Duties

Appellate attorneys in the Solicitor's Office in the Office of the General Counsel represent the Commission in federal judicial proceedings (primarily in the U.S. Courts of Appeals), defending and enforcing Commission orders and initiatives arising across the full breadth of the Commission's regulatory responsibilities. See https://www.ferc.gov/enforcement-legal/legal/court-cases for description of office duties and list of recent court filings and opinions.

The Solicitor's Office is looking for appellate litigators with strong analytical, research, and presentation (writing/speaking) skills. Civil litigation experience (trial and/or appellate) is preferred; familiarity with energy and/or administrative law would be helpful.

As a/n Trial Attorney some of your typical work assignments may include:

• Drafting, editing, reviewing, and filing appellate briefs, motions, and other court documents in defending Commission orders on judicial review; preparing court filings in response to emergency motions, petitions for a writ of mandamus, and other court proceedings related to Commission jurisdictional matters
• Presenting oral arguments in the U.S. Courts of Appeals and other courts; participating in moot courts for other Solicitor's Office attorneys
• Performing legal research and analysis of legal decisions, opinions, rulings, and other documents
• Providing legal advice to senior staff members and senior officials within the Commission
• Applying the statutory provisions of statutes such as the Federal Power Act, Natural Gas Act, Interstate Commerce Act, Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, and Administrative Procedure Act

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Possess a J.D. or LL.B. degree from an accredited college or university.
• Current, active bar membership required.
• A two-year trial period may be required.
• **This is a bargaining unit position.
• Generally, male applicants must be registered with the Selective Service.
• This position has an education requirement; you must submit transcripts.
• You may be required to divest certain energy-related securities.
• A background investigation is required.

You must meet all eligibility and qualification (experience and/or education) requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

You must meet the following basic requirements, by the closing date of this announcement: (1) hold a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) from an accredited college or university and (2) be a current, active bar member in good standing.

In addition, to the minimum requirements above, you must meet the following qualifications for each grade level by the closing date of this announcement:

At the GS-14: At least three-and-one-half years of professional legal experience post bar admission. The GS-14 salary range is $126,233 through $164,102 per annum. At the GS-15: At least five-and-one-half years of professional legal experience post bar. The GS-15 salary range is $144,128 through $172,500 per annum.

Specialized experience is defined as: applies relevant experience and professional knowledge to case assignments that contain difficult legal or factual questions; knowledge of relevant statutes, regulations and policies pertaining to the agency; independently manages caseload and completes activities within established schedules with limited supervision.

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 any volunteer experience.

Please do not cut and paste the position description, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume, as this will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

Education

This position has a basic education requirement listed under the "Qualifications" section of this announcement.

Additional information

FERC remains ranked #1 in Work/Life Balance, for the 7th year in a row, among the Best Places to Work through the Partnership for Public Service! As a leader in Work/Life Balance, we are proud to offer telework flexibilities in accordance with agency policy.

The duty location of this position is Washington, DC. Agency employees are eligible for telework and other workplace flexibilities. Telework days and waiting periods for eligibility are determined when an employee enters on duty.

When promotion potential is shown, future promotions will be dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, the continuing need for an employee assigned to the higher level, and administrative approval.

If selected for this position, you will be required to:

• Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) to determine your suitability for Federal employment.
• Have your Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of your choice.
• Go through a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the Form I-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S. FERC also participates in the USCIS Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program (E-Verify). For more information about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit: http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify.
• Attend a mandatory ethics training. We are governed by the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Standards of Conduct, the criminal conflict of interest statutes, and FERC's supplemental ethics regulation, which specifically prohibits FERC employees from holding certain energy-related securities. To comply with these regulations and statutes, divestiture of these securities may be required after you begin employment. See 5 C.F.R. 2634-41; 18 U.S.C. 201-208; 5 C.F.R. 3401. If selected, you may also be required to file a financial disclosure statement within 30 days of appointment.
• Receive authorization from OPM on any job offer you receive, if you are or were (within the last 5 years) a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch.