About the Position: Serve as the Deputy District Counsel, the selected attorney(s) works under the administrative supervision of the District Counsel, who delegates full authority to function independently in charge of contract disputes and claims, labor and employment law, Freedom of Information and Privacy Act, general litigation and international public and private law, military non-criminal law.
Duties
- Performs legal work involving complex and difficult legal questions or factual issues requiring drafting and interpreting contracts, regulations, legal decisions and opinions and other legal instruments required.
- Advises the District Commander and his or her senior staff during the absence of the District Counsel, or as designated.
- Monitors or participates as an advisor to U.S. representatives during litigation in foreign courts.
- Makes regular recommendations to the District Counsel in the planning, supervision, management, direction, and review of all policies, programs, functions and operations involving the Office.
Salary
Qualifications
Who May Apply: Only applicants who meet one of the employment authority categories below are eligible to apply for this job. You will be asked to identify which category or categories you meet, and to provide documents which prove you meet the category or categories you selected. See Proof of Eligibility for an extensive list of document requirements for all employment authorities. Current Department of Army Civilian Employees Applying to OCONUS Positions Current Department of Defense (DOD) Civilian Employee (non-Army) Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan Non-Department of Defense (DoD) Transfer People with Disabilities, Schedule A Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) of 1998 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: Successful completion of a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have a professional law degree (LLB or JD). - AND - Bar Membership: Good standing and have active membership in the bar of the highest court of a State, U.S. commonwealth, U.S. territory, or the District of Columbia. - AND - Experience: Two or more years of professional legal experience, acquired after being submitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. (Graduation from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% or the class or an advanced law degree such as an LLM may substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience.) You will be evaluated for the minimum qualification requirements and to the extent to which your application shows possession of the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with the position. Submit a resume that addresses your knowledge and ability relating to two or more of the areas described in KSA's 1-4. Litigation knowledge and experience (40%). Knowledge, experience and ability in litigation of disputes pertaining to Federal acquisition and contract law - with emphasis on experience litigating construction and services disputes, resolving contract claims, and/or appeals before the ASCA and/or Court of Federal Claims, agency and GAO bid protests; and/or Federal labor and employment law - with emphasis on dispute resolution, including litigation before the EEOC and MSPB. Leadership experience, ability and/or potential (20%). Experience establishing and monitoring goals and executing work requirements with subordinates, and implementing and adjusting office activities to meet client requirements; and/or providing advice, guidance and/or mentorship to other attorneys about work related matters. Federal and DoD acquisition, labor and administrative law (20%). Knowledge and/or experience among one or more practice areas: Federal acquisition and contract administration law; Federal fiscal law, regulations, policies, and procedures pertinent to DoD components, and/or acquisition of construction, services or supplies; Federal and DoD component administrative law including or related to: Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act; Government property accountability; Government employee travel and transportation rules and allowances; Federal executive agency ethics standards and processes, training, confidential financial disclosure, application of ethics standards to resolve real or apparent employee conflicts of interest, and post-Federal government ethics requirements. Skill and ability in written legal advice and/or advocacy (20%). Ability to analyze facts and law, and the clarity and persuasiveness of the written presentation. Time in Grade Requirement: 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). Military Members: Resumes will be accepted from members of the Armed Forces who indicate in their applications that they will be available for appointment within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement. Military members may be appointed while on terminal/transitional leave, before the effective date of their military retirement/separation. Separated Military Members: Resumes will be accepted from members of the Armed Forces who indicate in their applications that they are available for appointment within 120 days of the closing date of this announcement. Military members may be appointed while on terminal/transitional leave, before the effective date of their military retirement/separation. Military Retirees: Within the DoD (Department of Defense), including non-appropriated fund positions, the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following the retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326 or 5 U.S.C. 5305.
Education
Official law school transcripts must be submitted prior to accepting the position. These transcripts must show successful completion of a full 3-year course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) leading to a professional law degree (LLB or JD) that included a major field of study or specific course requirements. 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/ ********************************************************************************** In addition to the information about the required documents below: If an employee brings a child to an overseas location and that child is entitled to attend a DoD school on a space-required basis in accordance with DoDEA Regulation 1342.13, the DoDEA and the Military Department responsible for providing related services will ensure that the child, if eligible for special education, receives a free appropriate public education, including related services pursuant to DoDI 1342.12 and DoDM 1342.12. If an employee brings an infant or toddler (up to 3 years of age) to an overseas location, and that infant or toddler, but for the child's age, is entitled to attend the DoDEA on a space-required basis in accordance with DoDEA Regulation 1342.13, then the Military Department responsible for EIS will provide the infant or toddler with the required EIS in accordance with the eligibility criteria consistent with DoDI 1342.12 and DoDM 1342.12.
Required Documents
The documents you are required to submit vary based on the authority you are using to apply (i.e., applying as a veteran, applying as a current permanent Federal employee, applying as a reinstatement, etc.). Please review the following links to see which documents you need to provide to prove your eligibility to apply: Applicant Checklist for Internal/Merit Promotion Announcements (OCONUS). 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. Submit: 1. Your resume: It will be used to evaluate your qualifications under KSAs 1) - 4). Your resume may be submitted in any format and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. 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 qualifications determinations your resume must contain hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e., HRS per week and month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as incomplete and you may not receive consideration for this position. For additional information see: What to include in your resume. 2. Other supporting documents: A cover letter to your application, not to exceed 2 pages, explaining your interest in the position and summarizing your qualifications. Two examples of your legal writing ability, not to exceed 5 pages each. Excerpts are OK. 2 Most recent Performance Appraisals. A copy of your law school transcript. An official statement of your law school class standing. An official certificate showing that you are a member in good standing of the bar. The certificate must be dated within 90 days of the date of the announcement, and must be submitted by all applicants to include attorneys currently appointed to positions under the qualifying authority of the Chief Counsel, USACE. Copies of bar cards will not be accepted as an official certificate. See: Transcripts and Licenses (https://portal.chra.army.mil/hr_public?id=kb_article&sysparm_article=KB0016283). Your sworn statement (or unsworn declaration under 28 U.S. Code 1746) that your fitness to practice law or conduct as an attorney has never been challenged in any jurisdiction to the best of your knowledge. If either has been challenged, submit a sworn statement (or unsworn declaration under 28 U.S. Code 1746) concerning the facts and circumstances, together with any explanation that you deem appropriate. The statement must be dated within 90 days of the date of the announcement. All applicants including attorneys currently appointed to positions under the qualifying authority of the Chief Counsel, USACE, must submit the statement. Proof of Eligibility to Apply: Your application must include the documents which prove you are eligible to apply for the vacancy. The Proof of Eligibility document describes authorities commonly used in merit promotion recruitment and what document(s) are required to prove you meet the requirements of the authority. You must meet the requirements of at least one of the authorities listed in the Who May Apply section above to receive further consideration. 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 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.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the online questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/31/2025 to receive consideration. To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12621533). Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process. You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete. It is your responsibility to verify that your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan. Additional information on how to complete the online application process and submit your online application may be found on the USA Staffing Applicant Resource Center. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.
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