SUPERVISORY ATTORNEY ADVISOR (Investigations Division Director)

Clarification from the agency

This position is in the excepted service.

The Administrative Investigations Directorate (AID) within the Office of Special Review and Evaluation (OSRE) conducts administrative investigations of allegations of misconduct by senior agency employees and complaints of whistleblower reprisal by agency employees, or employees of agency contractors, subcontractors, grantees, subgrantees or personal services contractors. The office also manages the OIG's Hotline which serves as the main point of contact for agency employees and members of the public to report fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement in agency programs and operations, and violations of law, regulations and policies by EPA and CSB employees, grantees, contractors and program participants.

The position serves as Director of the Investigations Division within OSRE's AID. The successful candidate will provide professional leadership and management of AID's senior employee misconduct and whistleblower reprisal investigations.

As an Investigations Division Director you will:

• Recruit, train, and motivate a multi-disciplinary team of high performing oversight personnel, including investigative attorneys and noncriminal investigators. Provide day-to-day supervision of investigative staff and issue and monitor work assignments. Identify and address skill gaps within the division and develop staff to support directorate succession planning.
• Manage and conduct timely and complex noncriminal investigations concerning serious and often sensitive misconduct and mismanagement allegations involving senior-level employees at the EPA, EPA OIG, and CSB and allegations of reprisal for whistleblowing by EPA or CSB employees or employees of EPA or CSB contractors, subcontractors, grantees, or subgrantees or personal services contractors. Includes conducting regular case reviews with investigative staff to monitor investigative progress, evaluate resources, identify potential challenges, and develop creative strategies to mitigate or overcome issues.
• Prepare and review legal documents and other materials in connection with ongoing investigations, including investigative plans, subpoenas and document requests, analytical memoranda, interview outlines and transcripts, and reports of investigation.
• Manage and conduct research on complex legal issues, interpret statutes, regulations, and legal decisions, prepare written or oral legal opinions, and review analysis for legal sufficiency of operations, policies, regulations, directives, memoranda and correspondence relating to AID.
• Manage the timely intake, review and processing of hotline complaints concerning allegations of senior employee misconduct and whistleblower reprisal for the investigations division. Ensure complainant information is kept confidential consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and OIG directives.
• Coordinate closely with the Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Administrative Investigations and internal and external stakeholders to advance the division's investigative work and priorities and foster information sharing.
• Formulate, recommend, and implement innovative policies, procedures, and processes to support the division's investigative work.

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Résumé and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
• Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation
• May be required to successfully complete a TWO YEAR period.
• This position is in the excepted service.
• Selectee will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report, OGE-450 annually.
• You will be required to submit proof of your active Bar membership
• Graduation from an American Bar Association-accredited law school
• A copy of your most recent performance appraisal (optional)

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all eligibility and qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Basic Requirements: Applicants must be (1) a graduate of an accredited law school with an LL.B. or J.D.; and (2) a current member of a bar with a valid license to practice law in a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. If selected, an official law school transcript and proof of an active bar membership will be required.

AND

To qualify for the GS-15 grade level, if you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-14 grade level in the federal sector, or the equivalent in the private sector. Applicants must have a minimum of 7 years post-JD experience engaged in the active practice of law and at least 5 years of experience as a litigator (in civil or criminal cases) or investigative attorney, or other relevant experience. Applicants must also show they possess the required technical qualifications related to this position on their resume.

Technical Qualifications:
TQ1: Demonstrated knowledge of and experience interpreting and applying Federal laws, rules, regulations, and court decisions involving employee misconduct, retaliation, or poor performance; whistleblower retaliation; and/or whistleblower rights and protections within the Federal system.
TQ2: Demonstrated experience in supervising, managing, planning, or conducting complex administrative or similar investigations that involve violations of federal law, rule, regulation, and/or policy and result in timely, high-quality investigative findings that are relied upon to take further action.

Evidence of the above specialized experience must be supported by detailed documentation of duties performed in positions held. Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position. Therefore, we encourage you to be clear and specific when describing your experience. We will not make assumptions regarding your experience or based on job titles alone. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

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.

Applicants must meet the qualifications for this position within thirty (30) days of the closing date of this announcement.

How you will be evaluated

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

Phase I: Your resume will be reviewed to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. ONLY two (2) pages of your resume will be reviewed. Additional information beyond your resume (e.g., cover letter, links embedded in your resume) will not be reviewed.

Applicants passing "Phase I" will move on to the "Phase II" of the assessment process where your application will be reviewed and rated based on the competencies listed in the vacancy announcement by a Subject Matter Expert (SME). Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents). Applicants who do not respond to the application questions may be rated ineligible.

Phase III: Applicants who successfully pass Phase II may be invited to participate in a structured interview. A designated interview panel will conduct the structured interview and evaluate applicants based on their responses to questions designed to assess the required competencies. The panel will assign a score for each competency based on the applicant's responses.

You will be assessed on the following competencies:

• Resilience
• Problem Solving
• Decision Making
• Customer Service
• Interpersonal Skills

If you are referred for consideration, you may be subject to additional assessments by the selecting official (e.g., technical writing sample or other work sample, job knowledge test, case scenario analysis, scientific data assessment, structured interview, etc.).

NOTE: If you exaggerate or falsify your experience, education and/or your responses to questions, your ratings are subject to change, or you may be removed from employment consideration.

Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with other Offices within the OIG community who have vacancies with the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in the same geographic location(s). Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive consideration. You may choose to opt in of having your information shared with other agencies when applying for this position. If an agency requests a copy of a certificate, you are on, you will be notified.

Documents to be submitted online:

1. Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. If your resume exceeds the two-page limit, you will be removed from consideration for this announcement. The resume and required supporting documentation should provide the minimum qualifications and relevant experience for the announced 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, and 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.
2. Proof of current and active bar association membership.
3. Copy of Law School Transcripts.
4. Other supporting documents:

• Cover Letter, (optional)
• Most Recent Performance Appraisal (optional)
• Current SF-50 (if external government employee)

Next steps