Duties

Attorney-Advisor, PRC-5
After an initial period of informal training, a PRC-5 attorney is expected be able to handle routine assignments independently and, when necessary, seek guidance and advice from a more senior attorney or Deputy. The attorney is expected, following exposure to a range of assignments and cases, to build a baseline of competency with Commission legal practice. An attorney at this grade must have a level of skill and ability (based on prior professional experience) that informs his/her judgment as to when a higher level of attention or review is necessary.
An Attorney-Advisor, PRC-5:

• Drafts legal notices, orders, regulations, reports, memoranda, policies, and other documents upon request and according to accepted form and practice.
• Coordinates with technical staff to develop analyses on routine matters such as the application of analytical and economic principles to Commission proceedings and the Postal Service's compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory provisions. With technical staff, makes recommendations to the General Counsel, Deputies, and other senior leadership based on data analyses and findings. May be part of a team of attorneys or work closely with Deputy or a more senior attorney on more complex matters.
• Analyzes pleadings filed with the Commission; conducts applicable legal and policy research; and provides legal advice and assistance to Commission staff, including the General Counsel, Deputies, Commissioners' staff, and technical staff on routine matters.
• Identifies potentially ambiguous, contentious, complex, or novel issues raised in Commission proceedings or during review of internal Commission policies or practices, and seeks guidance on those issues from a more senior attorney, Deputy, or the General Counsel.
• Provides written and oral reports, memoranda, and briefings based on legal research and analyses and assists in the development of proceedings' records, including developing requests for information from participating parties.

Attorney-Advisor, PRC-6
In addition to independently working on routine matters, a Grade 6 Attorney-Advisor is assigned matters of increasing complexity and difficulty. An attorney at this grade will only require occasional guidance on more routine matters. On less routine matters, an attorney at this grade is expected to accurately identify ambiguous, contentious, complex, or novel issues and provide the Deputy or General Counsel with recommendations as to how to best handle the matter consistent with Commission practice. A Grade 6 Attorney-Advisor will be expected to provide guidance and mentoring to less experienced attorneys. This may include providing informal and formal training and reviewing work. On occasion, a Grade 6 Attorney-Advisor may be selected to lead a team of attorneys in a larger proceeding or report

An Attorney-Advisor, PRC-6:

• Independently drafts legal notices, orders, regulations, reports, memoranda, policies, and other documents upon request and according to accepted form and practice. Reviews and provides feedback on such documents prepared by a less experienced attorney upon request.
• Coordinates with technical staff to develop analyses on routine and complex matters in areas such as cost allocation and causation; application of analytical and economic principles to Commission proceedings; and the Postal Service's compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory provisions. With technical staff, makes recommendations to the General Counsel, Deputies, and other senior leadership based on analyses and findings.
• May lead projects with multiple attorneys assigned or serve as mentor to a less experienced attorney.
• Analyzes pleadings filed with the Commission; conducts applicable legal and policy research; and provides legal advice and recommendations to Commission staff, including the General Counsel, Deputies, Commissioners' staff, and technical staff on routine and more complex matters.
• Identifies potentially ambiguous, contentious, complex, or novel issues raised in Commission proceedings or during review of internal Commission policies or practices, and develops recommendations for senior leadership as to how address those issues.
• Provides written and oral reports, memoranda, and briefings based on legal research and analyses and assists in the development of proceedings' records, including developing requests for information from participating parties. Reviews and provides feedback on such documents prepared by a less experienced attorney upon request.
• Recommends final disposition of issues and prepares drafts of final Commission decisions.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Relocation expenses are not authorized.
• Employees are required to participate in direct deposit.
• You will be required to serve a probationary period of 1 year.
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Status: Exempt
• You must be a U.S. citizen or national to be eligible for this position.
• You must successfully pass a background investigation.
• This position may require you to submit a Public Financial Disclosure Report (OGE 278) upon entry and annually thereafter.
• The Commission uses E-verify, an internet based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities.

Qualifications

The following qualifications must be demonstrated in your resume and cover letter:

A professional law degree (LLB or JD) from a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA).

Membership in good standing of the bar of a state, a territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

At least one year of professional experience, such as a clerkship or in general law practice, in a position that required extensive legal research, writing, and analysis, on a variety of complex civil or administrative (non- criminal) legal issues.

Experience researching areas of law with little or no precedent, producing complex legal analysis based on that research, and presenting well-reasoned conclusions or recommendations verbally and in writing.

Experience or education demonstrating the ability to review, discuss, and interpret complex quantitative or technical concepts and to work with subject matter experts to apply a legal framework to complex quantitative or technical facts.

Experience briefing or informing mid-level or senior decision-makers of background/context, analysis and recommendations for future action.

Ability to work independently using critical thinking and research skills to resolve unique questions of law or fact.

Ability to independently manage workload/caseload and allocate time among a number of competing long-term, medium-term and short-term projects.

Competencies
Your resume must detail how you meet the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities requirements, showing specialized experience demonstrating each of the competencies described below.

Attorney-Advisor PRC 5

Critical Competencies include:

• The ability to effectively identify and communicate key issues both orally and in writing
• The ability to conduct legal research on issues with little or no precedent
• The ability to identify and discuss complex quantitative or technical concepts
• The ability to work with technical staff to apply a legal framework to quantitative or technical facts
• The ability to brief, orally or in writing, decision makers of background/context, analysis, and recommendations for future action with guidance from Deputies or the General Counsel
• The ability to work independently using critical thinking and research skills to identify and propose resolutions for unique issues
• The ability to independently manage workload and to allocate time among a number of competing long-term, medium-term, and short-term projects
• The ability to apply legal precedent to complex and technical fact patterns

Supervision
A PRC-5 Attorney-Advisor is under the direct supervision of a Deputy and receives assignments from the General Counsel and Deputies, who work with the attorney to set objectives, priorities, and deadlines. The attorney will receive additional assistance with issues that are ambiguous, contentious, complex, or novel. As experience increases, the attorney should be able to independently identify such issues and conduct related research. The attorney keeps the General Counsel and Deputies apprised of progress in meeting preset objectives and deadlines. All of the attorney's work product is reviewed for accuracy, completeness, and the accomplishment of preset objectives and priorities.

Attorney-Advisor PRC 6

Critical Competencies include:

• The ability to effectively identify, communicate, and provide recommendations addressing key issues both orally and in writing
• The ability to conduct legal research and provide recommendations on issues with little or no precedent
• The ability to analyze and draft orders and other documents addressing complex quantitative or technical concepts
• The ability to work with technical staff to apply a legal framework to quantitative or technical facts
• The ability to brief, orally or in writing, decision makers of background/context, analysis, and recommendations for future action with limited guidance from Deputies or the General Counsel
• The ability to work independently using critical thinking and research skills to identify and implement resolutions to unique issues through application of technical facts to legal analysis
• The ability to independently manage workload and to allocate time among a number of competing long-term, medium-term, and short-term projects
• The ability to apply legal precedent to complex and technical fact patterns
• The ability to mentor and provide feedback to less experienced attorneys and staff
• Knowledge of the laws affecting the Postal Service and the Commission, including title 39 U.S.C. and related regulations and applicable portions of title 5 U.S.C.
• Knowledge of the economic and regulatory concepts relevant to the Commission's regulation of the Postal Service
• Knowledge of Commission style, terminology, form, and accepted practice
• Work product is on-schedule, accurate, polished, and complete on submission

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Experience with the general principles of administrative law, such as drafting proposed regulations, providing comments in administrative proceedings, drafting administrative decisions or representing parties before administrative law judges or administrative bodies.

Knowledge of applicable economic and legal regulatory concepts, such as competition/antitrust law, accounting principles, laws affecting the United States Postal Service, and/or operations and services of the United States Postal Service.

Judicial or administrative law clerkship experience that included an extensive research and writing component.

Education

A professional law degree (LLB or JD) from a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA).

Additional information

Work Environment
The Commission annually ranks as one of the best places to work in the federal government as a small agency with less than 100 employees, scoring high in employee engagement and environment in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey. The Commission also is on the forefront of offering flexible working arrangements, and after an initial training and probationary period, it allows employees the opportunity to participate in telework of up to 7 days per pay period, and potentially fully remote work, combined with alternative work schedules. In the current pandemic situation, all employees are teleworking and supported by a variety of Commission technologies.
Ethics Requirements
The Commission is committed to government ethics. As a Commission employee, you will be subject to the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch and the criminal conflict of interest statutes. Commission employees are also subject to Commission-specific ethics rules (39 C.F.R. subpart A of part 3001 and supplemental standards of ethical conduct [5 C.F.R. part 5601]). The supplemental standards prohibit Commission employees, as well as their spouses and dependent children, from owning any securities issued by entities that are identified on an annually published prohibited securities list. As an employee of the Commission, you must complete initial ethics training within three months of your appointment and, depending on your position, complete required financial disclosure forms within 30 days of your appointment.

COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement: To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Commission will take no action to implement or enforce the COVID-19 vaccination requirement pursuant to Executive Order 14043 on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. All employees are still required to disclose their vaccination status to the Commission.

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. The Commission may offer Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.