Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
- This employer participates in the e-Verify program.
- Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
- Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
- A trial period of up to 2 years for the purpose of assessing the ability of an individual to adequately perform in an attorney position will be established for appointments under these authorities. Previous Federal experience in like positions MAY count toward the completion of this requirement.
- Admission to the State Bar in any state within the U.S. or the District of Columbia is required. You must submit written documentation that you are a current member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or your application will not be considered.
- Incumbent is required to submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450), upon entering the position and annually.
- Overtime may be required on short notice to include nights, holidays and weekends in support of related mission requirements.
- Attorney-Advisor must be flexible and able to rotate area or representation between and among the various programs regional offices as needed.
Qualifications
Qualification requirements in the vacancy announcements are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook, which contains federal qualification standards. This handbook is available on the Office of Personnel Management's website located at: https://www.opm.gov/policy.
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must possess one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. The experience need not have been in the federal government.
NOTE. Two (2) years of progressively responsible professional experience as a practicing attorney in any of the following duty areas: Federal Administrative Law, including finance law, environmental law, property law, personnel law, labor law, and procurement law is preferred.
To qualify for the GS-13:
Applicants must have one year (52 weeks) of professional attorney legal experience and hold active Bar membership in good standing of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States, meet the educational requirements that clearly indicate the ability to independently perform complex legal work; AND have one year (52 weeks) of specialized experience at the GS-12 grade level or equivalent pay band. This experience includes all the following:
- Providing recommendations on questions of law and policy for endorsement by the supervisor.
- Preparing evidence and determining its value and completeness, preparing briefs, pleadings, exhibits, interviewing and deposes witnesses, engaging in discovery for administrative trials and hearings.
"Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. 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.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The majority of the work will be in an office setting, but the Attorney-Adviser must be able to travel. The position requires the ability to handle high levels of stress due to the adversarial nature of the position; handle situations in which quick thinking is required with no prior preparation; and work lengthy hours when a trial or hearing situation requires it.
WORK ENVIRONMENT: Work is performed in an office setting.
Education
Applicants must be a graduate of a law school accredited by the American Bar Association with a:
Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree;
OR Bachelor of Law (LL.B.) degree.
NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts
AND a copy of your BAR membership
. Failure to do so will result in your being removed from consideration. (A copy of your formal transcripts will be needed prior to a formal job offer is rendered).
Benefits
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.
Once the application process is complete, your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications. If you are minimally qualified for this job, your responses to the self-assessment questions (True/False, Yes/ No, Multiple Choice questions) will be evaluated and you will be placed into one of three pre-defined quality categories under Category Rating procedures. These categories are "Best Qualified", "Well Qualified", and "Qualified. 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.
Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):
Application of Veterans' Preference: If you are a preference eligible candidate, you will be listed at the top of whichever quality category your rating places you in. CP/CPS veterans are placed at the top of the highest category for all positions except professional and scientific positions at GS-9 and higher.
Career Transition Assistance Programs: To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet the eligibility criteria; and 2) be rated "well-qualified", which is defined as scoring in the Well Qualified category (or higher).
You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date (11/01/2024) of this announcement.
To preview the Assessment Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12571185
How to Apply
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 submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the announcement closing date to receive consideration.
The application process is as follows:
- You must have a login.gov account to sign into USAJOBS: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/account/.
- To begin the application process in USAJOBS, click the Apply Online button.
- Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all required and supporting documentation.
- You must click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 pm (ET) on the announcement closing date.
You may update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period by returning to your USAJOBS account, select Update Application:
https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
To verify the status of your application, during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account; 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/.
If you need help with login.gov or USAJOBS (e.g., account access, Resume Builder) visit the USAJOBS Help Center:
https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/
If you experience difficulty applying on USAJOBS, after clicking the Apply Online button, or you are experiencing a significant hardship hindering your ability to apply online, the Agency Contact listed in the announcement can assist you during normal business hours. If you receive any system error messages, take screenshots if possible, to aid technical support.
Next steps
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. The status of your application will be updated in USAJOBS as it is evaluated.
You can check the status by logging into USAJOBS. You may also sign up to receive automatic emails anytime the status of your application changes by logging into your USAJobs Account and editing the Notification Settings.
You will be contacted directly if an interview is required.