The following are the duties of this position at the GS-14. If you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform all these duties, and will receive training to help you grow in this position.
As an Attorney-Advisor (General) , you will:
Identify and analyze problems and render legal opinions on complex legal questions including questions which implicate multiple areas of law for which there is often no clear legal precedent.
Actively participate and contributes to the development of protocols and policies on all matters affecting HUD programs and administration within the field office's jurisdiction and exercises independent judgment and discretion in formulating responses to novel legal issues, often involving matters of first impression that involve substantial monetary sums.
Provide advice to program directors, managers and staff to ensure that the established policies, standards, and procedures pertaining to legal matters are appropriately carried out and performed.
Be responsible for advising on and ensuring that policies, procedures and regulations are consistent with the intent of the law and are administratively sound, efficient, and economical in operation.
Conduct legal research and provide legal opinions that relate to complex financial transactions involving state and federal finance agencies.
This position is located in the Office of General Counsel (OGC). OGC is the chief legal officer of the Department, the principal legal adviser to the Secretary and staff of HUD, and the head of the Departmental Enforcement Center. OGC provides legal opinions, advice, and services with respect to all Departmental programs and activities, and assists in the development of HUD programs and policies. OGC also provides functional legal counsel on defensive and affirmative litigation and the development of legislation and regulations.
The official duty station for this position will be in Newark, NJ. Failure to report to duty at this location may be grounds for a disciplinary action, including removal.
Qualifications
You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Basic Requirements: Applicants must (1) be a graduate of an accredited law school with an LL.B. or J.D.; (2) be a current member of a bar with a valid license to practice law in a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and (3) meet all specialized experience requirements as described in the vacancy announcement.
AND
Specialized Experience: for GS-12, GS-13, and GS-14 are defined as:
Demonstrated legal expertise working with real estate closings, asset management transactions, single or multifamily mortgage insurance programs or hospitals or residential care facilities or Office of Healthcare programs or public and assisted housing programs, or community planning and development programs; OR
Experience with federal, state and local regulations affecting real estate housing, and finance laws and housing laws such as regulations impacting municipal corporations, municipal and private financing, creditors rights, bankruptcy, or administrative law.
For the GS-14, you must:
Have a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) plus four (4) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-13 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a second professional law degree (LL.M.) plus three (3) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-13 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a first professional law degree (LL.B., or J.D.), plus superior law student work (academic standing in upper 1/3 of the law school graduating class, high-level honors for academic excellence in law school, winning of a moot court competition with other law schools, significant work or achievement on the school’s official law review, significant summer clerkship or other evidence of clearly superior achievement) plus three (3) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-13 level in the Federal service.
For the GS-13, you must:
Have a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) plus three (3) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-12 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a second professional law degree (LL.M.) plus two (2) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-12 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a first professional law degree (LL.B., or J.D.), plus superior law student work (academic standing in upper 1/3 of the law school graduating class, high-level honors for academic excellence in law school, winning of a moot court competition with other law schools, significant work or achievement on the school’s official law review, significant summer clerkship or other evidence of clearly superior achievement) plus two (2) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-12 level in the Federal service.
For the GS-12, you must:
Have a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) plus two (2) years of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-11 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a second professional law degree (LL.M.) plus one (1) year of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-11 level in the Federal service.
OR
Have a first professional law degree (LL.B., or J.D.), plus superior law student work (academic standing in upper 1/3 of the law school graduating class, high-level honors for academic excellence in law school, winning of a moot court competition with other law schools, significant work or achievement on the school’s official law review, significant summer clerkship or other evidence of clearly superior achievement) plus one (1) year of professional legal experience, at least one of which must be specialized experience at a level of difficulty comparable to the GS-11 level in the Federal service.
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/date/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week on your résumé.
Education
Attorney positions do have an education requirement.
Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with an LL.B. or J.D. For positions with an education requirement, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected. In addition you must provide proof of bar or your bar number in the vacancy questions.
Additional information
- We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies. - Relocation expenses will not be paid. - Recruitment incentive may be offered. - This is a bargaining unit position. - This position is exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). - HUD offers alternative and flexible work schedules.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: - A 2-year trial period is required. (unless already completed) - Must successfully complete a 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. - Obtain and use a Government-issued charge card for business-related travel. - Occasional travel may be required. - File a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report within 30 days of appointment and annually from then on. - Public Trust – Background Investigation will be required.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Location Affordability Portal (LAP): The LAP provides estimates of household housing and transportation costs at the neighborhood level to help make more informed decisions about where to live, work, and invest.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Your application includes your résumé, responses to the online questions, and required supporting documents. Please be sure that your résumé includes detailed information to support your qualifications for this position; failure to provide sufficient evidence in your résumé may result in a “not qualified” determination.
1. Minimum Requirements:Your application must show that you meet all requirements, including the education and/or experience required for this position. You will be found "not qualified" if you do not possess the minimum competencies required for the position. If your application is incomplete, we will rate you as ineligible. 2. Referral: Since this is an Excepted Service position, a non-rated method of evaluation will be used. We will evaluate your application by comparing your description of your work experience, level of responsibility, and accomplishments with the requirements of the position to determine whether you meet all the qualification requirements. Although competitive examining rules for rating and ranking and veterans' preference do not apply, veteran's preference will be considered as a positive factor. Candidates who meet all the qualification and other eligibility requirements will be referred to the selecting official for consideration and possible interview. To preview questions please click here.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Location Affordability Portal (LAP): The LAP provides estimates of household housing and transportation costs at the neighborhood level to help make more informed decisions about where to live, work, and invest.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
A complete application includes 1. A résumé, 2. Vacancy question responses, and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).
All applicants are required to submit a résumé either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing. (Cover letters are optional.) To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/date/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your résumé. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your résumé to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Please view résumé tips.
VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans preference, please see applicant guide for required documentation In order to be considered for veterans preference, you must submit all required documentation as outlined in the applicant guide.
ACTIVE BAR MEMBERSHIP You must submit evidence of an Active Bar Membership as described in the Qualifications Section of this announcement.
EDUCATION DOCUMENTATION: Attorney positions do have an education requirement.Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with an LL.B. or J.D. For positions with an education requirement, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected. In addition you must provide proof of bar or your bar number in the vacancy questions.
A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page.
If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. Refer to the OPM instructions.
Recommended Documents: In addition, we recommend that you submit copies of the following:
- A legal writing sample of between 5 – 10 pages containing legal analysis. - A copy of all pages of your most recent completed annual performance appraisal, dated within the last 12 months, that includes the final rating.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
HUD has partnered with the Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service to provide certain personnel services to its organization. Fiscal Service's responsibilities include advertising vacancies, accepting and handling applications, and extending job offers.
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.
HUD 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 HUD'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.
Office of General Counsel
See "How to Apply Section"
Washington, District of Columbia 20410
United States
Next steps
To check the status of your application for this position, please follow these steps:
1. Login to your USAJOBS account, select the "Applications" tab section and click on the vacancy that you have already applied to
2. Under "Application Status," click the "Additional Application Information" link and you will be taken to HUD’s CareerConnector website where you can check your application status.
The "Additional Application Information" link may not be available if your application status says "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 the "Update Application" button to be taken back to the HUD CareerConnector portion of the application.
Please notify us if your contact information changes after the closing date of the announcement. 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.
A complete application includes 1. A résumé, 2. Vacancy question responses, and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).
All applicants are required to submit a résumé either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing. (Cover letters are optional.) To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/date/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your résumé. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your résumé to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Please view résumé tips.
VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans preference, please see applicant guide for required documentation In order to be considered for veterans preference, you must submit all required documentation as outlined in the applicant guide.
ACTIVE BAR MEMBERSHIP You must submit evidence of an Active Bar Membership as described in the Qualifications Section of this announcement.
EDUCATION DOCUMENTATION: Attorney positions do have an education requirement.Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with an LL.B. or J.D. For positions with an education requirement, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected. In addition you must provide proof of bar or your bar number in the vacancy questions.
A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page.
If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. Refer to the OPM instructions.
Recommended Documents: In addition, we recommend that you submit copies of the following:
- A legal writing sample of between 5 – 10 pages containing legal analysis. - A copy of all pages of your most recent completed annual performance appraisal, dated within the last 12 months, that includes the final rating.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
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.
HUD has partnered with the Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service to provide certain personnel services to its organization. Fiscal Service's responsibilities include advertising vacancies, accepting and handling applications, and extending job offers.
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.
HUD 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 HUD'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.
Office of General Counsel
See "How to Apply Section"
Washington, District of Columbia 20410
United States
Next steps
To check the status of your application for this position, please follow these steps:
1. Login to your USAJOBS account, select the "Applications" tab section and click on the vacancy that you have already applied to
2. Under "Application Status," click the "Additional Application Information" link and you will be taken to HUD’s CareerConnector website where you can check your application status.
The "Additional Application Information" link may not be available if your application status says "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 the "Update Application" button to be taken back to the HUD CareerConnector portion of the application.
Please notify us if your contact information changes after the closing date of the announcement. 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.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
