About the Position: Serves as an Assistant District Counsel for the Alaska District Office of Counsel, providing legal services in all areas of Corps practice including contract law, military construction, environmental law, employment and labor law, civil works, real estate, and ethics.

Duties

This is a developmental position; duties listed below will be performed in a developmental capacity at the GS-11/12 grade level. At the full performance, GS-13, the incumbent will: Serves as Assistant District Counsel for the US Army Corps of Engineers, Alaska District, providing legal services in all areas of Corps practice. Identify, research, and address extremely complex and difficult legal questions affecting USACE missions. Renders legal advice and assistance to all elements of the Command in response to inquiries on numerous types of miscellaneous problems arising from day-to-day operations and which vary from simple to difficult. Prepare or review extremely complex legal issues, instruments, assemblies, or prepare legal opinions for complex questions relating to state and federal laws and regulations. With oversight by supervisor, represent the office to which assigned in meetings, negotiations, conferences, presentations, hearings, administrative litigation, or other forums, with municipal, state, other federal agencies, and private stakeholders.

Requirements

• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• Must submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter.
• This position requires current membership in good standing of a bar of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Qualifications

Who May Apply: US Citizens In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document. Qualification Requirements: The following minimum qualification requirements must be met before applicants are eligible for further consideration: Education Requirements: Position requires the possession of a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) and, for assignment within the Department of Defense, OGC, or DLSA, active membership in the bar of the highest court of a State, U.S. commonwealth, U.S. territory, or the District of Columbia. The Military Departments may also extend the requirement for active bar membership to assignment of civilian attorneys within their respective Departments.Only degrees from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education are acceptable to meet positive education requirements or to substitute education for experience. For additional information, please go to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and U.S. Department of Education websites at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications and http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.Thus, an applicant must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.). As indicated below, a law school transcript must be submitted with your application materials. Statement of Good Standing: Applicant must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. As noted below, proof of such membership and good standing must be submitted with your application materials. In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below: Experience for GS-11: Attorneys performing duties at the GS-11 or equivalent-level positions are expected to perform with substantial independence, even when working on the most complex or difficult matters. Thus, the applicant must have 1 year of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. Graduation from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% of the class or an advanced law degree such as an LL.M. may substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience. Experience for GS-12/13: Attorneys performing duties at the GS-12/13 or equivalent-level positions are expected to perform with substantial independence, even when working on the most complex or difficult matters. Thus, the applicant must have 2 years of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. Graduation from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% of the class or an advanced law degree such as an LL.M. may substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience. NOTE: Experience must be documented in your resume. The Chief Counsel, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, has authority to waive the experience requirements listed above. NOTE: ALSO ALL APPLICANTS MUST ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES, EITHER IN THE RESUME OR IN NARRATIVE FORM: 1. Technical Knowledge. A. Knowledge of statutes, regulations, policies, and procedures concerning the Army's civil works, military construction, government ethics, and emergency response programs. Experience in one or more specialized areas of law applicable to fiscal law, procurement, administrative law, ethics law and regulations, and the Army's civil works authorities, including knowledge of, and experience working with, Department of Defense and Department of the Army regulations, guidelines, and policies. B. Practical experience and mature judgment in solving legal problems, providing interpretations of statutes and regulations, drafting legal documents, and reviewing client documents for legal soundness and accuracy sufficient for the accomplishment of difficult, complex, and varied work relating to complex procurements, interagency agreements, and ethics issues. C. Broad knowledge of the authorities for work in contingency environments both CONUS and OCONUS. 2. Communication Skills and other indicia of ability. Ability to advise and communicate effectively with senior leadership at all levels. Experience in and ability to lead and manage complex legal issues, including reviewing the work of technical subject matter experts. Credentials as indicated in the resume and other application materials (e.g., awards, evidence of support for diversity and EEO, performance ratings, educational achievements). 3. Leadership. Workload and/or staff direction and management experience, including experience in establishing goals, executing processes, and leading staff to implement and adjust objectives to meet mission requirements. NOTICE OF VETERAN'S PREFERENCE: There is no formal rating system for applying veteran's preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of the Army considers veteran's preference eligibility a positive factor for attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veteran's preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documents (e.g., DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active duty) to their submissions. Although the point-preference system is not used, applicants eligible to claim a 10-point preference must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed. (SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preference and the required supporting documents, is available from the Office of Personnel Management Website at http://www.opm.gov/). TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENTS: If currently employed as an attorney by the Federal Government you must have completed 1 year at the next lower level within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement, or previously served at the same or higher grade as the position being filled.

Education

For this job, you may qualify if your education meets the definitions below:

An applicant must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have the first professional law degree (LLB or JD).

Official law school transcripts must be submitted prior to accepting the position. These transcripts must show successful completion of a full 3-year course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) leading to a professional law degree (LLB or JD) that included a major field of study or specific course requirements.

Only degrees from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education are acceptable to meet positive education requirements or to substitute education for experience. For additional information, please go to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and U.S. Department of Education websites at - http://www.opm.gov/qualifications and http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html

Foreign education must be evaluated for U.S. equivalency in order to be considered for this position. Please submit your foreign education evaluation with your application.

Contacts

• Address RM-W2SN04 US ARMY ENGINEER DISTRICT-ALASKA DO NOT MAIL Anchorage, AK 99506 US
• Name: Army Applicant Help Desk