This position is located at the Department of Transportation (DOT) Headquarters in Washington, O.C., as the principal legal advisor to the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) in Kings Point, New York. The position is considered a senior level position of the Academy Superintendent's leadership team and will serve as a supervisory attorney. This position is established as a supervisory attorney-advisor, serving as the Chief Counsel of the Academy.
Duties
As a Supervisory Attorney Advisor, you will: The employee provides a wide variety of legal services, the main one of which is conducting the necessary legal research and providing expert legal advice and counsel on the full range of legal and policy-related matters affecting USMMA operations and policy objectives. The employee will be considered a generalist and should be familiar with areas of law that impact an installation including but not limited to government contracts and procurement, employee labor relations (EEOC, MSPB, misconduct, etc.), general and administrative law, fiscal and appropriations law, ethics, information law (PA and FOIA), congressional inquiries and responses, installation jurisdiction, housing, federal advisory committees, and environmental law. Addressing legal and related policy issues as primary counsel on matters affecting USMMA; also provides legal advice to the Superintendent and staff of the USM MA on legal and related policy matters. Representing the USMMA on legal matters affecting the USMMA at inter and ultra-agency and departmental meetings, conferences and other events, coordinating legal support for the USM MA from other attorneys in the Office of the General Counsel. Advising the USM MA policy and program formation and implementation and providing legal advice and counsel incident to agency initiatives, issuances, directives, and correspondence. Serving as the appointed Designated Agency Ethics Official, providing advice to USM MA staff and personnel on ethics, including pertinent standards of conduct, conflicts of interests, and post-government employment matters. Providing legal advice incident to inspections, investigations and related reports concerning the USM MA. Providing legal advice to the USMMA on legislative and regulatory proposals affecting USMMA programs and operations. Acting as assistant counsel to Department of Justice attorneys in proceedings before the federal courts and providing liti.gation support on matters involving the USM MA. Also serves as the agency representative on cases and hearings before the EEOC and MSPB on related employment relations cases. Providing written and oral counsel, opinions and decisions on legal aspects of DOT and USMMA activities. The ideal candidate is a senior attorney with broad expertise in federal law, including government contracts, labor and employment (EEOC/MSPB}, administrative and fiscal law, ethics, and information law (FOIA/Privacy Act). Demonstrated experience serving as a principal advisor to senior leadership on policy, programs, and operations is required. The candidate effectively manages high-visibility matters, including congressional inquiries, investigations, and interagency coordination, and advises on legislative and regulatory proposals. Experience providing ethics guidance and litigation support with OOJ, including matters before EEOC and MSPB, is essential. Proven leadership, sound judgment, and strong written and oral communication skills are critical.
Salary
Qualifications
To qualify, your experience should include experience and education equal or equivalent to the following: GRADE 15 - A law degree, bar membership in good standing and at least 4 years of professional attorney experience. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: 1. Technical - Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the job experience to perform one's job: works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to administrative and aviation law, and the provisions of the rules, regulations, acts and statutes under which the Department functions; advises others on technical issues. 2. Communication - expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information {for example, technical sensitive controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately. 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. For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4 All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: In order to qualify for this position, candidates must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have a professional law degree, and must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.
Required Documents
The following is a list of documents that are only required based on the type of position. Please review each of the following sections to determine which documents you need to provide with your application. RESUME: In accordance with the OPM memorandum titled Merit Hiring Plan, dated May 29, 2025, resumes with a maximum of two (2) pages in length will be accepted as part of your application. These should be legible and in a readable font size. A determination of your eligibility and/or qualifications will be based only on those two (2) pages. Your resume MUST contain specific information that can be used to make a qualification determination, including employment beginning and ending dates for each position, whether employment is Full-time or Part-time, or average number of hours worked per week, and position titles. If the position is/was in the Federal government, you will need to provide the position series and grade level. The resume should show relevant experience and education, as well as support the required specialized experience. For assistance with the resume builder, please visit: https://help.usajobs.gov/ COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRE. PROOF OF BAR MEMBERSHIP: Must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia. TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED as there is a stated education requirement for the series. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - click here. WRITING SAMPLE: If selected for an interview, a writing sample may be requested. VETERANS: Department of Transportation attorney positions are in the excepted service, not the competitive civil service. There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Transportation considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in the attorney hiring process. If you are eligible for veterans' preference in hiring, you are encouraged to include that information in your application along with supporting documentation, e.g., SF15, DD214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, or other supporting documentation. Failure to submit any of the required documents by the closing date of the vacancy will result in your removal from consideration for this position. Please review your application prior to final submission and ensure you have submitted all appropriate documents. Uploading documents to USAJobs does NOT ensure inclusion with your application to our system. You must verify that the documents are in the system with your application prior to final submission.
How to Apply
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than 11:59 pm (EST) on the closing date of the announcement. To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting. Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire. You may review your saved application(s) at https://help.usajobs.gov/ If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at Transjobs@dot.gov.
