Duties

Summary

This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, Vice Commandant, Judge Advocate General & Chief Counsel (CG-094), Office of Procurement Law (CG-0949), Washington, DC.

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

The purpose of the position is to advise contracting, requirements, technical and management personnel at all levels on at United States Coast Guard Headquarters and in various field offices all aspects of federal acquisition actions, policies and processes; to represent the agency position in litigation, including the effective use of Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) in protests before the Government Accountability Office, appeals before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, and, with the Department of Justice, in Coast Guard contract matters for cases brought in the federal courts.

Being a Coast Guard civilian makes you a valuable member of the Coast Guard team. Typical work assignments include:

-Conducting research, providing integrated legal advice, and preparing written and oral opinions involving federal acquisition actions for goods and services of all kinds and major systems acquisitions, including real property design and construction, naval and aviation asset design and construction, research and development, and energy related contracts.

-Reviewing/drafting/commenting upon legislation, regulations, and processes and policies regarding planning, executing, and administering acquisitions of all types and dollar values, including major systems projects and programs of exceptional complexity, time and political sensitivity, and importance to agency missions.

-Planning, preparing and directly presenting positions in protests and appeals before the Government Accountability Office and Civilian or other agency Boards of Contract Appeals, and with Department of Justice counsel in matters before federal courts.

-Developing and analyzing alternative courses of action in acquisition planning and contract planning and administration, and their various legal risks, in the context of proactive practice.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Some travel may be required.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
15

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• This position requires a Background Investigation (BI).
• A Non-Disclosure form is required.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

Qualifications

All Candidates must possess a J.D. or LL.B degree from an accredited law school;

AND

Must be a member in good standing of the appropriate licensing authority of any state, territory of the United States, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or District of Columbia bar.

AND

To qualify for the GS-15 level position, You must have successfully completed at least one full year of professional legal experience as a practicing attorney equivalent to the GS-14 level in the Federal service as reflected in the nature and complexity of casework and legal issues for which responsible, the level of responsibility exercised, and the degree to which such experience equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of this position.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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.

Note: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement.

All Candidates must possess a J.D. or LL.B degree from an accredited law school; AND, must be a member in good standing of the appropriate licensing authority of any state, territory of the United States, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or District of Columbia bar.

If you are including education on your resume, report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For further information on the evaluation of foreign education, refer to the U.S. Department of Education's web site at click here

NOTE: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Additional information

Applicants will be required to complete questions contained on the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) at the time a tentative job offer is made. At the time of appointment, selectees will be required to update the OF-306. Certain responses on the form could pose a problem with suitability for employment determinations.

If you are selected for this position, you will be subject to a determination of your suitability for Federal employment. All selectees are subject to an appropriate investigation as a condition of placement into this position. Certain investigation levels may automatically require a credit check after initial job qualifications have been met. For those positions that do not automatically require a credit check, it may later be required if the initial investigation surfaces a potential issue. Visit: OPM Mythbuster

DHS 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 your rights and responsibilities at click here

Recruitment incentives may be authorized.

Moving expenses will be paid in accordance with appropriate regulations.

All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit.

More than 1 selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.

If you need a reasonable accommodation for the application and hiring process, please contact 202-795-6328. Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. Visit Reasonable Accommodation

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Qualified candidates will be rated by comparing each candidate's qualifications to the skills and experience pertinent to the position to be filled. Experience, education, training, awards, and performance will be considered. The following factors are of particular importance to the position to be filled, and applicants should provide specific detailed information in these areas as part of their application. These areas must be addressed in a document separate from the resume and submitted as part of the application package.

-Demonstrated knowledge of and broad experience working with federal acquisition and procurement laws and policies, acquisition program oversight, and government contracts and contract file documentation. Examples addressing specialized experience in directly supporting acquisition programs and contract planning, formation, and administration should be included.

-Demonstrated knowledge of and experience working with analysis, comment, review or drafting of legislation, regulations, or policies pertaining to federal acquisition and procurement actions.

-Demonstrated knowledge of and direct experience working with the impacts of federal acquisition and procurement activities and actions with environmental, fiscal, legislative, regulatory, administrative and ethics law.

-Demonstrated knowledge of and experience working with direct representation administrative litigation practice in government contracts forums, and in support of actions in federal courts where agency representation is provided through Department of Justice attorneys. Examples addressing specialized experience in presenting cases, including use of ADR, should be included.

-Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate legal issues, analysis, and opinions and issues in writing for both advisor opinions and litigation filings involving contractual matters. We require a writing sample (not to exceed 3 pages; excerpts are acceptable).

-Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate verbally in order to discuss contract issues with more senior attorneys as well as other high-ranking military and civilian officials, and to persuasively present positions in litigation.

NOTE: Qualified candidates may be invited for an interview(s). Final selection will be made on the basis of relevant experience, education, training, performance appraisal, job-related awards, interview, the writing sample, and the skills and experience identified above.

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Secret

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

In order to receive full consideration, you must submit:

1. A resume or any other written format of your choice which clearly identifies the following information:

* Job Information - Announcement number, title and grade.

* Personal Information - Full name, mailing address (with zip code), email address if available, day and evening phone numbers (with area code), country of citizenship, veterans' preference, highest Federal civilian series and grade held, if applicable.

* Education - College or University name, city and state, major(s) and type and year of any degrees received.

* Work Experience - job title, duties and accomplishments, current and former (within the last 10 years) employers' names and addresses, current and former supervisors' names and phone numbers where available, starting and ending dates (month and year), hours per week, salary, and indicate whether your current supervisor may be contacted.

* Qualifications - job-related training courses (title and year), skills, certificates and licenses, honors, awards, and special accomplishments.

2. A copy of your J.D. or LL.B. transcript.

3. A legal writing sample, not to exceed three pages.

4. You will be required to submit proof of current membership in good standing of the appropriate licensing authority of any state, territory of the United States, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or District of Columbia bar.

5. Information related to the skills and experience listed under the Evaluations section above may be provided in a separate document, or incorporated within your resume.

You may find general application information and other forms at the website of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, www.usajobs.opm.gov .

None of the application documents will be returned.

In addition, the U.S. Coast Guard offers Career Transition Assistance Placement (CTAP) coverage to Attorneys within the Department of Homeland Security. Individuals who have special priority selection rights under CTAP provisions must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. If you are eligible under CTAP, you must submit a copy of your certificate of surplus status, certificate of expected separation, or your specific Reduction-in-Force notice establishing your eligibility under CTAP, a copy of your most recent SF-50 noting current position, series, grade level and duty location. You must clearly indicate the grade from which you separated or declared surplus.

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.