Legal Instruments Examiner
Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs See More Job Openings by This Employer
This position is located with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Great Plains Region in Aberdeen, South Dakota. This is a Bargaining Unit position, for more information see What are bargaining units? NOTE: TRAVEL AND RELOCATION EXPENSES WILL BE AUTHORIZED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FEDERAL TRAVEL REGULATIONS, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF REAL ESTATE EXPENSES UNDER THE CONTRACTOR-PROVIDED HOME SALE CONTRACT.
Duties- Analyze, examine or prepare title documents ensuring land/parcel transactions are accurate using standardized and well-established guidelines as a reference.
- Review and identify inaccuracies or inconsistencies in land/parcel title documents submitted to LTRO and used as a basis to update or change title ownership records.
- Review historical material and the addition of a land transaction(s). Use this information to prepare a certified chain of title within established performance timeframe.
- Record administrative changes to title ownership provided in final adjudicated probates issued by an administrative law judge
- Generates clear and concise title research findings and the corrective actions necessary to expedite corrections. Communications are with co-workers, BIA technical experts, members of the public, and Indian tribes.
- Record documents in an automated system and generate automated reports for certification and issuance to individual Indians, Tribes, or title companies within established deadlines.
- Scan or image hard copy documents into an electronic records system and retrieve electronic records
- $39,576 - $70,578/year
- U.S. Citizenship Required
- Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Preference Act of 1934 (title 25, USC Section 472). Form BIA -4432 must be submitted with the application if claiming Indian Preference.
- You will be required to have federal payments made by Direct Deposit
- You may be required to successfully complete a probationary/trial period
- A background security investigation will be required for all new hires. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication.
- If you are a male applicant born after 12/31/1959 and are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act, the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.
- If you are required to operate a motor vehicle in order to properly carry out assigned duties, the 25 IAM 4 Motor Vehicle Safety Program Policy applies. A Link is provided in the Additional Information Section.
GS-8: One (1) year of full-time specialized experience or the equivalent, comparable to at least the GS-7
grade level in the Federal Service (obtained in either the public or private sector). This experience must
include critical thinking skills, the ability to work with a team, research skills, oral communication,
development and maintenance of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), land/parcel examination or
recordation of title involving laws and regulations dealing with the lands and resources, understanding of
legal terminology, experience that provided a familiarity with real property laws and legal land
descriptions, land titles, tract maps, and legal documents, or other experience that involved explanation,
application, or interpretation of laws, regulations, policies, etc..
GS-7: One (1) year of full-time specialized experience or the equivalent, comparable to at least the GS-6
level in the Federal Service (obtained in either the public or private sector). This experience must include
familiarity with legal land descriptions, critical thinking skills, the ability to work with a team, writing
reports, research skills, oral communication, land/parcel examination or recordation of title involving laws
and regulations dealing with the lands and resources, understanding of legal terminology, experience that
provided a familiarity with real property laws and legal land descriptions, land titles, tract maps, and legal
documents, or other experience that involved explanation, application, or interpretation of laws,
regulations, policies, etc.
GS-6: One (1) year of full-time specialized experience or the equivalent, comparable to at least the GS-5
grade level in the Federal Service (obtained in either the public or private sector). This experience must
include familiarity with legal land descriptions, understanding of legal terminology, the ability to work with
a team, managing case files, research skills, attention to detail, land/parcel examination or recordation of
title involving laws and regulations dealing with the lands and resources, understanding of legal
terminology, experience that provided a familiarity with real property laws and legal land descriptions,
land titles, tract maps, and legal documents, or other experience that involved explanation, application, or
interpretation of laws, regulations, policies, etc.
GS-5: One (1) year of full-time specialized experience or the equivalent, comparable to at least the GS-4
grade level in the Federal Service (obtained in either the public or private sector). This experience must
include following well- established standard operating procedures to complete transactions, work well in a
team, have a track record of being conscientious with data entry, multitask with multiple competing
priorities and have and enjoy basic research to problem solve an issue.
OR
EDUCATION: Four (4) years of successfully completed education above the high school level in any field
at an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. (One year of
full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college
or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a
business, secretarial, or technical school.)
Specialized Experience - Experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills,
and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to
the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the
next lower grade level.
All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
Merit Promotion candidates must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the announcement closing date.
Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Preference Act of 1934 (title 25, USC Section 472).
Additional selections may be made from this announcement if identical vacancies occur in the same location within 90 days from the closing date. Education If you are qualifying based on your education, you MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement. If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society. One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study. If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education which shows the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: FOREIGN EDUCATION Other Information
All new hires earn the beginning salary of their pay grade (Step 1). See 2024 Salary Tables here and select the duty station from the Aberdeen, South Dakota to choose the appropriate pay chart. If no specific chart is listed for this geographic location, see the "rest of U.S." chart.
The full performance level of this position is GS-8 . Promotion potential in this announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date. A career ladder promotion is at the discretion of management, and in no way guaranteed.
TELEWORK: Indian Affairs has determined that the duties of the position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.
As an incidental motor vehicle operator position, you may be required to operate a government-owned or leased motor vehicle in the performance of duties; therefore, a valid driver's license is required and be able to meet the safe driving requirements of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (25 IAM 4 Motor Vehicle Safety Program).
Career Transition Assistance Programs: These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: (1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; (2) be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 85 or above; and, (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. For more information visit: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp .
Certain candidates may be eligible to apply under a special hiring authority including those for disabled individuals, Peace Corps employees, Foreign Service employees, veterans, etc. For more information, visit the following OPM websites: USAJOBS Information Center: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/; Vets Info Guide: http://www.fedshirevets.gov/.
Former Federal Employees are required to indicate whether they received a Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) buyout in their previous employment with the Federal government, and are required to submit a copy of the applicable Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) regarding the VSIP. Most individuals who accept reemployment with the Federal government within 5 years of receiving the VSIP amount, must repay the gross amount of the separation pay prior to reemployment.
The following documents are required for this position:
- Resume which details work experience including dates worked (mm/yy-mm/yy); position title; position series and grade (if federal service); work schedule; hours worked per week; relevant duties performed; supervisor with contact information, and 3 professional references and contact information (Do not include current/former supervisors), etc. Important! If your resume does not show complete information for each job entry, your application will be considered incomplete. Specifically:
- Beginning and ending dates (mm/yy) of employment,
- Work schedule (Full-time or Part-time), and
- Hours worked per week.
- For more information see What should I include in my federal resume
- On-line Assessment Questionnaire
- Transcripts (if using education to qualify) - Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; however, an official transcript may be requested at a later time.
- Veteran's documentation - (if applicable) VA letter on VA letterhead stating your overall combined rating, SF-15, DD-214 (copy 4) reflecting an honorable discharge and dates of active duty military service.
- Special Appointing Authority documentation (if applying under a special hiring authority)
- BIA Form 4432 (if claiming Indian preference)
- Performance Appraisal (if applying under the Land Management Flexibility Act)
- Current & Former Federal Employees
- If you are a current career or career-conditional Federal employee OR a former Federal employee who has reinstatement eligibility, you must submit the following by the closing date of this announcement, or you will not receive consideration as such:
-- a copy of a recent SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" documenting proof of competitive status, tenure, position title, occupational series, grade level and step; and
-- your most recent performance appraisal (if you do not have your most recent performance appraisal, please submit an explanation as to why it is unavailable); and
-- if applicable, a list of any awards you received in the last 5 years (i.e., superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.).
- If you are a current career or career-conditional Federal employee OR a former Federal employee who has reinstatement eligibility, you must submit the following by the closing date of this announcement, or you will not receive consideration as such:
If you are unable to apply online, require reasonable accommodation in the application process if you are an applicant with a disability, or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.
ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED BY 11:59 PM Eastern Time ON THE CLOSING DATE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. If your application package is incomplete in any way, you will not be considered for this position, and requests for extensions will not be granted. Please double check your application package before you submit it.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WILL NOT BE SOLICITED OR ACCEPTED BY THIS OFFICE.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
ONLINE APPLICATION SUBMISSION:
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.
- 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/ .
PLEASE NOTE - NO APPLICATION MATERIAL WILL BE ACCEPTED VIA E-MAIL.
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. Learn 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.
