Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is the legal department for CSOSA and Pretrial Services Agency (PSA), providing a full range of legal advisory and representational services to support CSOSAs mission, goals and objectives. This Office also provides advisory informational assistance to the United States Courts, United States Probation Officers and other Federal and state officials, all with respect to CSOSAs legal position on a wide range of criminal justice and administrative matters.
Duties
Assist the General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel in responding to questions from agency staff related to conflicts-or-interest and financial disclosure concerns. Provides authoritative legal advice and formal opinions on criminal and correctional law issues, torts, liability, labor and employment, procurement, appropriations ethics, and FOIA/Privacy Act. Serves as legal advisor on difficult and substantive legal problems affecting the plans and operations of several related programs. Conducts research on legal issues that affect a significant segment of public interest. Serves as an organizational or agency representative for discussions regarding legal issues in a specialty area, for example copy rights. Addresses legal issues that are specific to the specialty area. Provides legal assistance in litigation involving CSOSA and PSA (Pretrial Services Agency), e.g., prepares answers to interrogatories, draft pleadings, performs legal research of complex legal issues for use at trial, provides advisory assistance to U.S. Attorneys in trial and appellate presentation. Incumbent prepares investigative reports and position papers, based on CSOSA policy, statutory authority and case law. Prepares authoritative descriptive and background reports, compilations, surveys, comparisons of laws and bills, and other written products on significant legal issues of national or international significance.
Salary
Qualifications
Applicant must possess a J.D. or LL.B. degree and be an active member of the bar in good standing (any jurisdiction). In addition, applicant must have four years of post J.D./LL.B. experience, four years of which were in or related to Federal laws, rules and regulations related to labor-management relations, torts, criminal law, FOIA, Privacy Act, EEO, Federal employment law, human resources management, Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), Bivens, appropriations law, Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and the Administrative Procedures Act. Moreover, incumbent must have prior litigation experience and must have experience practicing before a minimum of one of the following forums: the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; the Merit Systems Protection Board; the Federal Labor Relations Authority; arbitrators; or before a federal or state court. 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.
Education
Applicant must possess a J.D. or LL.B. degree, accredited by the American Bar Association Positive Education Requirement: This position has a specific education requirement; all applicants must verify completion of this basic education requirement by submitting a copy of college unofficial transcripts by the closing date of the vacancy announcement. ARE YOU USING YOUR EDUCATION TO QUALIFY? You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement. PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society. GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study. 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html
Required Documents
You must submit a complete Application Package which includes: -Your responses to the Online Assessment Questionnaire (This is completed automatically during the apply online process).To apply for this position, - Your 2-page resume showing work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment and duties performed. -Law school transcript (unofficial) -Current certificate from a government agency confirming that the applicant is a member in good standing of a State or District of Columbia bar. -Written narrative demonstrating experience in 3 or more of the above-mentioned subject matter areas of a federal practice within a General Counsel's office or the private sector equivalent. - Writing sample shall not exceed 10 pages including cover sheets, tables of content, etc. Any pages after page 10 will be discarded and not considered. - Most recent SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action" showing you are/were in the competitive service and the highest grade or promotion potential held (if applying as a status candidate with current or former Federal Service) - DD-214, SF-15 Form and VA letter, or certification of expected discharge or release from active duty from Veterans for consideration under Veteran hiring authorities -Copy of the applicant's most recent performance appraisal (or an explanation of why a performance appraisal cannot be provided) - Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program Documentation, if applicable (e.g. Certification of Expected Separation, Reduction-In-Force Separation Notice, or Notice of Proposed Removal; SF-50 that documents the RIF separation action; and most recent performance appraisal.) If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and will not be considered any further.
How to Apply
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and submit all required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: Click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about two (2) hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: Visit https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application.
