Clarification from the agency

U.S. Citizens and U.S. Nationals; no prior Federal experience is required.

As a Chief Counsel trial attorney, the incumbent is assigned to a group providing legal counsel to Small Business/Self Employed (SBSE) and other Counsel and IRS activities, which are responsible for serving specific groups of taxpayers. Chief Counsel trial attorneys represent the government in Tax Court and provide advice to IRS field staff on issues in which Service position is established. Trial attorneys in the SB/SE organization specialize in tax litigations in the U.S. Tax Court, primarily involving tax issues impacting individuals, including individuals, including individual international tax issues, partnerships, S corporations, LLCs, LLPs, estate and gift, and whistleblower awards.

As a General Attorney (Tax), you will:

• Receive assignments of the most difficult and complex types of work in one or more of the following functions within the office depending upon the specialty of tax to which assigned-Tax Litigation or General Litigation.
• Tax Litigation- You will be assigned cases docketed in the United States Tax Court. Duties may include preparation of answers to petitions, replies, motions and any other documents germane to proper handling of the case.
• Assignment of a case pending in the Tax Court also includes responsibility for ascertaining the legal correctness of the position(s) determined in the statutory notice of deficiency as well as preparation for the case for trial and settlement.
• Provides legal advice and assistance to the IRS, Independent Offices Appeals and other Division Counsel concerning issues within their area of topical jurisdiction. Researches, analyzes facts and writes legal opinions in response to questions.
• For District Court and Claims Court: Reviews pleadings and files and prepares defense letter to the Department of Justice, Tax Division, setting out the Commissioner's position on defense of a suit involving merits of the tax, etc., including in appropriate cases, discussing the propriety of jurisdiction, any suggested motions that may be appropriate, the particular defense that is recommended and whether or not the case is one that the Department of Justice may settle without further coordination.
• For General Litigation work the incumbent: Furnishes advice and opinions to the IRS, the Department of Justice, etc., in any matter (court and non-court) incident to the assessment and collection of taxes. Advises field administrative officers, handles the legal work, and assists the Department of Justice and United States Attorneys in cases involving tax matters. Recommends what suits should be brought or interventions or counterclaims filed by the Government in connection with the collection of internal revenue taxes or the recovery of erroneous refunds thereof and the basis for defense of tax litigation suits against the United States.

If selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform the above duties and will receive training to help you grow in this position.

NOTE: This is an open-continuous announcement that is open January 19, 2022 to June 30, 2022. Applicants will be referred to the selecting officials and referral lists issued as vacancies occur.

Conditions of employment

• Refer to "Additional Information"
• Click "Print Preview" to review the entire announcement before applying.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application.

To qualify for this position of General Attorney (Tax) you must meet the qualification requirements listed below by the closing of this announcement:

Basic Requirements for General Attorney (Tax) :

• Possess at least the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; AND
• Applicants must be an active member in good standing of the bar of a State, U.S. Commonwealth, U.S. Territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;

GS-12 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general legal experience

GS-13 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general legal experience; plus
• 1 year(s) of legal tax experience

GS-14 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general legal experience; plus
• 2 year(s) of legal tax experience

Legal tax experience is defined as: Professional legal tax experience in federal tax controversy, federal tax litigation, or federal tax consulting. At least one year of this experience must be equivalent to the work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service for the grade you are applying to.

Education Substitution: An LL.M. degree in the field of the position may be substituted for the one year of the general legal experience listed above.

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. 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/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applicants will be considered based on their overall background as it relates to the position to be filled. Interviews may be held at the option of the office. All application materials and interviews, if conducted, will be used in the final evaluation and selection process.

Referral: Professional Order will be used to refer and select eligible candidates. Veterans' preference is applied after applicants are assessed. Preference eligibles will be listed at the top of the certificate in alphabetical order and considered before non-preference eligibles. All other candidates will be listed in alphabetical order. If you are among the top qualified candidates, you may be required to participate in a selection interview. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview, such as travel to and from the interview site.

Bargaining Unit Chief Counsel employees will be given first consideration. To receive first consideration, Bargaining Unit Chief Counsel employees seeking reassignment must be on the Master First Consideration List (MFCL). In regard to this announcement, the MFCL is only for reassignments of employees currently occupying Bargaining Unit positions. If you are applying for a promotion, please apply to the announcement.