Duties

Summary

With the Internal Revenue Service as its client and 1,500 attorneys on staff, the Office of Chief Counsel is the preeminent employer for tax attorneys in the country. Our attorneys are valued assets and the legal experience provided by Chief Counsel is unlike any other. Chief Counsel attorneys provide top quality legal advice and representation to the IRS in the administration of the nation's tax laws

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

Responsibilities

Attorneys working for the Office of Chief Counsel, Internal Revenue Service, Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel (National Taxpayer Advocate Program) (CC:NTA) assist the Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel in providing advice to the National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) and the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) in fulfilling the mission of TAS set forth in IRC § 7803(c). CC:NTA attorneys review published guidance, legal advice, case law, and procedures for issues that may adversely impact taxpayer rights, and they serve as liaisons between the National Taxpayer Advocate Program and the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, raise awareness of systematic and case-specific issues impacting taxpayers with the Office of Chief Counsel, and provide advice and legal counsel to the NTA and headquarters employees of TAS.

The following are the duties of this position at theGS-14 level. If you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform all these duties, and will receive training to help you grow in this position.

• Serve as a liaison between NTA and other Chief Counsel Associate and Division Counsel offices to raise and address issues raised by the National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) and the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS).
• Assist the Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel in the administration and review of legal services provided to the NTA and TAS.
• Assist the Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel in prioritizing incoming requests from the NTA, and issue spots and coordinates with, and monitors the activities of, Counsel field and national office functions to ensure services are timely, of high quality, and are responsive to the needs of the NTA.
• Research and make recommendations to remedy any identified systematic deficiencies and to improve program effectiveness, services as point of contact for questions/issues relating to Counsel's role, and provides any needed interface between counsel and NTA staff.
• Review published guidance, legal advice, case law, and procedures for issues that may adversely impact taxpayer rights.
• Keep the Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel and staff in other counsel associate and division counsel offices informed about emerging NTA issues, and advise NTA staff of Counsel initiatives, opinions, and publications which my impact the taxpayer advocate program.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Occasional travel for training may be required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
14

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Please refer to "Conditions of Employment."
• Click "Print Preview" to review the entire announcement before applying.
• Applications will be accepted on-line via Career Connector.
• If unable to apply on-line, please contact careerconnectorhelp@do.treas.gov

Your application includes your resume, responses to the online questions, legal writing sample and required supporting documents. Please be sure that your resume includes detailed information to support your qualifications for this position; failure to provide sufficient evidence in your resume may result in a "not qualified" determination.

Because of its tax-related mission, the Office of Chief Counsel requires fingerprinting, tax verification, and background security investigation as part of the pre-employment process.

Qualifications

You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement:

Specialized Experience: At least 52 weeks of the legal tax experience which included assignments involving complex and difficult legal questions requiring extensive research, analysis, and evaluation. Experience in procedural or administrative issues is referred but not required.

In addition, any of the following experience is preferred, but not required:

• Experience in tax administrative provisions (Internal Revenue Code sections 6000 and up);
• Experience in working with low income taxpayers;
• Experience advocating for taxpayer rights; or
• Knowledge of the different offices within the IRS and the Office of Chief Counsel, and the roles and responsibilities of those offices.

For GS-13: Possess a J.D. plus 2 years of professional tax legal experience (one year must have been comparable to the GS-12 level) or an LL.M. in taxation, plus 1 year of professional tax legal experience comparable to the GS-12 level.

For GS-14: Possess a J.D. plus 3 years of professional tax legal experience (one year must have been comparable to the GS-13 level) or an LL.M. in taxation, plus 2 years of professional tax legal experience (one year must have been comparable to the GS-13 level).

• The J.D. and, if applicable, the LL.M must be from an ABA-accredited law school.
• Candidates must be admitted to practice law before the highest court of a state or territory of the United States; the District of Columbia; or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
• One year of professional legal experience refers to full-time work after admittance to the bar. Part-time work is considered on a prorated basis.
• The experience may have been gained in either the public or private sector.
• To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

Education

You must have graduated with a J.D. and/or the LL.M from an ABA-accredited law school.

Additional information

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• A one-year trial period is required.
• Must successfully complete a background investigation.
• Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment to determine your suitability for Federal employment, at the time requested by the agency
• If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System or are exempt from having to do so.
• Have your salary sent to a financial institution of your choice by Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer.
• 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.
• The employment of any candidate, including a current employee or a new hire, selected for this position may be conditional upon classification and/or audit of federal tax returns. This audit may include up to two years of returns.
• If selected, you will be required to submit proof of bar membership, official transcripts and sign a commitment letter.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Rating: Your application will be evaluated using the experience/education defined under the requirement section.

Referral: Professional Order will be used to refer and select eligible candidates. Veterans' preference is applied after applicants are assessed. Preference-eligibles will be listed at the top of the certificate in alphabetical order and considered before non-preference-eligibles. All other candidates will be listed in alphabetical order and be listed below those with preference. If you are among the top qualified candidates, you may be required to participate in a selection interview. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview such as travel to and from the interview site.
To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

A complete application includes 1. A resume, 2. Vacancy question responses, and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).

All applicants are required to submit a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing. (Cover letters are optional.) To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your resume. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your resume to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Please view resume tips .

In addition, applicants are required to submit: 1) An unofficial or official transcript(s) (optional), and 2) An 8-10 page legal writing sample.

VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge. Ten-point preference eligibles must also submit an Application for 10-point Veteran Preference, SF-15 , along with the required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. For more information on veterans' preference view FedsHireVets .

Contact Information:

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.