Attorney-Advisor (Trademark)

This position is located in the Register Protection Office within the Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Examination Policy at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. As a Trademark Attorney Advisor, you will analyze legal issues involving trademark law, register protection, and fraud-related matters, and assist in developing legal analyses, recommendations, and policy guidance to support efforts that safeguard the integrity of the federal trademark register.

Duties

The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria,Virginia. Presence at the Alexandria, VA campus is a requirement for this role as this position includes on-site functions that must be performed in-person. Position may be eligible for situational telework in accordance with agency policy/business unit discretion. The agency currently allows for 52 hours of telework per calendar year.

The individual selected for this position will…

• Collaborate with a diverse and highly skilled team to address improper behavior, intentional violations of USPTO rules, and inaccurate or fraudulent trademark submissions.
• Lead analysis of proposed legislation, rulemaking decisions, and legal developments affecting trademark matters, agency policy, strategic planning, international treaty obligations, and stakeholders across the USPTO, Department of Commerce, and related communities.
• Prepare concise summaries of trademark decisions issued by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
• Conduct legal research on complex factual, legal, and policy issues and provide legal advice and guidance regarding applicable privilege claims in response to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

Salary

• $121,785 - $197,200/year

Conditions of Employment

• Applicants will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
• Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies.
• You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
• Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
• Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov) Suitable for Federal employment.
• If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period.
• You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
• You must submit documentation showing that you are an active member of the Bar in Good Standing of any State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or any Territorial Court under the U.S. Constitution.
• This position requires filing a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) upon appointment and annually thereafter.

Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at General Attorney Series, 0905.

Specialized experience is experience that has equipped applicants with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the federal service.

To qualify for this position at the GS-13 level, you must possess at least one (1) year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level AND two (2) years of the Professional Legal/Law Experience.

Specialized experience for this position includes: (1) performing legal research in the area of trademark law or closely related areas; (2) applying knowledge of trademark law to draft analyses, summaries, or recommendations in support of legal counsel; AND (3) assisting internal and external stakeholders by researching and drafting responses to policy-related questions under the guidance of senior attorneys.

AND

Professional Legal/Law Experience is defined as having experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled in the area. This experience is characterized by breadth and depth of experience in rendering professional legal advice and services with respect to questions, regulations, practices, or other matters falling within the purview of a Federal government agency, private sector, law firm, or other organization; preparing interpretative and administrative orders, rules, or regulations to give effect to the provisions of governing statutes or other requirements of law; drafting, negotiating, or examining contracts or other legal documents; drafting, preparing formal comments, or making substantive recommendations regarding proposed legislation; editing and preparing for publication statutes enacted by Congress and opinions or decisions of a court, commission, or board; drafting and reviewing decisions for consideration and adoption by an organization or official; conducting investigations to obtain facts; determines questions of law; studies, analyzes and evaluates legal precedents, to present findings. Legal work is described as extremely complex and difficult and requires a high order of original and creative legal endeavor in balancing conflicting interests; has broad or wide-scope impact on an economy, industry, private or public interests; and may involve directly or indirectly very large sums of money. Work may also involve acting as principal attorney in charge of the preparation and presentation of cases; recommending policies and developing procedures and regulations to implement new or amended legislation; and acting as legal, general or senior counsel to a major firm or organization.

To qualify for this position at the GS-14 level, you must possess at least one (1) year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the GS-13 grade level AND three (3) years of the Professional Legal/Law Experience.

Specialized experience for this position includes: (1) performing legal research in the area of trademark law; (2) utilizing knowledge of trademark law to recommend procedural and substantive changes to the legal counsel; AND (3) assist internal and external stakeholders with any policy-related questions.

AND

Professional Legal/Law Experience is defined as having experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled in the area. This experience is characterized by breadth and depth of experience in rendering professional legal advice and services with respect to questions, regulations, practices, or other matters falling within the purview of a Federal government agency, private sector, law firm, or other organization; preparing interpretative and administrative orders, rules, or regulations to give effect to the provisions of governing statutes or other requirements of law; drafting, negotiating, or examining contracts or other legal documents; drafting, preparing formal comments, or making substantive recommendations regarding proposed legislation; editing and preparing for publication statutes enacted by Congress and opinions or decisions of a court, commission, or board; drafting and reviewing decisions for consideration and adoption by an organization or official; conducting investigations to obtain facts; determines questions of law; studies, analyzes and evaluates legal precedents, to present findings. Legal work is described as extremely complex and difficult and requires a high order of original and creative legal endeavor in balancing conflicting interests; has broad or wide-scope impact on an economy, industry, private or public interests; and may involve directly or indirectly very large sums of money. Work may also involve acting as principal attorney in charge of the preparation and presentation of cases; recommending policies and developing procedures and regulations to implement new or amended legislation; and acting as legal, general or senior counsel to a major firm or organization.

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 To meet minimum eligibility requirements for this position, applicants must possess at least a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree or Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an accredited law school. If this position requires proof of higher education, or you are substituting education for experience, you must submit an unofficial transcript or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. Please refer to General Schedule Qualification Policies for more information. You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - US Department of Education. Another listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) website. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration. NOTE: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Other Information If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System website for more information. This is a Non-Bargaining Unit position. This is a Public Trust position and has a risk level designation of "moderate". GS-15 grade level is "high risk". Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. The USPTO participates in E-Verify. For more information on E-Verify, please visit the Department of Homeland Security Website. Trial Period - If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period. All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice. Relocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid. More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued. All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. USPTO Job Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should request accommodation(s) from the USPTO at USPTO Reason Accommodation. The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation), national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, retaliation for engaging in protected activity, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. If you believe that you have been discriminated against and would like to file an EEO complaint, you must do so within 45 days of the date of the alleged discriminatory act. Claims of employment discrimination must be submitted to the attention of the USPTO's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity via email (oeeo@uspto.gov) or phone (571-272-8292). Required Documents

A complete application consists of:

• A resume or any other written format you choose to describe your job-related qualifications; optional cover letter: Your resume should indicate your citizenship and should list your educational and work experience including titles, salary, employment dates, duties, experience and how it relates to the specialized experience in the job announcement. Please note your resume must be limited to a maximum of two pages. Resumes exceeding this limit will not be considered eligible. Please submit only one resume. Only the document uploaded under the "Resume "section as the "Document Type" will be reviewed to assess your qualifications and for evaluation purposes.
• Professional or Academic References - Provide 2-3 professional/academic references (name, phone, email); one must be your current supervisor. We'll notify you before contacting them.
  

Please Note: Responses to job questions that are not fully supported by the information in your resume may result in adjustments to your rating. Any experience claimed in a cover letter should be substantiated by information contained in your resume. A HR Representative will validate the qualifications of those candidates eligible to be referred to the hiring official.

Supporting Documents:

PLEASE NOTE: Applicants who meet the minimum eligibility and qualification requirements for this position may be contacted via email within 7 business days of this announcement closing to submit follow-up supporting docs if applicable. Applicants applying as current/former Federal employees OR as VEOA eligibles who fail to submit supporting documents within 5 business days of receiving the email request will lose further consideration for this position. Applicants claiming CTAP/ICTAP or Sch A eligibility who fail to submit supporting documents within 5 business days of receiving the email request will not lose consideration for this position, however they will not be entitled to special or priority consideration. Supporting docs that may be requested of applicants after the closing date of this announcement are:

1. Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) - For current and/or former Federal employees, your status eligibility and highest permanent grade/step/salary held in the Federal service will be validated with a copy of your most recent SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action" so that we may verify your time-in-grade.

2. Performance Appraisal - Recent performance appraisal with supervisor's signature showing the official final rating of record, and copy of incentive award(s). In cases where the performance appraisal is incomplete or unavailable, applicants may provide explanation of the reasons.

3. Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) documents -

1. CTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: 1. A copy of your RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a directed geographic relocation outside of the local commuting area; a Certificate of Expected Separation (CES); or certification that you are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice of eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice); 2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", noting current position, grade/band level, and duty location; 3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and 4. Any documentation from your bureau/operating unit that shows your current promotion potential.
2. ICTAP applicants MUST submit the following documents: 1. A copy of your RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a directed geographic relocation outside of the local commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination, certification from your former agency that it cannot place you after your recovery from a work-related compensable injury; or certification from the National Guard Bureau or Military Department that you are eligible for disability retirement. 2. A copy of your SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action", documenting your RIF separation, noting your position, grade/band level, and duty location, and/or Agency certification of inability to place you through RPL, etc.; 3. A copy of your latest performance appraisal including your rating; and 4. Any documentation from your agency that shows your current promotion potential.

You can upload your documents when you register or update your information on the Dept. of Commerce site which you access through the USAJobs site.

Your application and all required documents must be received by 11:59 pm ET on the closing date of this job announcement.

NOTE: The preceding documents requirement are based on job requirements and individual applicant eligibility. Not all documents are applicable to all applicants; if you are unsure which documents apply to you, contact the HR Specialist listed on this announcement.

How to Apply

You MUST apply online. If you experience difficulties with the application process or do not have access to a computer, please contact the HR Specialist listed as the point of contact before the closing date of this job announcement.

If you are a new user to the USAJobs Site and have never registered for an account; you will first need to create an account profile with your basic contact information and a resume to begin applying. You must be a registered USAJobs user AND you must be signed-in to your account in order to apply for this position. For help setting up an account or for general help using USAJobs, go to USAJobs Help Page. Once you have gathered all of the required information and are ready to begin the application process, click the "APPLY" button at the right side of the page. You will then be directed away from USAJobs to the Department of Commerce application site for USPTO. You must click "Submit" at the end of the application process to send your application for consideration.

To return to your saved application, log in to your USAJOBS account at http://www.usajobs.gov/ and click on "Applications." Click on the position title, then select "Update Application."

If you experience any difficulties with the application site, help is available! OPM has a Help feature on each page. Use this option when you need assistance.

All required supporting documents will be collected electronically via the USAJobs "Saved Documents" feature.

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is defined as information that can be traced back to a specific individual and potentially compromise their security or privacy. Examples of PII include: date of birth, Social Security Number, and place of birth.

Please ensure that you have removed all Personally Identifiable Information from all documents prior to submitting or uploading your applications material.