Legal Administrative Specialist (Competition Advisement)

The Packers and Stockyards Division (PSD) administers the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921, as amended and supplemented. The Packers and Stockyards Act (Act) is a competition, trade practice, and financial protection law. Its principal purpose is to maintain effective competition and fair trade practices in livestock, meat, and poultry marketing.

Duties

• The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity.

• The duties may include, but are not limited to:

• Collaborates with Department attorneys in serving as a legal administrative advisor and in-house legal resource person.

• Prepares memoranda or reports outlining the factual and legal issues involved, explaining the application of legal principles and precedents, and justifying recommendations or conclusions.

• Makes recommendations concerning antitrust problems in the livestock, poultry, and meat industries and provides recommendations regarding investigations and formal complaints that may be contemplated.

• Makes judgments and offers research-based opinions about the competitive effects of mergers and acquisitions in terms of the long-range impact of both buyers and sellers to maintain competition and exercise initiative in the affected markets.

• Consults and advises on necessary investigations and researches individual firm records, legal periodicals, and public information to suggest methods to correct problems.

• Recommends the issuance of subpoenas and demand letters when necessary and prepares pre-subpoena demand letters and subpoenas.

Salary

• $75,284 - $108,251/year

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Individuals who were born male after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Satisfactory Background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary period. Refer to the Next Steps section for more information.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/
• All USDA employees are required to be enrolled in Continuous Vetting, which authorizes government agencies to receive notifications of criminal activity on individuals who hold low risk, public trust, or national security positions.
• In accordance with Office of Government Ethics regulations concerning conflict of interest, the incumbent will be required to submit a financial disclosure report within 30 days of their effective date of appointment and annually thereafter.

Qualifications

To qualify, you MUST meet all program and qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement.To be eligible, applicants must meet one of the following requirements;

• Completed all requirements for an associates, bachelors, masters, professional, doctorate, vocational, or technical degree or certificate from a qualifying educational institution within the previous two (2) year.
• Current students who will complete their degree requirements by 12/31/2026 will be considered. OR
• Individuals who, due to military service obligation, were precluded from applying to the Recent Graduates Program during any portion of the 2-year eligibility period described above shall have a full 2-year period of eligibility upon release or discharge from active duty. This eligibility period cannot extend more than 6 years from the date on which the requirements for the academic course of study were met.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent in level of difficulty and responsibility to the next lower level (GS-09) in the Federal Service. This experience may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors. Examples of qualifying experience include, but are not limited to:

• Providing recommendations regarding investigations and formal complaints.
• Assisting an attorney with interviewing witnesses, reviewing documents.
• Performing the foundation for cases as it pertains to legal research, legal analysis.
• Writing legal memoranda and litigation documents subject to review by a higher graded employee or supervisor

EDUCATION GS-11: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in Agricultural Law, Agricultural Economics, Governmental Administration or LL.M., if related.

TRANSCRIPTS are required.

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level.

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 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 This position does not have an education qualification requirement. Transcripts including the date your degree was conferred are required. Applications will not be considered without this documentation. For those graduating this semester by 12/31/2026, you will have to provide proof of conferment prior to entrance on duty. Other Information Recent Graduate appointments are intended to last for 1 year. Recent Graduates who satisfactorily complete all the USDA Recent Graduates Program requirements may be non-competitively converted to a Term or Permanent appointment in the competitive service. Conversion is not guaranteed. Recent Graduates converted to Term appointments may later be non-competitively converted to a Permanent competitive service position. If selected, official transcripts will be required prior to entrance on duty. A Pathways Participant Agreement will be required if you are selected for a position. The agreement must be signed by all applicable parties prior to entrance on duty. First time hires to the federal government normally start at the lowest rate of the salary range for the grade selected. Travel, transportation, and relocation expenses will not be paid. Any travel, transportation, and relocation expense associated with reporting for duty will be the responsibility of the selected employee. Locality pay will vary based upon the selectee's duty location. A final salary determination will be made upon selection. This position is represented by a collective bargaining unit (union), specifically the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE). Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here. Selection will be at GS-11 with the possibility of conversion to a term or permanent GS-0901-11, with promotion potential to the GS-13 level. Conversion eligibility and position is not guaranteed and depends upon the program unit's needs. CONVERSION REQUIREMENTS Recent Graduates may be non-competitively converted to a term or permanent position in the competitive service. To be eligible for conversion the Recent Graduate must meet all of the following: Successfully complete at least 1-year of continuous service in addition to all requirements of the Program as outlined in the Participant Agreement. Demonstrate successful job performance. Meet the qualifications for the position to which the Recent Graduate will be converted. Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure or downtime, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

• Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) other qualifications; and 5) supervisors name and phone number for each work period listed and whether or not they may be contacted for reference checks. Resume cannot exceed two pages. Only one resume will be reviewed.
• College Transcripts: You must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that 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. For further information, visit the following: Foreign Education Evaluation. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
• If claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a DD214, Certificate of Release from Active Duty, which shows dates of service and discharge under honorable conditions. If currently on active duty you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active duty service under honorable conditions within 120 days after the date the certification is submitted. The certification must be on the letterhead of the appropriate military branch and include the dates of military service. Veterans' preference must be verified prior to appointment. Without this documentation, you will not receive veteran's preference and your application will be evaluated based on the material(s) submitted.
• If claiming 10-point veterans' preference you must provide the DD214 or certification requirements (see above bullet), plus the proof of entitlement of this preference as listed on the SF-15 Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference. The SF-15 should be included but is not required. Failure to submit these documents could result in the determination that there is insufficient documentation to support your claim for 10-point preference. For more information on veterans' preference visit FEDSHIREVETS

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 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. Resume cannot exceed two pages.

The application process is as follows:

1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.usajobs.gov. It is recommended that as part of your profile you set up automatic email notification to be informed when the status of your application changes. If you choose not to set up this automatic notification, then you will have to log into your USAJOBS account to check on the status of your application.

2: Create a Resume with USAJOBS or upload a Resume into your USAJOBS account. You may want to customize your resume to ensure it documents duties and accomplishments you have gained that are directly related to this position in order to verify that qualifications are met. In addition, your resume must support your responses to the online questionnaire (you may preview the online questionnaire by clicking on the link at the end of the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement).

3: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the Occupational Questionnaire and attach any additional documents that may be required. You can update your application or documents anytime while the announcement is open. Simply log into your USAJOBS account and click on "Application Status." Click on the position title, and then select "Update Application" to continue.

4:If you are required to take the USA Hire Competency Based 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.

5: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.

6: Set aside at least 1-2 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.

7: 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: Click on this: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/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.

NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable. Only one resume will be reviewed. Applicants who submit a resume that exceeds two pages will be removed from consideration.