Land Law Examiner (Minerals)

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the qualification requirements – please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience. This position has an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR). Applicants must meet one of the below IOR to be considered: 1. Graduate education that includes 12 semester hours of course work related to the administration of land laws. Examples include course work in land surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising, land use planning, water rights, mining laws, or legal instrument review and interpretation. Graduate study alone may not provide the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to perform the work. Applicants may be required to have specialized experience at the appropriate grade level. OR 2. Experience in or directly related to examination or adjudication of cases involving laws and regulations dealing with lands and resources. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: Adjudication or examination of applications and claims for the disposal, use of, or title to public lands, issuance of leases, licenses, or permits for land or resources use, and resolving conflicts arising from use. General practice of law that included substantial involvement in examinations of titles or other legal transactions involving acquisition, lease, or disposal of land. Title searching, abstracting, or interpreting land records, survey plats, or tract indexes and books, provided the work demonstrated an understanding of the laws, regulations, and policies associated with land management programs. Work as a land appraiser that involved appraisal of undeveloped or marginal-type land. In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirement above, applicants must also meet the following qualification requirement in order to be considered for this position. FOR GS-09: You must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-07 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: (1) processing mineral leasing and mining law adjudicative cases; (2) adjudicating applications and agreements; (3) processing designation and resignation of unit cases. (NOTE: Your resume must clearly show this required specialized experience). -OR- Education: Master’s or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D., if related, in a directly related field such as surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising or land use planning water rights, mining laws, or legal instrument review and interpretation. (NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts). – OR- Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. FOR GS-11: You must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-09 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: (1) processing complex applications, claims or requests for a broad range of land or mineral leasing and mining laws; (2) Independently researching facts and evidence, locating precedents, and drafting letters, notices, and decisions; (3) Provide guidance on complex or unusual claims or applications for rights of interest in mineral leasing, mining, or public lands; (4) Coordinating land law cases with numerous parties or major interests and relatively high property or economic values. -OR- Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of graduate level education leading to such a degree, or LL.M., in a directly related field such as surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising or land use planning. – OR- Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. You must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement. Federal employees in the competitive service are also subject to the Time-In-Grade requirement in accordance with 5 CFR 300.604. If you are a current Federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks at the next lower grade level. Physical Demands: The work is predominantly sedentary although there is some walking, stooping, and bending involved when searching for records. Work Environment: The work is performed in a typical office setting.
This position is located in Montana/Dakotas State Office, Eastern Montana/Dakotas District Office, North Dakota Field Office located in Dickinson, North Dakota. Information about the area can be found at: Dickinson Chamber of Commerce. See Additional Information for negotiable duty locations. We expect to fill 3 vacancies at this time; however, additional positions may be filled from this announcement if they become available.