KEY REQUIREMENTS



• Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.
• Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
• Overnight travel of 4 times per quarter may be required.
• Selectee may be subject to serving a two-year trial period.
• This position is in the Excepted Service.
• Bar membership:  see Qualifications requirements

As an Attorney Advisor within the Office of the Solicitor, your specific duties will be to serve as the principal legal advisor for the Department and advise on all legal issues pertaining to Government ethics, professional responsibility, and the Hatch Act.  Responsibilities include writing opinions for the DAEO in response to requests from employees and former employees; coordinates activities of bureau ethics counselors and field contacts; reviews public financial disclosure reports and recommends appropriate action; reviews financial disclosure reports of Presidential nominees and provides recommendations for resolution of potential conflicts in ethics agreements; provides second-level review of confidential financial disclosure reports and recommendations; coordinates advice with the Office of Government Ethics, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel, and other agency's ethics officials as necessary; ensures that information regarding possible violations of law is referred to the Office of Inspector General (OIG) as required, referring other matters for OIG investigations as appropriate and providing technical assistance to the OIG in the analysis and potential ethics violations; recommends possible disciplinary or remedial actions to program official arising out of OIG reports of investigation.

The person selected will analyze applicable laws and legal issues to determine what further facts are needed and what legal sources must be explored. Reviews legislative proposals provided by other agencies and coordinates the Department's response on items that affect the Department's ethics program.  May assist in preparing Congressional testimony or respond to requests from Congress on issues relating to the ethics program.  Reports on effects of changes in law or regulations on the operations of the Department's programs and ethics implications of such changes and makes recommendations for improvement.  Responsible for ensuring that annual ethics training goals for employees are met.

Applicants must possess a J.D. degree from an accredited law school, have at least five (5) years of post J.D. professional legal experience, and be an active member of a bar, in good standing, of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico bar. Selectee will be required to provide proof of bar membership and copies of law school transcripts during the pre-employment process.

You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements for the position by the closing date of the announcement.

A background investigation will be required for this position. Employment is contingent upon the satisfactory completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:

Vacancy Related Questions:  As part of the online application process, you will need to respond to a series of questions designed to assess your possession of the following knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies.
To preview questions please click here.

Working for the Office of the Solicitor offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation, sick leave, holidays, life insurance, health benefits, and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System.  The following Web address is provided for your reference to explore the major benefits offered to most Federal employees, http://www.usajobs.gov/EI/benefits.asp#icc.

OTHER INFORMATION:

The Department welcomes and encourages applications from persons with physical and mental disabilities, and will reasonably accomodate the needs of those persons.  If you need reasonable accomodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the human resources office.  

Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals (residents of American Samoa and Swains Island) may compete for civil service jobs. Agencies are permitted to hire non-citizens only in very limited circumstances where there are no qualified citizens available for the position.

There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of the Interior considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring.  Applicants eligible for veterans' preference are encouraged to include that information in their resume or a cover letter and attach supporting documentation (e.g. DD-214 or other substantiating documents) to their submission. Although the point system is not used, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit a SF-15, Application for 10-point preference, and supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed. SF-15 lists the type of 10-point preference and the required support documents.  Vist the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf.  

The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

Applications (resume and application questions) for this vacancy must be received on-line via USAJOBS BEFORE midnight Eastern Time (Washington, D.C. time) on the closing date of this announcement.  If you fail to submit a complete online resume, you will not be considered for this position.  Requests for extensions will not be granted.  Most libraries, employment offices, and all DOI personnel offices can provide access to the Internet.  If applying online poses a hardship for you, you must speak to someone in the Servicing Human Resources Office listed on this announcement PRIOR TO THE CLOSING DATE for assistance.

Instructions for Applying Online for this Vacancy Announcement:

1)Click the blue "Apply Online" button.
2)If you are not a registered USAJOBS user, please create a new account and follow the instructions to complete your application process.  If you are a registered user, login to access your existing USAJOBS profile.
3)As a registered user, select a stored resume and select one or more of your stored documents to attach to your application.
4)Check the "Certification" box and click the "Apply for this position now!" button located at the bottom of the screen.
5)Address the eligibility questions as well as the questionnaire containing questions and/or task statements that address the knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies for this vacancy.
6)Upload the required documents.
7)If you experience technical difficulties during the online application process, please contact the USAJOBS helped.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

In addition to the required detailed resume, you may upload a cover letter highlighting relevant experience, law school transcripts, current performance appraisal (if applicable), proof of bar membership, and SF-50, notification of personnel action, if a current or former federal employee.

AGENCY CONTACT INFO:

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:

Qualified applicants will be referred to the selecting official for further review and possible interview. We expect to make a selection within 30-45 days of the closing date of this announcement. You will be notified via email of the outcome.  You can also go to "My Account" within USAJOBS to review your Application Status.