Do you want to play a key role in advancing the interest of the country and agency through Supreme Court and Federal Circuit briefing and advocacy, litigation and interagency coordination? Then come join and play a role in leading the dynamic, skilled, and collaborative team at the USPTO. We have an exciting opportunity for someone who is interested in bringing their appellate, litigation and intellectual property expertise to the USPTO as our next Deputy General Counsel for IP and Solicitor.

Duties

As Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property and Solicitor, you will lead the Office of the Solicitor and serve as legal counsel to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on intellectual property law matters. You will collaborate with the General Counsel, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director and the rest of a talented, diverse executive leadership team at our beautiful Alexandria, Virginia, headquarters. You will serve as the recognized legal expert on intellectual property and litigation issues for the Solicitor's Office, working with the Department of Justice on Supreme Court, Federal Circuit and other matters of critical importance to the agency and working in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters. This career is ideal if: You excel at appellate, litigation and IP strategy, brief writing and argument. You are confident in your knowledge of patent law and policy to litigate intellectual property cases (i.e., involving patent, trademark, copyright, and/or trade secret law) at both federal district and appellate court levels and applying knowledge of intellectual property law in cases involving complex legal and technological issues. You can work in collaboration with the Director of the USPTO on key legal strategies, advancing the miission and vision of the USPTO as articulated in United States Patent and Trademark Office: 2022-2026 Strategic Plan (uspto.gov). You are an accountable results-driven legal professional. You have a strong ability to provide accurate and reliable legal advice in all areas on intellectual property law (i.e., patent, trademark, copyright, and/or trade secret law), litigation, and policy issues, and District and Federal court litigation. You're an effective collaborator and coalition-builder who communicates with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders on intellectual property issues before the Supreme Court, and representing the USPTO in discussions about potential positions taken by the United States on intellectual property matters in the federal courts. You have a strong ability to formulate and develop intellectual property policies. Once hired, you will have the potential to make a significant impact on intellectual property law and the IP ecosystem. As a Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property and Solicitor, here are some of the exciting duties you'll engage in: Supervise and conduct litigation on behalf of the USPTO. Participate in preparing the petitions, briefs, and other papers filed by the government in the Federal Circuit, other circuit courts and the Supreme Court. Strategize about key IP, appellate and litigation matters, overseeing a team in drafting and arguing key IP cases. Advise agency clients, including the Director, the Patents and Trademarks organizations, and the Patent and Trademark Trial and Appeal Boards, on a wide range of intellectual property legal matters. Manage the Office of the Solicitor (including hiring employees, staffing cases, training employees and budget management) and the Deputy Solicitor, Senior Counsels, and Associate Solicitors on all intellectual property related matters, including intellectual property litigation. Participate in the development of proposals for, and implementation of, revisions to Manual of Patent Examining Procedures, Trademark Manual of Examining Procedures, the Code of Federal Regulations involving patent and trademark law and other substantive policy guidance documents. Represent the Director or General Counsel in meetings, on committees, and in connection with a wide variety of legal and other issues and performing other duties of a legal nature as assigned or delegated by the General Counsel. Engage in public outreach and speaking engagements with various organizations involved in intellectual property law matters.

Requirements

• Applicants will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
• Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
• Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov).
• Financial Disclosure Report (OGE-278) will be required upon appointment.
• Must possess a law degree from an accredited law school program and must be a member of a bar in good standing, in the United States or a Territory of the United States.

Qualifications

Experience must have been at a sufficiently high level of difficulty to clearly show that the candidate possesses the required Professional/Technical Qualifications (PTQs) and Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) set forth 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). 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. Applicants are required to input narrative responses to the PTQs in the text boxes as prompted by USAJobs. Each PTQ have a 10,000-character limit (to include spaces) that must be adhered to. When responding, you must clearly show that you possess the experience and competencies to perform the duties of this position. Do not write "see resume." Uploaded documents addressing the PTQs will not be accepted. Professional Technical Qualifications (PTQs): Demonstrated experience in litigating intellectual property cases (i.e., involving patent, trademark, copyright, and/or trade secret law) at both federal district and appellate court levels and applying knowledge of intellectual property law in cases involving complex legal and technological issues. Demonstrated experience advancing the policy or business interests of a client through litigation and other advocacy, e.g., by creatively identifying opportunities to raise issues or press claims, and/or by structuring legal strategy to obtain broader goals beyond prevailing on the particular case. Demonstrated administrative, managerial, and interpersonal skills to effectively (a) lead a highly skilled team of experienced professionals, (b) collaborate with a diverse population, and (c) deal with, negotiate successfully with and relate well with the Judiciary, government officials, and external audiences. Responses to the ECQs are not required at this time. However, if selected for this position, you will be required to provide narrative responses to the five ECQs. Once selected for the position, you'll provide specific examples of what you've done that demonstrate your possession of each ECQ. For more information about the Executive Core Qualifications please visit this site: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference- materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf ECQ 1: Leading Change - This core qualification involves the ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment. Competencies: Creativity and Innovation, External Awareness, Flexibility, Resilience, Strategic Thinking, and Vision. ECQ 2: Leading People - This core qualification involves the ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. Competencies: Conflicting Management, Leveraging Diversity, Developing Others and Team Building. ECQ 3: Results Driven - This core qualification involves the ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems and calculating risks. Competencies: Accountability, Customer Service, Decisiveness, Entrepreneurship, Problem Solving and Technical Credibility. ECQ 4: Business Acumen - This core qualification involves the ability to manage human, financial and information resources strategically. Competencies: Financial Management, Human Capital Management and Technology Management. ECQ 5: Building Coalitions - This core qualification involves the ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals. Competencies: Partnering, Political Savvy, and Influencing/Negotiation. Encouraged to follow the Challenge, Context, Action and Result (C-C-A-R) model outlined in the Guide to SES Qualifications. Challenge - Describe a specific problem or goal. Context - Describe the individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale). Action - Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge. Result - Give specific examples of measures/outcomes that had some impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills. Note: Submit only the documents requested. Additional documents will not be reviewed. Note: Current career SES members, former career SES members with reinstatement eligibility, and SES Candidate Development Program graduates who have been certified by OPM, only need to submit a resume and narrative statement covering each of the PTQs and do NOT need to address the ECQs.

Education

The candidate must have a law degree from an accredited law school program and must be a member of a bar in good standing, in the United States or a Territory of the United States.

Contacts

• Address EXRD - Office of the General Counsel Office of Human Resources Mail Stop 171 P.O. Box 1450 Alexandria, VA 22313-1450 US
• Name: John Edmond
• Phone: 571-272-8479
• Email: [email protected]