Requirements
Conditions of employment
- Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
- This position requires you to submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter.
- This position has a Temporary Duty (TDY) or business travel requirement of 10% of the time.
Qualifications
Who May Apply: US Citizens
In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.
Education Requirement: An applicant must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have the first professional law degree (LL.B. or JD.).
In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:
Specialized Experience for GS-13: Two or more years of professional legal experience. Examples of this experience are: (1) Advise Program or Project Manager or other manager or supervisor on matters pertaining to acquisition planning and contract formation; (2) litigating bid protests before the GAO or other agency review board; (3) reviewing and advising on contract administration matters, to include contract modifications and claims; (4) litigating contract disputes; (5) advising management on other areas highly relevant to federal practice, such as federal employment law or environmental matters, to include the Clean Water Act, National Environmental Policy Act, or CERCLA; and (6) prepare litigation reports and drafts pleadings and other legal documents required by the Department of Army and Department of Justice in various federal courts or administrative tribunals.
OR
Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position: must possess either an advance law degree such as an LLM (masters of law) or graduated with a distinguished record from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% of the class which may be substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience after being admitted to the bar. Examples of this experience are: (1) Advise Program or Project Manager or other manager or supervisor on matters pertaining to acquisition planning and contract formation; (2) litigating bid protests before the GAO or other agency review board; (3) reviewing and advising on contract administration matters, to include contract modifications and claims; (4) litigating contract disputes; (5) advising management on other areas highly relevant to federal practice, such as federal employment law or environmental matters, to include the Clean Water Act, National Environmental Policy Act, or CERCLA; and (6) prepare litigation reports and drafts pleadings and other legal documents required by the Department of Army and Department of Justice in various federal courts or administrative tribunals.
Specialized Experience for GS-14: Three or more years of professional legal experience. Examples of this experience are: (1) Independently advise Senior Leaders on all aspects of federal acquisition including the formation and administration of contracts, contract claims and appeals, agency and GAO protests, and the termination of contracts; (2) Litigate contract disputes or protests before federal courts, or federal boards of contract appeals; (3) Experience as a Procurement Fraud Advisor independently advising Senior Leaders on all aspects of possible suspension and debarment as well as coordinating a remedies plan with federal law enforcement agencies.
Bar Membership: An applicant must currently be an active member in good standing of the Bar of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (must provide a copy)
Fitness to Practice Law: An applicant must currently be fit to practice law. If your fitness to practice law, or your conduct has ever been challenged you must submit a sworn statement giving the facts and circumstances, together with any explanations you consider appropriate. The sworn statement should be notarized and dated within 3 months of the date of your application. (If you are currently employed as an attorney with The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, this requirement does not apply to you).
Time in Grade Requirement for Current Federal Employees for GS-13: Applicants who have held a General Schedule (GS) position within the last 52 weeks must have 52 weeks of Federal service at the next lower grade or equivalent (GS-12).
Time in Grade Requirement for Current Federal Employees for GS-14: Applicants who have held a General Schedule (GS) position within the last 52 weeks must have 52 weeks of Federal service at the next lower grade or equivalent (GS-13).
Education
FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Additional information
- Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
- You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
- Two year trial period may be required.
- Direct Deposit of Pay is required.
- This position requires you to submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter.
- Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees.
- If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.
- This is a Legal Career Field position
- Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
- Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement.
- Payment of Permanent Change of Station (PCS) costs is not authorized, based on a determination that a PCS move is not in the Government interest.
- Situational Telework may be authorized at the discretion of the agency.
- A Relocation, Recruitment, Student Loan Repayment, Advance in Hire or Advance Leave Accrual incentive may be authorized if it is in the best interest of the government.
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.
Review our 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 announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.
If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position.
Basis for Rating: If eligible and meeting basic qualifications, your application package will be evaluated in conjunction with your résumé and supporting documents for the required knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to successfully perform the duties of this position:
Knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to successfully perform the duties of this position:
1. Knowledge and experience with federal laws, regulations, policies, and procedures in research, analysis, and effectively advising regarding contract and/or construction law, with more weight given to federal government contract law experience.
2. Ability to analyze problems, documents and proposed courses of action; identify any client objectives and legal issues involved; research and interpret pertinent laws, regulations, and precedents; and formulate well-researched and well-reasoned advice that is responsive to client needs.
3. Ability to balance multiple national (external) and agency (internal) program goals and priorities; ability to review program implementation and results; ability to balance customer programs with legal goals and priorities; and ability to develop and utilize innovative approaches in solving problems and issues.
4. Ability to organize work effectively to meet established deadlines and priorities.
5. Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, with diverse clients and constituencies on varied and complex topics.
Veterans and Military Spouses will be considered along with all other candidates.
Required Documents
The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist for Public Announcements.
As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.
1. Your resume:
- Your resume must be two pages or less and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.
- For each relevant work experience, make sure you include the employer's name, job title, start and end dates (include month and year), for qualifications purposes, the number of hours worked per week, and a brief description that show you can perform the tasks at the required level listed in the job announcement. If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as incomplete, and you may not receive consideration for this position.
- Use plain language. Avoid using acronyms and terms that are not easily understood. The hiring agency will not make assumptions about what's in your resume.
- If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations, and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
- For additional information, to include formatting tips, see: What to include in your resume.
2. Other supporting documents:
- Cover Letter, optional
- Most recent Performance Appraisal, if applicable
- Time-in-grade documentation: If you are applying for a higher grade and your SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you meet the one year time-in-grade requirement so you will need to provide an SF-50 which clearly demonstrates you meet the time-in-grade requirements (examples of appropriate SF-50s include Promotions, Within-grade Grade/Range Increases, and SF-50s with an effective date more than one year old).
- This position has an individual occupational requirement and/or allows for substitution of education for experience. If you meet this requirement based on education you MUST submit a copy of your transcript with your application package or you will be rated ineligible. See: Transcripts and Licenses
In addition to the above documentation, you must also provide the following:
3. If you are a current U.S. Army Corps of Engineers attorney, you MUST submit the following documents:
- Your latest non-award Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50);
- A writing sample (Optional, Not Required) NOTE: Writing samples shall not exceed 10 pages
4. If you are NOT a current U.S. Army Corps of Engineers attorney, you MUST submit the following documents:
- Copy of law school transcripts AND an official statement of relative standing in your class, or official statement demonstrating the unavailability of class standing information (official copies will be required if selected and before placement);
- Certificate issued by the Bar Registrar or similar official showing that you are a member in good standing with the Bar of a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia, dated NO MORE THAN 90 days before the opening date of this announcement (a copy is sufficient for the application, but a certified copy may be necessary upon selection);
- A sworn statement, certifying that your fitness to practice law or your conduct as an attorney has never been challenged in any jurisdiction. This statement MUST be notarized, on a date NO MORE THAN 3 months before the opening date of this announcement. If your fitness to practice law or your conduct as an Attorney has been challenged in any jurisdiction, you must provide a notarized statement concerning the facts and circumstances, and any other explanation that you deem appropriate;
- The names of three professional references who are each members of the Bar of a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia.
- A writing sample NOTE: Writing samples shall not exceed 10 pages.
NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.
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.