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Trial Attorney

Employer
USAJobs
Location
Washington, D.C
Closing date
Jun 30, 2019
Duties

Summary

The OGC is seeking an experienced attorney to provide expert legal advice and guidance on conflicts of interest and ethics laws and regulations governing Program employees; including, Title 18 of the USC, the Standards of Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, the DOJ Supplemental Standards of Conduct, the Hatch Act, EOs 12731 and 13770; and related laws, regulations, and orders. The individual will serve as the Program's ethics expert and provide legal advice and assistance.
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

The duties of the Ethics Counsel will include the following:

Providing research, analysis and legal opinions (primarily for internal use) on extremely complex and difficult ethics questions, often involving sensitive issues, intricate factual situations, or high-level policy considerations;

Conducting legal research involving the interpretation or application of legislation, opinions of courts and other adjudicative bodies, Executive Orders, rules and regulations, Office of Government Ethics (OGE) advisories, and other legal authorities;

Preparing and providing required Annual Ethics Training to Program employees, presenting ongoing ethics briefings and trainings at meetings and conferences targeted to specific employee groups, and overseeing and coordinating provision of initial ethics training to new Program employees;

Providing advice and counseling to Program employees, supervisors, and senior leadership on all ethics-related inquiries, tracking such inquiries, and maintaining an internal SharePoint portal with relevant, up-to-date resources including forms, legal guidance, and responses to FAQs;

Overseeing the Program's public and confidential (OGE Form 450 and OGE Form 278) financial disclosure reporting program, including: notification of annual and new entrant filing requirements; assignment of 278 reports in Integrity; collection, tracking, review and certification of reports; and responding to requests for copies of public reports;

Preparing periodic reports required to be submitted by the Program pursuant to DOJ, OGE, or Congressional reporting requirements, including the Program's response to OGE's Annual Agency Ethics Program Questionnaire, and DOJ's Annual Travel Reimbursement Report;

Maintaining and continuously updating the Program's Ethics Protocol and Ethics Calendar;
Reviewing and analyzing current and proposed ethics regulations, internal directives, forms, publications and other issuances, and developing proposed new or revised provisions or policies as assigned;

Acting as the Program's liaison with the DOJ's Departmental Ethics Office (DEO), Professional Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO), and Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR); and,
Performing special assignments and other duties as assigned by the Deputy Designated Agency Ethics Official.

Additional Responsibilities:

As a member of the OGC, you may also be called upon from time to time to handle other assignments that vary based on short- and long-term legal objectives, but typically involve critical policy, program or operational matters that are especially complex, controversial, or precedent-setting. These assignments may include:

Providing legal and policy research;

Preparing analyses and recommendations for EOUST and USTP staff on certain areas of federal administrative law, such as the Administrative Procedure Act, the FOIA, or Privacy Act, and a variety of DOJ regulations, policies or procedures, as well as the regulatory and rulemaking process;

Initiating and maintaining effective communications with EOUST management, U.S. Trustees and their staff, Department officials and other federal agencies;

Representing and presenting the position of the Program in a variety of settings including meetings, working groups, and task forces;

Monitoring DOJ issues affecting the EOUST and the USTP and providing authoritative analyses and recommendations regarding matters that impact ongoing or proposed EOUST or USTP operations, initiatives, goals and objectives; and,

Working on other projects and priorities as assigned.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
15

Requirements

Conditions of Employment


See the Qualifications below.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications : Applicants must demonstrate excellent academic and professional credentials, superior oral and written communication skills, outstanding legal research, analytical, and legal reasoning skills, outstanding judgment, and the ability to function with minimal guidance in a demanding legal environment. Further, an applicant must have a J.D. degree from an accredited law school, be an active member of the bar (any jurisdiction) in good standing, have at least 4years post-J.D. professional legal or other relevant experience advocating on behalf of clients.

Preferred Qualifications : In addition to the required qualifications listed above, the ideal candidate will have:
  • A demonstrated record of analyzing complex legal problems, interpreting statutory, rule, and regulatory provisions;
  • Have outstanding organizational skills and the ability to address a broad array of issues arising in a large volume of cases;
  • The ability to accurately and precisely articulate the critical issues in a wide variety of cases and projects;
  • The ability to set, manage, and balance diverse, evolving, and challenging projects and priorities;
  • Demonstrated initiative and creativity;
  • Strong information technology skills including using data bases and IT systems to manage and track work;
  • Experience working with or for federal agencies; and,
  • A commitment to the highest ethical and professional standards.


Education

See the "Qualifications" section of this vacancy announcement.

Additional information

Equal Employment Opportunity : The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination because of color, race, religion, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability (physical or mental), age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected genetic information, pregnancy, status as a parent, or any other nonmerit-based factor. The Department of Justice welcomes and encourages applications from persons with physical and mental disabilities. The Department is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department of Justice. For more information, please review our full EEO Statement .

Reasonable Accommodations : This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Outreach and Recruitment for Qualified Applicants with Disabilities : The Department encourages qualified applicants with disabilities, including individuals with targeted/severe disabilities to apply in response to posted vacancy announcements. Qualified applicants with targeted/severe disabilities may be eligible for direct hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A (5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(u)) hiring authority. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact one of the Department's Disability Points of Contact (DPOC) to express an interest in being considered for a position. See list of DPOCs .

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Continuation from above,

Suitability and Citizenship: It is the policy of the Department to achieve a drug-free workplace and persons selected for employment will be required to pass a drug test which screens for illegal drug use prior to final appointment. Employment is also contingent upon the completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Congress generally prohibits agencies from employing non-citizens within the United States, except for a few narrow exceptions as set forth in the annual Appropriations Act (see, https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/non-citizens/ ). Pursuant to DOJ component policies, only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Trustee's Offices, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, qualifying non-U.S. citizens meeting immigration and appropriations law criteria may apply for employment with other DOJ organizations. However, please be advised that the appointment of non-U.S. citizens is extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department's mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. Applicants who hold dual citizenship in the U.S. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis. All DOJ employees are subject to a residency requirement. Candidates must have lived in the United States for at least three of the past five years. The three-year period is cumulative, not necessarily consecutive. Federal or military employees, or dependents of federal or military employees serving overseas, are excepted from this requirement. This is a Department security requirement which is waived only for extreme circumstances and handled on a case-by-case basis.

Veterans: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions. Although the "point" system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service- connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
Yes

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

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

See the "How To Apply" section of this vacancy announcement.

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