Duties

Summary

This position is located in the Clerk's Office of the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (the Panel).

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

The incumbent reports to the Operations Supervisor and provides primary docketing and data entry guidance and instruction to the Clerk's office staff and makes recommendations to the Clerk, Chief Deputy Clerk and CM/ECF Administrator for enhancements to the Panel's electronic case management system. Provides quality assurance of all electronic entries. The incumbent acts as Panel liaison for obtaining electronic transfers of data from CM/ECF courts throughout the Federal Judiciary.

The Panel is a statutory national court under federal jurisdiction and is governed principally by 28 U.S.C. § 1407. It was created by Congress in 1968. The statute provides that the Panel shall consist of seven Article III judges appointed by the Chief Justice, each of whom must reside in a different Circuit. The statute gives the Panel the authority to "centralize" related actions pending in different districts by ordering the transfer of all such actions into a single district for pretrial management. The Panel is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

Representative Duties
Duties to be performed include, but are not limited to the following:

• Trains, instructs and advises employees on specific tasks and docketing procedures. Checks the accuracy of daily data entries. Provides written instructions where applicable with the ultimate goal of maintaining database integrity.
• Promotes proper case management and performs internal quality assurance audits and data quality audits for the operations unit.
• Develops procedures and standards for data entry to ensure validity of the data, with special attention to elimination of redundancies.
• Opens cases upon receipt of initiating documents, such as motion or show cause order.
• Makes recommendations for improvements or enhancements to CM/ECF. Troubleshoots and, if necessary, advises appropriate automation staff of technical program problems.
• Acts as liaison for obtaining electronic transfers of data from CM/ECF courts for inclusion in the Panel's case management system. Ensures that the incoming data meets quality standards and, if not, sees that data is corrected or converted.
• Reviews orders received from transferee courts to determine if information, such as dismissal of cases, termination of parties or change of counsel, needs to be entered or updated in the Panel's case management system and follows through, as necessary and when appropriate, closes cases upon receipt of terminating documents, such as remand or dismissal order.
• Estimates expected time of completion of work, and prepares reports concerning these matters as requested. Reports to operations supervisor on the performance and training needs of docket clerks and provides feedback to supervisor for performance evaluations.
• Prepares orders for Clerk's signature and answers inquiries on case status from district courts, attorneys and the public.
• Maintains the Alchemy scanning database. Assists and provides back-up support for Calendar Clerk in all matters relating to Panel hearing sessions.

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
27

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior federal court operations experience (including CM/ECF) is highly preferable. Progressively responsible clerical, administrative, and/or training experience requiring the regular and recurring application of clerical procedures that demonstrate the ability to apply a body of rules, regulations, directives, or laws and involve routine use of specialized terminology, automated software and equipment for word processing, data entry and/or generating reports.

Qualifications

To qualify at the CL-26 level, applicant must possess at least one year of specialized experience which must be at or equivalent to CL-25. To qualify at the CL-27 level, applicant must possess two years of specialized experience, including at least one year which must be at or equivalent to CL-26.

Education

Candidate must be a high school graduate or equivalent. Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university desired.

Additional information

Pay System and Benefits
The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation falls within the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government. Panel employees are "Excepted Service Appointments". Excepted Service Appointments are "At-Will" and can be terminated with or without cause by the Panel at any time. Federal Government Civil Service classifications or regulations do not apply. Panel employees are subject to mandatory Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) for payroll deposit.

Full-time employees are eligible for a full range of benefits such as paid vacation and sick leave, paid holidays, retirement benefits that include a defined contribution program and the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). TSP is a 401(k) equivalent program that includes matching contributions. Additional benefits include health and life insurance, disability and long-term care insurance, dental and vision insurance, a Flexible Benefits Program which includes medical and dependent care reimbursement, and transit subsidy program. Appointees are subject to a one-year probationary period.

• The Federal Courts practices zero tolerance for illegal drug use.
• Those applicants selected for further consideration may be subject to testing.
• Applicants must be a United States Citizen or eligible to work in the United States.

THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER. IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Selection Process
Only qualified applicants will be considered. Incomplete applications may not be considered. The Panel does not pay travel expenses for interviews. The Panel reserves the right to modify the conditions of this job announcement or to withdraw the announcement without prior written or other notice. All information provided by applicants is subject to verification and background investigation. False statements or omission of information on any application materials may be grounds for non-selection, withdrawal of an offer of employment or dismissal after being employed.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

Attachments: (1) Cover letter, (2) Resume, (3) Contact information for three professional references, and (4) Completed "Application for the Judicial Branch Employment "(AO 78).

The cover letter must be less than three pages. Your application should include all required documents as one complete PDF attachment.

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.