AND possess the required specialized experience specific to the series and grade you are applying to.
For the GS-12: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience at the GS-11 grade level or equivalent pay band in the Federal Service. Specialized experience is defined as: Analyze information to provide attorneys recommendations regarding outcomes, adjudication, or restoration of rights; Prepare cases for attorney evaluation or litigation preparation; Draft legal correspondence, memos, or technical materials appropriate for the intended audience; AND Utilize legal research tools for cases, opinions, statutes or laws, records, references, or historical material.
You MUST meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/22/2025.
Your resume must support your responses to the questionnaire and qualification requirements. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating. See the Required Documents section for important notes about what must be included in your resume.
After you submit this application, you will receive an e-mail informing you that a USA Hire assessment is required of you. You will have 48 hours from the closing date of this announcement (09/22/2025) to complete the assessment as this assessment is part of your application.
Education
For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone. No substitution of education for experience is permitted.
SELECTIVE SERVICE: If you were born male, on or after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. Additional information is found at: www.sss.gov.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION REQUESTS: DOJ policy can be found at:https://www.justice.gov/jmd/reasonable-accommodation#policy. If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire
This position is included in the bargaining unit.
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.
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.
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.
Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the Occupational Questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If it is determined you meet minimum qualification requirements, your application will then be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.
When addressing the specialized experience statement, applicants must present evidence of the experience in their resume. If the specialized experience statement is repeated, in the applicant's resume, Human Resources will deem the applicant as ineligible.
Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, and other characteristics):
Attention to Detail
Customer Service
Decision Making
Flexibility
Integrity/Honesty
Interpersonal Skills
Learning
Reading Comprehension
Reasoning
Self-Management
Stress Tolerance
Teamwork
In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.
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:
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.
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.
Documentation requirements may vary from applicant to applicant based on your eligibility claims.
For example, Veteran documents would be required only from applicants claiming Veteran's Preference. It is your responsibility to carefully review the list of document descriptions below, to see which documents are required for your application.
ALL APPLICANTS: You must submit a detailed resume (2 page maximum) containing the following pieces of information for each job entry listed in your employment history:
Contact Information: Name, address, phone number, and email,
Official position title,
Employer name and contact information,
Start and end dates (including month and year),
A detailed list of duties & accomplishments,
Your grade/step achieved, and
The number of hours worked per week (or indicate full-time).
If you're unsure about what to include in your resume, please review the USAJOBS Resume Writing Tutorial on YouTube. You are encouraged to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder, as this will ensure you're including everything that is required.
When claiming a Veteran's Preference, you must submit your last DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) form, specifically the Member #4 Copy, indicating dates and character of service and discharge type.
If you are a Veteran with a service-connected disability rating, you will need to additionally submit the SF-15 (Application for 10-point Veterans Preference) and a copy of your VA Letter stating your disability rating.
If you are the qualifying parent or spouse of a disabled, deceased, or deployed Veteran, and are seeking a derived preference eligibility, you must submit appropriate supporting documentation such as the Veterans DD-214, SF-15, VA Letter, and/or Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders. See Veteran Family Preference for more information.
If you are a Purple Heart recipient, you will need to submit a copy of your Member 4 DD-214 or other official documentation.
If you are claiming Veteran's Preference under the VOW Act, you will need to submit a certification letter from the armed forces that certifies you are expected to be discharged or released from active duty service in the armed forces under honorable conditions no later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.? This letter must contain (a) military service dates including the expected discharge or release date and (b) character of service.
For more information on each type of Veterans Preference, and the documentation required for each, see FedsHireVets.
If you are a displaced Federal employee claiming eligibility under CTAP or ICTAP:
A copy of the agency notice (i.e., letter of intent, separation notice, or agency RIF letter),
Your most recent performance appraisal, and
Most recent SF-50 showing current/former position, grade, promotion potential, and duty location.
If you are using education to qualify for this position, or education is required:
You must submit a transcript, which may be unofficial, as long as it contains a full listing of courses, credit earned, grade and grade-point-average, subject area, degree(s) earned, and dates of award.
Your transcript must come from a nationally-accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education.
Please do not submit electronic transcripts with documentation security protection, these may prevent our application system from accepting and processing the document.
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online assessment and submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/22/2025 to receive consideration. The application process is as follows:
To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button
Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.
Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59PM (ET) on 09/22/2025.
After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder.
Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account.
To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Update Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application, including the invitation to take the USA Hire assessment. 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/
Office of the Pardon Attorney
2 Constitution Square
145 N Street NE
Room 5E.300
Washington, DC 20530
US
Next steps
Based on your application and your responses to the application questionnaire, you may be presented with instructions on how to access the USA Hire system to complete the online assessments. The online assessments must be completed within 48 hours following the close of this announcement. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation for the assessment should you have a disability covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Your assessment results will be kept on record for one year and used toward future positions for which you might apply that require the same assessments.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
Documentation requirements may vary from applicant to applicant based on your eligibility claims.
For example, Veteran documents would be required only from applicants claiming Veteran's Preference. It is your responsibility to carefully review the list of document descriptions below, to see which documents are required for your application.
ALL APPLICANTS: You must submit a detailed resume (2 page maximum) containing the following pieces of information for each job entry listed in your employment history:
Contact Information: Name, address, phone number, and email,
Official position title,
Employer name and contact information,
Start and end dates (including month and year),
A detailed list of duties & accomplishments,
Your grade/step achieved, and
The number of hours worked per week (or indicate full-time).
If you're unsure about what to include in your resume, please review the USAJOBS Resume Writing Tutorial on YouTube. You are encouraged to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder, as this will ensure you're including everything that is required.
When claiming a Veteran's Preference, you must submit your last DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) form, specifically the Member #4 Copy, indicating dates and character of service and discharge type.
If you are a Veteran with a service-connected disability rating, you will need to additionally submit the SF-15 (Application for 10-point Veterans Preference) and a copy of your VA Letter stating your disability rating.
If you are the qualifying parent or spouse of a disabled, deceased, or deployed Veteran, and are seeking a derived preference eligibility, you must submit appropriate supporting documentation such as the Veterans DD-214, SF-15, VA Letter, and/or Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders. See Veteran Family Preference for more information.
If you are a Purple Heart recipient, you will need to submit a copy of your Member 4 DD-214 or other official documentation.
If you are claiming Veteran's Preference under the VOW Act, you will need to submit a certification letter from the armed forces that certifies you are expected to be discharged or released from active duty service in the armed forces under honorable conditions no later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.? This letter must contain (a) military service dates including the expected discharge or release date and (b) character of service.
For more information on each type of Veterans Preference, and the documentation required for each, see FedsHireVets.
If you are a displaced Federal employee claiming eligibility under CTAP or ICTAP:
A copy of the agency notice (i.e., letter of intent, separation notice, or agency RIF letter),
Your most recent performance appraisal, and
Most recent SF-50 showing current/former position, grade, promotion potential, and duty location.
If you are using education to qualify for this position, or education is required:
You must submit a transcript, which may be unofficial, as long as it contains a full listing of courses, credit earned, grade and grade-point-average, subject area, degree(s) earned, and dates of award.
Your transcript must come from a nationally-accredited educational institution recognized by the Department of Education.
Please do not submit electronic transcripts with documentation security protection, these may prevent our application system from accepting and processing the document.
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online assessment and submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/22/2025 to receive consideration. The application process is as follows:
To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button
Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.
Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59PM (ET) on 09/22/2025.
After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder.
Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account.
To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Update Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application, including the invitation to take the USA Hire assessment. 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/
Office of the Pardon Attorney
2 Constitution Square
145 N Street NE
Room 5E.300
Washington, DC 20530
US
Next steps
Based on your application and your responses to the application questionnaire, you may be presented with instructions on how to access the USA Hire system to complete the online assessments. The online assessments must be completed within 48 hours following the close of this announcement. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation for the assessment should you have a disability covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Your assessment results will be kept on record for one year and used toward future positions for which you might apply that require the same assessments.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
