Summary
This position is located in the Division of Litigation and General Law, Office of Chief Counsel, Maritime Administration. This position is established to provide advice and representation on a wide range of Federal Environmental law issues. The employee provides planning guidance to the environmental implications of the Maritime Administration’s various programs.
This job is open to
Clarification from the agency
Applications will be accepted from any U.S. Citizen.
This position is in the Excepted Service. For information on the Excepted Service, please visit: Excepted Service Appointing Authorities@ http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-authorities/excepted-service/
Duties
As an Attorney Advisor (Environmental) you will:
- Provide legal advice, guidance, and legal services relating to operating units with the Maritime Administration on matters involving: the application of international, Federal, state, and local environmental laws affecting the maritime industry, as well as proposals for such laws.
- Serve as Agency counsel to the Department of Justice in proceedings before the Federal courts relating to the activities of the Maritime Administration, particularly where such litigation involves environmental compliance issues.
- Represent the Office of the Chief Counsel and/or the Maritime Administration in meetings with other operating units within the Department of Transportation or with other Governmental entities with particular, although not necessarily exclusive, reference to environmental laws.
- Perform research on general law issues as assigned relating to the programs and operations of the Maritime Administration; investigate facts and statues, regulations, policies, and case law applicable to claims by or against the Maritime Administration arising under the statutes, regulations and other laws applicable to the Maritime Administration, such as actions brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act, the Suits in Admiralty Act, the Public Vessels Act, or the Jones Act.
- Provide legal advice and guidance to operating units within the Maritime Administration to ensure compliance with the applicable laws of the United States and international law, with particular reference to the environmental laws applicable to the Maritime Administration’s operations.
- Handle litigation as assigned relating to the programs and operations of the Maritime Administration.
The ideal candidate must have solid analytic skills in terms of statutes and regulatory issues and be currently admitted to legal practice in a State or other jurisdiction of the United States.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- This is an Excepted Service position.
- Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.
- Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
- You must be a U.S. Citizen and eligible for consideration.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
- SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
- TRIAL PERIOD: This is an Excepted Service position. This job will be filled by an alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive service. Applicants selected for an excepted service position may be subject to a two-year trial period.
- GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
- BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: You will be required to complete a background/security investigation and meet preliminary requirements prior to onboarding.
- ETHICS/CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT: All employees are subject to the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 2635, including restrictions on owning financial interests that may conflict with performance of their duties. Some employees, like those involved in contracting or regulating non-Federal entities, are subject to Executive Branch Financial Disclosure requirements set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 263.
- POSITION SENSITIVITY AND RISK: Varies by position and will be based on the position to which appointed.
- TELEWORK: This position may be eligible for occasional and/or regularly scheduled telework. The number of telework days approved will be determined by your immediate supervisor or manager following the agency’s telework policy and guidance. If participating in the telework program, you will be required to sign a telework agreement detailing agency telework policy requirements, working conditions, and expectations for the position.
Qualifications
To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must meet the specialized experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration.
To qualify for the Grade 12, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-11 it must include:
- The candidate for the Attorney Advisor (Environmental) position in the Office of Chief Counsel, Division of Litigation and General Law, must have experience researching facts, statutes, regulations, policies, and case law, and composing papers presenting facts, analysis, and conclusions with reference to environmental law and some working knowledge of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
To qualify for the Grade 13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include:
- The candidate for the Attorney Advisor (Environmental) position in the Office of Chief Counsel, Division of Litigation and General Law, must have at least one year of full-time legal experience post-graduation, during which time the candidate must have provided advice and representation on a full range of environmental law issues with moderate expertise with regards to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Clean Water Act (CAA), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).
To qualify for the Grade 14, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-13, it must include:
- The candidate for the Attorney Advisor (Environmental) position in the Office of Chief Counsel, Division of Litigation and General Law, must have at least two years of full-time legal experience post-graduation, during which time the candidate must have provided advice and representation on a full range of environmental law issues relating to government programs; worked on a wide range of legal concepts, principles, and practices; developing and presenting written and oral legal analyses and conclusions of law; and interpreting complex statutory framework with significant expertise with regard to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Clean Water Act (CAA), and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The candidate also must have some experience in environmental litigation.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
- Knowledge of Maritime - Related operations and the environmental issues associated with the operation of vessels and port facilities.
- Strong Interpersonal Skills - Must be able to interact and communicate with others within the Federal Government and with the public.
- Written Communication - Ability to write clearly with respect to correspondence and to provide sound and succinct legal analyses.
For all types of consideration, 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.
All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS:
In order to qualify for this position, candidates must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have a professional law degree and must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.
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.
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.
DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume/ application does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Your resume must contain sufficiently detailed information upon which to make a qualification determination. Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level
For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational and specialized experience requirements.
Applicants will not be rated or ranked.
All applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.
The answers you select in the on-line process must be substantiated in your application package. If upon review, it is determined that your described work history, competencies, and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, you may not be referred to the selecting official. Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. You may preview questions for this vacancy.
Required Documents
RESUME: Your resume MUST contain specific information used to make a qualification determination that includes employment beginning and ending dates for each position, whether employment is Full-time or Part-time or average number of hours worked per week, and position titles. If the position is/was in the Federal government, you will need to provide the position series and grade level. The resume should show relevant experience and education as well as support the required specialized experience. Formatted resumes may be uploaded later in the application process. For assistance with the resume builder, please visit: https://help.usajobs.gov//Help/how-to/account/documents/resume/build/
TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED as there is a stated education requirement for the series. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS/INCENTIVE AWARDS: If applicable, performance appraisals and/or Incentive award documentation may be submitted and will be forwarded to the selecting official as support in consideration of your application in the evaluation process. To receive credit, you must submit a recent performance appraisal (dated within 18 months) showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable (do not submit a performance plan) and/or incentive award documentation dated within the last 18 months (i.e. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increases, etc.).
VETERANS: Your last DD214 (member 4 copy), Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, that shows the type of discharge and all dates of active duty is required to verify your eligibility. It need not be official.
- If you are applying to a vacancy opened to all US Citizens under category rating and wish to be considered as a preference eligible, you need to submit a copy of your DD214 (member-4 copy).
- If you are claiming preference eligibility as a disabled veteran, you must submit proof of entitlement of this preference which is normally a valid letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability. An SF-15 is desired, but not required.
- If you are applying to a vacancy opened Status and you are requesting consideration under Veteran's Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) (https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/shav/#veoa), you need to provide a copy of your last DD214 (member-4 copy), which verifies your military service dates, reason for separation, OR certification of separation that shows a discharge date within 120 days of the closing of this announcement, and eligibility for consideration under the Veterans Employment Opportunity Act.
FEDERAL APPLICANTS: You must submit SF-50(s) that verify your highest competitive grade, full performance level, and eligibility as a federal applicant. DO NOT submit an award SF-50 as these often do not verify grade or eligibility. For consideration for a promotion, Box 4 of the SF-50 must show a date that is at least 52 weeks prior to the job announcement closing. We recommend submitting your last promotion SF-50 or within-grade increase SF-50. Pay adjustment raise SF-50s for the current year will not support the 52 weeks’ time-in-grade requirements. https://help.usajobs.gov/working-in-government/service/sf-50
NON COMPETITIVE APPLICANTS: If requesting concurrent consideration for Non-competitive (NC) appointment eligibility, you must provide the appropriate SPECIAL APPOINTING AUTHORITY DOCUMENTS, such as PCS orders (military spouse) describing move & marriage certificate; letter from VA or DD214 describing 100% disability of spouse; letter from State Vocational Office certifying disability (schedule A), etc. For more information, visit military spouse NC appointments or Persons with Disabilities NC appointments.
DISPLACED EMPLOYEES: If requesting consideration under the Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency CTAP program (ICTAP), you must meet the well qualified standards for this vacancy (meeting minimum requirements for position and scoring at least an 85) and provide all of the following documents:
- your most recent performance appraisal,
- the proof of eligibility letter from the Agency, and
- your most current SF-50, displaying current series and grade.
Displaced employees may be eligible for ICTAP or CTAP priority consideration. For more information, please review the OPM Employee's Guide to Career Transition.
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.
How to Apply
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than 11:59 pm (EST) on the closing date of the announcement.
- To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting.
- Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
- You may review your saved application(s) at https://help.usajobs.gov/
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at: Transjobs@dot.gov
Next steps
Within two weeks of the closing date, a Human Resources Specialist will evaluate your application. You may check your application status by logging into USAJobs.com. (Select "My USAJOBS" and click "Applications").
Ratings will be determined based on the documents and information received by the closing date.
If you are selected for an interview, the hiring agency will contact you directly. Once the position is filled, we will notify all applicants of their final status.
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