Duties

Summary

The position is located in the Office of the Administrative Law Judges, USITC.

The ideal candidate for this position would possess experience in substantive areas of intellectual property and/or unfair competition law, as well as experience in litigation, and a record of superior achievement in legal education.

The candidate would possess superior writing and organizational skills, and the ability to handle a large volume of information with careful attention to accuracy and detail.
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Responsibilities

• Serve as an Attorney Advisor under the supervision of the Chief ALJ.
• Receive assignments from the Chief ALJ to provide legal expertise to the various ALJs in support of complex investigations of alleged unfair import practices.
• Provide legal expertise in other intellectual property right matters (i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets).
• Prepare memoranda on legal issues and make appropriate recommendations to the ALJ.
• Assist the ALJ in conducting legal research, drafting orders and decisions, and reviewing and analyzing arguments and evidence.

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
15

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen or national.
• You will be required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
• You may be required to submit a Financial Disclosure Statement.
• You must submit Proof of Bar membership.
• You are required to register for Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/03/59.
• You may be required to serve a 2 year trial period.

Qualifications

In addition to the specialized experience and educational requirements above, applicants must currently be a member in good standing of the Bar of a state or territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

You are required to submit proof of your Bar membership as part of your application package to show that you meet this requirement.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has not issued qualification standards for attorney positions. However, the USITC sets minimum qualifications for attorney positions and sets forth these qualifications in each vacancy announcement. Applicants must have the general and specialized experience outlined below which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position.

GS-14: Applicants must have at least four years of experience which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position. This experience must consist of the following: one year of general experience which is defined as professional legal experience of a broad, general nature, not requiring specialization or expertise in a specific area or type of law AND three years of specialized experience which is defined as professional legal experience in areas such as: intellectual property litigation, unfair competition law, administrative law, and/or experience interpreting statutes, regulations, court decisions and agency determinations related to the USITC.

GS-15: Applicants must have at least five years of experience which provided the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of the position. This experience must consist of the following: one year of general experience which is defined as professional legal experience of a broad, general nature, not requiring specialization or expertise in a specific area or type of law AND four years of specialized experience which is defined as professional legal experience in areas such as: intellectual property litigation, unfair competition law, administrative law, and/or experience interpreting statutes, regulations, court decisions and agency determinations related to the USITC.

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

Education

Applicants must possess at least a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree or a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association.

You MUST submit a copy of your transcript(s) or list of courses with credit hours, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click on the link for a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials: http://www.naces.org/members.htm .

Additional information

CTAP/ICTAP APPLICANTS: If you are a federal displaced employee as defined in 5 CFR 330.703 (b), you may be entitled to receive priority consideration under the Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP). You must be determined by the Agency to be "Well Qualified' for the specific position. A well-qualified employee means an eligible employee who possesses the knowledge, skills and abilities, which clearly exceed the minimum qualification requirements for the position. Eligible employees receiving a score of 85 or higher will be determined to be well-qualified employees and will be advised in writing of the results. Eligible employees will be advised in writing if another well-qualified eligible is selected. When an eligible employee is found to be not well-qualified, a second independent review of the employee's application will be conducted and the employee will be advised in writing of the results of the second review. http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp

Male applicants born after 12/31/59 are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act. The Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you are registered with the Selective Service or are exempt under Selective Service regulations. For additional information concerning Selective Service requirements, please visit http://www.sss.gov/.

Cover page to fax paper application - OPM Form 1203fx: http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdfimage/opm1203fx.pdf

Self-assessment questionnaire: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10520587

Vacancy ID number: EX-019-082-SP

Reasonable accommodations: This agency provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the contact listed on the vacancy announcement. The decision to grant a reasonable accommodation is made on a case-by-case basis. Verification of information: Any information claimed on your resume and in application materials, such as education, credentials, employment history, etc., will be verified as part of the security clearance process.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

• Knowledge of alleged unfair import practices
• Knowledge of intellectual property right matters (i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets)
• Skill in oral and written communication
• Knowledge of unfair competition law

We will evaluate your relevant education and/or work experience as they relate to the competencies, knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) mentioned above. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. Based on the results of this evaluation, you will be placed in one of the following categories:

Best: This category indicates you have the type and quality of experience and/or education that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position, including any selective placement factors and/or appropriate quality ranking factor(s).

Better: This category indicates you have the type and quality of experience and/or education that exceed the minimum qualifications of the position.

Good: This category indicates you meet the minimum qualifications and/or education of the position and are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the position. You may require extensive training and/or orientation in order to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position.

Candidates in the Best category will be the first ones sent to the hiring manager for interview consideration.

Upon closing of this announcement, we will first review your application to ensure it is complete. If you fail to submit all the required documentation, you will be ineligible for further review or consideration. Completed applications are then evaluated for basic qualifications requirements, and for the skills needed to perform the duties of the position, as described in the vacancy announcement and identified by the Selecting Official for the position.

To preview the assessment questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10520587

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

To receive consideration, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified below by 06/24/2019

1. Resume: Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience(s) as it relates to this job opportunity. In order to fully evaluate your application and receive proper credit, your resume should include: (1) paid and non-paid experience, job title, dates held (month and year for qualifying purposes to receive credit), number of hours worked per week, and salary (2) knowledge of the subject matter and technical skills pertinent to this position; (3) specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work; and (4) names and phone numbers of your current and/or previous supervisor(s). Your resume should contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the basic/specialized experience requirements as stated in this job opportunity announcement for each grade level(s) for which you are applying.

2. Occupational questionnaire: A completed job-specific occupational questionnaire should be submitted through your Application Manager account.

3. Proof of Bar Membership: Documentation must show that you are a member of the Bar of a state, territory or commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia. If you are made an offer, you must submit a Certificate of Good Standing dated within 30 days of the offer.

4. Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP)/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) Eligibles.
You must submit the following documents:

• a copy of your agency notice;
• a copy of your most recent performance rating; and
• a copy of your most recent SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, noting your current position, grade level, and duty location

5.Cover Letter. This is optional.

6. SF-50. current and former federal employees must submit a copy of an SF-50, "Notification of Personnel Action," which documents your highest permanent grade/step/salary held. Award SF-50s typically don't contain your grade/step/salary.

7. Performance Appraisal. if you're a current or former federal employee, you must submit a copy of your most recent performance appraisal dated within 18 months. If you do not have one, you must submit a statement.

8. Veterans' Preference. There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney positions, which are in the excepted service; however, the Commission considers veterans' preference eligibility a positive factor in the hiring of all positions. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include such information in their cover letter, or resume, and submit supporting documents (e.g. DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active duty) as part of their application package. Although the point preference system is not used as in the competitive service, applicants eligible to claim a 10-point preference must submit a Standard Form 15 (SF-15), and documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed, as listed on the SF-15. Specific information is available on the Office of Personnel Management website at: http://www.opm.gov .

9. Transcripts. You MUST submit copies of your college transcripts for verification of the education requirements. Unofficial copies are acceptable, however, if selected you will be required to furnish official transcripts. It is your responsibility to provide adequate proof that you meet the above educational requirements. Inadequate or illegible information could result in non-qualification and loss of consideration.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - US Department of Education . Another listing of services that an perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) . You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration.

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.