An official website of the United States government
These positions are located in San Francisco, CA, Juneau, AK, and Milwaukee, WI.
The incumbent serves as an attorney providing legal advice, research, analysis and interpretation of federal, state and local laws, as well as oral and written opinions, memoranda, pleadings, briefs and legal support of all USDA programs and litigation, and performs other legal services as assigned.
07/17/2019 to 08/06/2019
$64,878 - $98,176 per year
GS 11 - 14
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
No
Permanent
Full-Time
Excepted
14
No
No
OGC-10545319-19-JB
539672600
San Francisco and Juneau locations:
Provides written and oral legal advice to USDA officials, including officials with the Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service, in connection with the day-to-day operations of their programs.
Provides written and oral legal advice to Forest Service officials regarding various land management issues, including national forest land management plans, special uses of National Forest System lands, and compliance with environmental statutes and regulations.
Conducts and assists with litigation involving USDA agencies, programs, and officials, including preparing pleadings, interviewing witnesses, conducting depositions and hearings, and negotiating with opposing parties. The litigation includes federal court litigation and may include litigation before administrative bodies and USDA administrative law judges.
Conducts legal research to ensure that advice provided is based upon a sound understanding of the law and facts, anticipates foreseeable consequences of advice provided, and recommends actions to ensure that decisions made and actions taken are practical, effective, and legally sound and defensible.
Reviews and prepares various kinds of legal documents for general and specific use, including documents related to contracts, real property transactions, and special use permits.
Milwaukee location, in addition to the duties listed above, will also include:
Administrative litigation of cases and appeals including cases before Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Civil Board of Contract Appeals, as well as civil enforcement of the Packers and Stockyards Act matters.
Transactional cases involving acquisition of property interests and review of other lands issues for USDA agencies in Michigan and Wisconsin.
Reviews and prepares various kinds of legal documents for general and specific use, including documents related to contracts, real property transactions, and special use permits, Forest closure orders and law enforcement issues.
Bar Membership: 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 by the time you begin the position.
Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S.accredited college or university.
Narrative: You must submit a written statement, in your cover letter or in a separate document, explaining your interest in working for USDA's Office of the General Counsel, and noting any relevant course work, training, or prior experience that you believe should be considered in evaluating your application.
It is your responsibility to provide adequate proof that you meet the above requirements (education and bar membership). Inadequate or illegible information could result in non-qualification and loss of consideration.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: You MUST submit a copy of your transcript if you want to substitute your education for experience. If you claim qualifications based on education, and do not submit a transcript, your education will not be used in making a qualification determination and you may be found "not qualified".
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.
There are vacancies in Juneau, AK, San Francisco, CA, and Milwaukee, WI.
Juneau AK Pay Scale:
The below salary reflects the pay range from GS-11 Step 1 to a GS-14 Step 10. This position starts at the GS-11 level only. However, the full performance level is a GS-14. Below are the salary ranges for each grade level:
GS-11: $69,349.00 - $90,160.00
GS-12: $83,121.00 - $108,061.00
GS-13: $98,842.00 - $128,492.00
GS-14: $116,801.00 - $151,845.00
San Francisco CA Pay Scale: The below salary reflects the pay range from GS-11 Step 1 to a GS-14 Step 10. This position starts at the GS-11 level only. However, the full performance level is a GS-14. Below are the salary ranges for each grade level:
GS-11: $75,515.00 - $98,176.00
GS-12: $90,512.00 - $117,669.00
GS-13: $107,630.00 - $139,916.00
GS-14: $127,187.00 - $165,346.00
Milwaukee WI Pay Scale: The below salary reflects the pay range from GS-11 Step 1 to a GS-14 Step 10. This position starts at the GS-11 level only. However, the full performance level is a GS-14. Below are the salary ranges for each grade level:
GS-11: $64,878.00 - $84,347.00
GS-12: $77,762.00 - $101,094.00
GS-13: $92,469.00 - $120,207.00
GS-14: $109,271.00 - $142,055.00
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.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc) should contact: USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).
If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed.
Relocation expenses are not authorized.
This is a bargaining unit designated position.
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP/ICTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100.
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Attorney positions are in the excepted service, not the competitive civil service. There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service.
However, if you are eligible for veterans' preference in hiring, you are encouraged to include that information in your application along with the supporting documentation, e.g., SF-15, DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, Proof of Bar Membership or other supporting documentation.
You will be evaluated based on your qualifications for this position as evidenced by the education, experience, and training you described in your application package, as well as the responses to the Occupational Questionnaire to determine the degree to which you possess the knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies listed below:
You must submit a complete Application Package prior to 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement. The following documents are required for your application package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
All applicants must submit:
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.
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE: If a document is resubmitted, it replaces the previous submission, which means the previous document is no longer available to the Human Resources Office. If you are adding to, rather than replacing a previous submission, you must upload both the old document and the new document. You must verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Applicants may combine all like required documents (e.g. SF-50s or veteran docs) into one or more files and scan for uploading into the application. Each file must not exceed 3MB. Grouping like documents into files will simplify the application process. Documents must be in one of the following formats: GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG, RTF, or Word (DOC or DOCX). Uploaded documents may not require a password, digital signature, or other encryption to open.
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS to check your application status. We expect to make a final job offer approximately 40 days after the deadline for applications.
Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement
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/539672600. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.
Learn more about
Attorneys assigned to the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) provide legal advice and services to all agencies of the United States Department of Agriculture in administering USDA programs and activities within the defined geographic area.
To learn more about our agency, our exciting mission, vision and guiding principles, please click here to view the Office of the General Counsel website
