Duties

Summary

The position is located in the United States Department of State, Office of the Legal Adviser (L). L's primary mission is to provide legal advice and services to the Secretary of State, Departmental offices, diplomatic and consular post abroad, as well as other U.S. government agencies on all legal matters, domestic and international, arising in the course of the Department's activities.

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Responsibilities

Description of Duties

• Provides legal advice and services on matters relating to: Europe and Eurasia, including the independent states of the former Soviet Union, except for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan; the European Union; the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE); North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance and defense cooperation issues; democratization and assistance to Eastern Europe and the successor states to the former Soviet Union; and bilateral issues with countries in the region.
• Oversees all legal aspects, including matters of international law, foreign law, and domestic law, as well as the evolution of law in unprecedented situations in the conduct of U.S. foreign relations and relations with international organizations and operations of those organizations.
• Participates with the Legal Adviser, the Deputy Legal Advisers, and other ranking policy officers of the USG in overall policy formulation and program planning and in the consideration and development of basic policies for matters in the European region.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Occasional Travel

Supervisory status
Yes

Promotion Potential
00

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship is required.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
• Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
• Requires a financial disclosure statement, OGE-
  278.
• One year probationary period, unless excepted by
  regulation.

This position is a drug-testing designated position subject to random testing for illegal drug use. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's completion and favorable adjudication of a background security investigation. The Ethics in Government Act, PL 95-521 requires the applicant selected for this position submit a financial disclosure statement, OGE-278, prior to assuming the SES position, annually, and upon termination of employment.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIREMENTS: Applicants will be assessed against qualifications which fall into two areas: Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQs). Failure to provide a separate narrative statement which describes fully and concisely how your experience meets the competencies described in the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) and Mandatory Technical Qualifications will eliminate you from consideration.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS: You will be assessed against the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs). They are designed to assess executive experience and potential - not technical expertise. They measure whether you have the broad executive skills needed in a variety of senior executive positions. Failure to meet a qualification requirement will disqualify an applicant. (Each must be addressed separately in your Supplemental Narrative Statement. The ECQs must not exceed 10 pages.)

More information on these core qualifications are available at http://www.opm.gov/ses/recruitment/ecq.asp

The ECQs describe the leadership skills needed to succeed as an SES; they also reinforce the concept of an "SES corporate culture." Refer to the OPM Guide to SES Qualifications for specific information and guidance on the ECQ requirements, the C-C-A-R model, and examples of good qualifications statements at the website: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference-materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf

(Note: Current career Senior Executive Service (SES); former career Senior Executive Service (SES) who are reinstatement-eligible; and graduates of OPM-certified Candidate Development Programs are not required to address the ECQs, but must address the Mandatory Technical Qualifications.)

Applicants who use "see resume" as a response will not receive consideration for the position.

For this position applicants must address the following mandatory technical qualifications:

1. Demonstrated experience providing sound legal advice and representation involving the application of international, foreign, and domestic law to legal and policy issues involving multiple stakeholders and the activities of large public or private organizations.

2. Demonstrated experience providing sound legal advice and representation through effective written and oral counsel and advocacy on legal and policy issues relating to U.S. foreign relations, including with respect to international organizations and the conduct of U.S. diplomacy.

If you do not possess the mandatory technical qualifications described above, you may be considered ineligible for this position.

Education

Additional information

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER - Your Social Security Number is requested under the authority of Executive Order 9397 to uniquely identify your records from those other applicants who may have the same name. As allowed by law or Presidential directive, your Social Security Number is used to seek information about you from employers, schools, banks, and others who may know you. Failure to provide your Social Security Number on your application materials will result in your application no being processed.

SELECTIVE SERVICE - If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify at the time of appointment that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION - 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 Office of Employee Relations, Disability/Reasonable Accommodations Division, at (202) 261-8180. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY - The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

Applicants will be evaluated by a Qualifications Review Panel of senior officials. The Panel will rate applicants on the basis of the quality and extent of total accomplishments, experience and education. The Panel will determine the degree to which candidates possess the required knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the mandatory technical requirements of the position and the Mandatory Executive Core Qualification requirements. Among the factors the evaluation panel will consider in determining the applicant's relative capacity and fitness for the position are education, training, experience and demonstrated executive level qualifications. The Panel will rate your application against each of the Mandatory Executive Core Qualifications and Mandatory Technical Qualifications to determine the best qualified candidates. Candidates determined to be best qualified candidates will be referred to the selecting official for further consideration for the position.
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Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Top Secret

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

If you are currently serving under a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the career SES, or have successfully completed an SES Candidate Development Program approved by OPM, you must submit proof of non-competitive eligibility i.e., conversion to career SES SF-50 "Notice of Personnel Action" or SES Certificate. Failure to do so will result in loss of consideration as a non-competitive candidate.
If the above does not apply to you, please DO NOT submit additional information.
All required documents must be submitted to our automated system "Gateway to State" prior to the closing date of this announcement which is 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. See Step 3 under "How to Apply."

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.