General Attorney

Job summary

About the Position: This position is with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Southwestern Division, Ft Worth District, Office of Counsel with a duty station location of Ft. Worth, Texas. This is a Time Limited Appointment Not to Exceed (NTE) 13 months but may be extended up to a total of 3 years. This position will NOT be made permanent. This is an Open-Continuous Announcement. Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.

Major duties

Works under the technical and advisory supervision of the District Counsel. Responsible for the preparation or review of complex legal issues, instruments, assemblies, or the preparation of legal opinions on complex questions relating to state and Federal laws and regulations. Assigned cases involve extremely complex and difficult legal questions or issues involving novel questions of law and policy affecting several million dollars or more. Responsible for acting as an official legal representative of the office to which assigned in contacts with municipal, state, and federal agencies, other federal agencies, and private stakeholders.

Qualification

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. The following minimum qualification requirements must be met before applicants are eligible for further consideration: Education: 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.). Law school transcripts must be submitted at the time of application. Bar Membership: An applicant must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory, or commonwealth of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Professional Legal Experience: Experience for the GS-12 level: An applicant must have two or more years of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. NOTE: The qualifying authority may make exceptions to the experience requirements when nominees possess special qualifications in place of those specified. For example, a second professional law degree (master of laws) or graduation with a distinguished record from an accredited law school (for example, in the top 25 percent of the class) may be substituted for 1 year of professional legal experience. Experience for the GS-13 level: An applicant must have two or more years of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. NOTE: The qualifying authority may make exceptions to the experience requirements when nominees possess special qualifications in place of those specified. For example, a second professional law degree (master of laws) or graduation with a distinguished record from an accredited law school (for example, in the top 25 percent of the class) may be substituted for 1 year of professional legal experience. Time in Grade Requirement: If currently employed as an attorney by the Federal Government you must have completed one year at the next lower grade level. You will be evaluated on the basis of your level of competency in the following areas: Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Your application package will be evaluated to ensure your experience, knowledge, skills, training and/or education meet the qualification requirements stated in this vacancy announcement. Quality of experience relates to how closely or to what extent an applicant's background and recency of experience and education clearly reflect that you possess the following required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) to successfully perform the duties of this position. The following KSA's must be addressed in your resume. Failure to do so may result in an ineligible rating or effect your overall rating. 1. Knowledge, skills, and abilities with regards to providing legal advice, negotiation, and/or resolution of title/boundary disputes, issues related to public roads and highways, public utilities, railroads, and/or pipelines. 2. Knowledge, skills, and ability as it applies to providing legal advice on examining and/or preparing attorney title opinions, drafting/preparing closing documents, and conducting closings. 3. Knowledge, skills, and experience providing legal advice related to condemnation assemblies and litigation; ownership (chain-of-title) of property being condemned; identification of interested parties in land being condemned; preparation of litigation reports and coordinating with the Department of Justice (DOJ) in condemnation lawsuits. 4. Knowledge, skills, and experience providing legal advice the examination of public records of title evidence (Texas experience preferred but not required), review of property tax records, and securing releases of mortgages or other outstanding liens. 5. Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.

Education

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show 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. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Evaluations

How you will be evaluated You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. NOTICE OF VETERANS' PREFERENCE There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Defense considers veterans' preference eligibility a positive factor for attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (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 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 www.opm.gov.) Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility. You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. You may claim Military Spouse preference.