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Become part of the team that safeguards the financial system from the abuses of financial crime. At the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), we are at the forefront in preventing and detecting terrorist financing, money laundering, and other financial crime. Serve at the nation's financial intelligence unit and protect the United States financial system from criminals and terrorist financiers.
Learn more about this agency08/24/2018 to 09/07/2018
$134,789 - $164,200 per year
GS 15
1 vacancy in the following location:
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Occasional travel - Occasional Travel
No
Permanent - Full-time
Full-time - Excepted
Excepted
15
Yes
Yes
18-FinCEN-OCC3
508907600
FinCEN attorneys perform a variety of work involving FinCEN’s administration of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), its role as the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the United States and its membership in the Egmont Group, and FinCEN’s status as the only Bureau within Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI). FinCEN attorneys support all aspects of FinCEN’s mission to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes. For instance, attorneys in the office provide legal advice on drafting and interpreting BSA regulations, drafting memoranda of understanding for the sharing of financial intelligence between FinCEN and other federal, state, local, and foreign agencies, and participating in special agency projects. FinCEN attorneys also provide legal advice on information privacy issues arising under the Right to Financial Privacy Act, the Privacy Act, and the Freedom of Information Act; prepare briefs and pleadings in support of litigation affecting the agency; and perform other duties as assigned. In a Bureau of approximately 300 people, FinCEN attorneys receive a great deal of client contact.
This position serves as Assistant Chief Counsel (Litigation and Enforcement) (ACC L&E), the head of the FinCEN Chief Counsel Office’s Litigation and Enforcement Section (L&E Section). The ACC L&E will serve as first-line supervisor for all attorneys assigned to the L&E Section and will supervise and oversee the section’s work. The L&E Section is focused primarily on providing legal advice and support to FinCEN’s Enforcement (including FinCEN’s Office of Special Measures), Liaison, and Technology Divisions. The incumbent will perform legal work or supervise legal matters involving: (1) the development of enforcement actions or the use of FinCEN’s enforcement-related authorities; (2) FinCEN’s Office of Special Measures, including matters involving FinCEN’s authorities under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act; (3) coordination with law enforcement and the inter-agency regarding FinCEN’s national security- and law enforcement-related mission to protect the U.S. financial system and combat illicit finance; (4) managing FinCEN-related litigation, the preparation of litigation-related materials (such as briefs, pleadings and other documents), and serving as a litigation-related subject matter expert; and (5) coordination and collaboration with other federal, state, and local agencies, international partners, Congress, and the general public regarding FinCEN’s authorities and mission. The ACC L&E will also perform other duties as assigned.
The ACC L&E will be tasked with the full range of first level supervisor responsibilities, including: (1) ensuring the work of the Litigation and Enforcement Section is completed in a timely, accurate, and efficient way; (2) assigning work to subordinates as necessary; (3) maintaining positive working relationships with client and stakeholder counterparts; and (4) representing FinCEN and/or the FinCEN Office of Chief Counsel in meetings with other Treasury or government offices, Congress, foreign partners, and the general public. The incumbent will exercise a high degree of independent judgment and initiative in recognizing problems; determining when issues need to be elevated to the attention of the Chief Counsel or Deputy Chief Counsel; handling sensitive issues; and offering thoughtful, creative, and practical solutions in a clear and straightforward manner.
Security Clearance:
This is a Special Sensitive (Level 4) position that requires a Top Secret/SCI Security Clearance and completion of a favorable Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information. The incumbent must maintain a current TS Clearance/SCI Access by successfully completing periodic reinvestigations. Applicants are encouraged to note on their application materials if they presently possess a valid security clearance or if they have previously possessed such a clearance (including the date(s) on which any such previous clearance was last active).
Other Requirements:
Given the nature of FinCEN’s law enforcement- and national security-related mission and the duties of this position, the following requirements are applicable to this position: (1) it is subject to daily “core hours” of 10:00 A.M. to 5 P.M.; (2) it will generally be ineligible for regularly scheduled telework; and (3) the incumbent may be required to perform work-related tasks outside normal business hours, occasionally work irregular hours, and must be reachable outside normal business hours. The FinCEN Chief Counsel’s Office also generally does not offer compressed work schedules.
Specialized Experience: Applicant must have a year of pertinent professional legal experience equivalent to the GS-14 level. The experience may have been gained in either the public or private sector. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-time work is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/day/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week on your resume.
Applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Incumbent must also possess a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) from an ABA-accredited law school and an active bar membership of a State, Territory of the United States, District of Columbia or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as excellent written and oral communication skills.
Substantial experience with matters involving civil and/or criminal litigation is required. Demonstrated leadership ability is strongly preferred. Experience with civil enforcement-related matters and/or matters involving federal law enforcement is preferred. Experience with the authorities administered by Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence and/or legal authorities targeting money laundering or illicit finance, including the Bank Secrecy Act, is also preferred.
- This is an Excepted Service position.
- We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.
- This is a non-bargaining unit position.
- Relocation incentive not authorized.
- Relocation (moving) expenses not authorized.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
- A one year trial period may be required.
- A supervisory probationary period may be required.
- Must successfully complete a T5 background investigation.
- Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment to determine your suitability for Federal employment, at the time requested by the agency.
- If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System or are exempt from having to do so.
- Have your salary sent to a financial institution of your choice by Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer.
- Go through a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the Form I-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S.
- Submit to a drug test prior to your appointment and random drug testing while you occupy the position.
- File a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report upon hire and on an annual basis thereafter.
All candidates will be considered regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, protected genetic information, status as a parent, lawful political affiliation, marital status, physical/mental disability (if not a job factor), membership, non-membership in an employee organization, or any other non-merit factor. To file a complaint of discrimination, contact FinCEN, Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity on (703) 905-5052 or TDD (703) 905-3838.
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Your application includes your resume, responses to the online questions, and Veterans' preference documentation, if applicable. Applicants also are encouraged to provide a cover letter that briefly (no more than two pages) explains their experience in any of the areas identified in the “Qualifications” section of this announcement.
Your application package will be evaluated for basic qualification requirements and for the skills needed to perform the duties of the position, as described in this vacancy announcement and identified by the Selecting Official.
Application of Veterans’ Preference:
There is no formal rating system for applying veterans’ preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the FinCEN Office of Chief Counsel considers veterans’ preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. If you are claiming veterans’ preference, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge.
Do NOT include your social security number on any part of your application materials.
To preview questions please click here.
Please note that all required documents must be received by the closing date and that we will determine your eligibility and qualifications based solely on the material received by the closing date.
Application of Veterans’ Preference: If you are claiming veterans’ preference, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge.
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.
The following instructions outline our application process. You must complete this application process and submit any required documents by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, please contact us by noon ET on the announcement's closing date.
FinCEN provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us if you require this for any part of the application and hiring process.
To begin, either click the “Create a New Account” button and follow the prompts to register or if you previously registered, click the "Apply Online" button and follow the prompts.
You will be re-directed to FinCEN’s CareerConnector system to complete your application process; answer the online questions, and submit all required documents. (To submit supporting documents, click one of the available options; Upload; Fax; or Reuse existing documents. To protect your privacy, we suggest you first remove your SSN). Also, go to “My Account” to view and update your information, as necessary.
To complete, you must click the “Finish” button located at the bottom of the “Application Review” page.
To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application.
To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
If you are experiencing system issues with your application, please contact the CareerConnector Help Desk at careerconnectorhelp@treasury.gov and/or the USAJOBS Help Desk.
EMAIL: You may also send your required documents by email to legalvacancy@fincen.gov
1. Login to your USAJOBS account, select the "Applications" section and click on the vacancy you would like to view and have already applied for.
2. Under "application status," click "additional application information" and you will be taken to the CareerConnector website where you can check your application status. The "additional application information" link may not be available if your application status is "Unavailable." This indicates that your application is not complete.
If the "additional application information" link is not available and the vacancy is still open, you can click on the job announcement and "Update Application" to be taken back to the CareerConnector portion of the application.
If your contact information changes after the closing date of this vacancy announcement, send your updated information to legalvacancy@fincen.gov to ensure you can be contacted throughout the selection process. Also, note that if you provide an email address that is inaccurate or if your mailbox is full or blocked (e.g., spam-blocker), you may not receive important communication that could affect your consideration for this position.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/508907600. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.
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