This position is located in Boston, MA in a regional office of the Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor. The regional offices have responsibility for the trial in U.S. District Courts and before administrative law judges of all civil litigation under the acts, statutes, and authorities enforced by the Department.
This position is outside the bargaining unit.
Additional vacancies may be selected.
Summary
This position is located in Boston, MA in a regional office of the Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor. The regional offices have responsibility for the trial in U.S. District Courts and before administrative law judges of all civil litigation under the acts, statutes, and authorities enforced by the Department.
Occasional travel - This position is subject to occasional travel.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
14 - There is no obligation to provide future promotions if you are selected. Promotions are dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, meet all the performance requirements, and supervisor’s recommendation to the next grade.
U.S. Citizens, CTAP eligible in the local commuting area; Non-Citizens as allowed by law. This is an Excepted Service position. This job will be filled through an alternative hiring process service. Applicants selected for an excepted service position will be subject to a one-year trial period.
The incumbent is responsible for the analysis, preparation and litigation of factually, technically and legally complex cases brought in the Region by the Secretary of Labor under various labor and employment statutes and executive orders administered by the Department. Such cases may include significant enforcement cases, cases of first impression, and politically sensitive cases. These cases often involve large sums of money and/or of complicated factual and legal importance in the overall enforcement scheme of the controlling statute. Many of the cases require substantial expertise on the part of the incumbent of the program area involved and the ability to deal with experts in divergent fields. Such cases may require extensive development of complex evidence throughout and outside the region; and coordination with the National Office of the client involved and the National Office of the Solicitor. Such cases require the ability to present, both orally and in writing, complex or technical information in an understandable and persuasive manner.
The incumbent is fully and directly responsible for cases assigned at all stages of litigation, including writing analyses to determine whether a matter should be pursued. Based on knowledge of all assigned program areas as well as an understanding of relevant Department programs, incumbent analyzes cases, and with increasing independence, identifies, evaluates and resolves all factual and legal issues, as well as all policy issues; considers and discusses options; draws sound conclusions; and makes appropriate recommendations.
Incumbent plans and handles all phases of trial preparation including preparing complaints and answers to complaints (in defensive actions); as appropriate, participates in or coordinates client agencies' investigations; prepares discovery requests and responses; represents the Department at the taking of depositions; prepares pleadings, legal memoranda and briefs; and represents the Department at pretrial hearings.
Incumbent researches more complex and significant matters, using specialized research tools. Incumbent writes original legal documents, conveying in writing relevant facts law and policy in complex and significant matters.
Incumbent independently identifies appropriate matters for settlement and negotiates settlement terms consistent with the facts and the law in the case and Department policies and guidelines.
Incumbent directs all phases of the Department's case during the trial, developing a pretrial plan, entering into appropriate stipulations; examining and cross-examining fact and expert witnesses; using evidentiary and procedural rules at trial and responding to judicial concerns. The incumbent sometimes serves as the lead attorney on large cases, taking overall responsibility for the preparation and conduct of the litigation, including being directly responsible for planning and coordinating the work of subordinate attorneys.
The incumbent may also serve as a liaison with United States Attorney Offices and other federal department and agencies where appropriate. Incumbent, in certain cases, may be sworn in as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, and conduct all or a portion of a criminal trial.
The incumbent may be called upon to defend the Secretary of Labor in employee relations matters.
Appointment to this position may require a background investigation.
Must be at least 16 years old and a U.S. Citizen.
Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
This is an Excepted Service position and is open as well to Non-Citizens as allowed by law. This position will be filled through an alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive civil service.
Qualifications
IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.
To qualify for an attorney position, applicants must possess a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.); be a member in good standing of the bar of a court of general jurisdiction of a state, territory or possession of the U.S.; and have acquired the amount of experience indicated below for each grade level.
GS-13, two (2) years of post law experience progressively responsible legal experience of a professional nature which demonstrates the ability to perform the work at this level.
GS-14, three (3) years of post law experience progressively responsible legal experience of a professional nature which demonstrates the ability to perform the work at this level. At least one year of qualifying experience, at this level, must be specialized experience as defined below.
Specialized experience is defined as experience conducting federal court and administrative litigation (involving diverse labor and employment laws), which includes developing case strategy, drafting initial pleadings, engaging in discovery including depositions and written discovery, engaging in motion practice, resolving cases prior to trial, preparing for trial, and participating in trials.
Note: An LL.M may be substituted for a maximum of one year experience.
Education
Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.
If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum course work requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.
Additional information
Position Telework eligibility is determined by management based on position duties during the recruitment process. Employee participation in telework on a routine or situational basis is determined by management primarily based on business needs. Employees participating in telework are subject to the terms and conditions of the Department of Labor’s Telework Program.
Persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have speech disabilities, please dial 711 to access telecommunications relay services.
The mission of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to protect the welfare of workers and job seekers, improve working conditions, expand high quality employment opportunities, and assure work-related benefits and rights for all workers. As such, the Department is committed to fostering a workplace and workforce that promote equal employment opportunity, reflect the diversity of the people we seek to serve, and model a culture of respect, equity, inclusion, and accessibility where every employee feels heard, supported, and empowered.
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.
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.
Applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements for this position will be further evaluated against the following evaluation factors. Current and/or past supervisors may be contacted unless specified otherwise. A panel and/or the selecting official or his/her designee may interview applicants.
Evaluation Factors:
1. Demonstrated skill in researching and preparing well-written, organized, and persuasive legal documents.
2. Ability to make effective oral presentations in a clear and concise manner.
3. Ability to plan and organize litigation. Litigation experience a plus.
4. Ability to establish and maintain effective liaison with high-level departmental officials, regional program officials, supervisors, agency staff, and the general public.
5. Ability to multi-task in a complex and fast-paced inter-disciplinary legal environment, entailing timely collections of facts, identification and resolution of issues, enumeration of options, and formulation of recommendations.
It is the responsibility of the applicant to supply sufficient information to provide a basis for rating each of the evaluation factors listed above.
INFORMATION FOR CTAP/ICTAP ELIGIBLE(S) ONLY: If you are eligible for special priority selection under CTAP or ICTAP, you must be well-qualified for the position to receive consideration. CTAP/ICTAP eligible(s) who are placed into Category [INSERT WELL-QUALIFIED CATEGORY] or higher will be considered "well-qualified." Be sure to review DOL Account Eligibility Questions #24 to reflect that you are applying as an ICTAP or CTAP eligible and submit supporting documentation.
The information you provide may be verified by a review of your paid, unpaid, volunteer, and other lived experience, as it demonstrates the competencies or skills required for the position to be filled. Your evaluation may include an interview, reference checks, or other assessment conducted by HR specialists, subject matter experts, or panel members and may include other assessment tools (ex. interview, structured interview, written test, work sample, etc.). The examining Office of Human Resources (OHR) makes the final determination concerning applicant ratings.
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.
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.
The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date. Warning: If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission. You are not required to submit a document if it does not apply to you.
-Resumes are required - provide a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one from your profile. To receive full consideration for relevant and specialized experience, please list the month, year, and the number of work hours worked for the experience listed on your resume. We also suggest that you preview the vacancy questions, and confirm that your resume supports your question responses.
- Bar Certification: Should you be selected for this position, you will be required to submit documentation verifying that you are an active member of the Bar in Good Standing of any State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or any Territorial Court under the U.S. Constitution. This letter and/or certificate should be dated within the last six months of the closing date of this job announcement.
- Transcript(s): Should you be selected for this position, you will be required to submit documentation verifying that you have completed your first professional law degree. Applicants who claim substitution of education for experience with an LL.M must submit a copy of their transcripts for verification.
- Veterans Documents (if applicable): Attorney appointments within the Department of Labor are positions in the excepted service, not the competitive service. There is no formal rating system for applying veterans’ preference in attorney appointments; however, the Department of Labor considers veterans’ preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. In order to receive positive consideration, you must indicate your eligibility, in response to the appropriate item on the vacancy questionnaire. Additionally, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, DD214 showing the type of discharge and dates of active duty and, if applicable, a VA letter certifying the present existence of the service-connected disability which indicates the percentage of your disability (For active duty service members expecting to be honorably discharged or released within 120 days, click Active Duty). Without this documentation, you will not receive the veteran's consideration. Additional information is available at https://www.fedshirevets.gov
You may also find more information on positive considerations for attorney hiring.
- Displaced Employee Placement Documents: These documents are only required if you are requesting priority consideration under ICTAP/CTAP Eligibility. Applicants with disabilities (SCHEDULE A) applying under the area of consideration must submit proof of certification by counselors, State vocational rehabilitation agencies, or the Veterans Administration.
- Cover Letter(s) are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience, but may be submitted.
Applicants selected for employment that are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship, or non-citizenship as allowable in Excepted Service hiring through P.L. 112-10, and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires.
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.
To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the "Required Documents" section.
Follow the steps below to apply. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time (ET) on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Paper applications and supplemental documents submitted in any other manner without prior approval from the vacancy contact will not be considered. Click here for information on Reasonable Accommodations.
SAVE your information before the 30 MINUTE TIMEOUT! For help, go to USAJOBS Help Center.
STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents Your resume must provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the self-assessment vacancy questions. If not, HR may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the competency indicated by resume content. FOR EACH EMPLOYMENT PERIOD, include: start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week); otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete.
STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS) Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the title and click the "Apply" button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Click “Start Application” and proceed through the 5 steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. At Step 5, click “Continue to Agency Site”.
STEP 3 – Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL) On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click “APPLY TO THIS VACANCY”. Continue through the 7 progress steps indicated by circles at the top of the DOL page. The 3rd progress step is where you answer the vacancy specific questions. The 4th progress step "Documents" is where you submit required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the "Required Documents" section of this vacancy. If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission.
STEP 4 – On the “Review and Submit” step, click “Submit Application” The last “Confirmation” step will turn green noting that your application was submitted successfully.
STEP 5 - Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm ET of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, then “Update Application”.
Labor, Office of the Solicitor
OHR-Philadelphia Service Center
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106
United States
Next steps
Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications and refer candidates for selection consideration. Candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview. You will be notified of the outcome. A selection is expected to be made within 30 calendar days from the issuance date of the certificate.
For instructions on how to check the status of your application, go to: USAJOBS Help Guide.
USAJOBS will no longer send status alert email notifications. You can check your application status in the TAS by logging into USAJOBS and in the Applicant Dashboard, click the hiring agency Talent Acquisition System (TAS). If the TAS does not provide application tracking information, contact the agency point of contact on the job announcement.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
The following documents must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on the vacancy closing date. Warning: If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission. You are not required to submit a document if it does not apply to you.
-Resumes are required - provide a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one from your profile. To receive full consideration for relevant and specialized experience, please list the month, year, and the number of work hours worked for the experience listed on your resume. We also suggest that you preview the vacancy questions, and confirm that your resume supports your question responses.
- Bar Certification: Should you be selected for this position, you will be required to submit documentation verifying that you are an active member of the Bar in Good Standing of any State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or any Territorial Court under the U.S. Constitution. This letter and/or certificate should be dated within the last six months of the closing date of this job announcement.
- Transcript(s): Should you be selected for this position, you will be required to submit documentation verifying that you have completed your first professional law degree. Applicants who claim substitution of education for experience with an LL.M must submit a copy of their transcripts for verification.
- Veterans Documents (if applicable): Attorney appointments within the Department of Labor are positions in the excepted service, not the competitive service. There is no formal rating system for applying veterans’ preference in attorney appointments; however, the Department of Labor considers veterans’ preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. In order to receive positive consideration, you must indicate your eligibility, in response to the appropriate item on the vacancy questionnaire. Additionally, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, DD214 showing the type of discharge and dates of active duty and, if applicable, a VA letter certifying the present existence of the service-connected disability which indicates the percentage of your disability (For active duty service members expecting to be honorably discharged or released within 120 days, click Active Duty). Without this documentation, you will not receive the veteran's consideration. Additional information is available at https://www.fedshirevets.gov
You may also find more information on positive considerations for attorney hiring.
- Displaced Employee Placement Documents: These documents are only required if you are requesting priority consideration under ICTAP/CTAP Eligibility. Applicants with disabilities (SCHEDULE A) applying under the area of consideration must submit proof of certification by counselors, State vocational rehabilitation agencies, or the Veterans Administration.
- Cover Letter(s) are not mandatory and will not be used to verify experience, but may be submitted.
Applicants selected for employment that are not current DOL employees will be required to provide proof of citizenship, or non-citizenship as allowable in Excepted Service hiring through P.L. 112-10, and the E-Verify system will be used to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires.
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.
To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, including submission of the required documentation specified in the "Required Documents" section.
Follow the steps below to apply. Your application and ALL required supplemental documents MUST be received by 11:59 pm Eastern Time (ET) on the vacancy closing date to receive consideration. Paper applications and supplemental documents submitted in any other manner without prior approval from the vacancy contact will not be considered. Click here for information on Reasonable Accommodations.
SAVE your information before the 30 MINUTE TIMEOUT! For help, go to USAJOBS Help Center.
STEP 1 - Create USAJOBS Account on www.usajobs.gov, including Resume and Saved Documents Your resume must provide sufficient information to substantiate your responses to the self-assessment vacancy questions. If not, HR may amend your responses to more accurately reflect the competency indicated by resume content. FOR EACH EMPLOYMENT PERIOD, include: start/end month & year and note full-time or part-time (if part-time, include # of hours worked per week); otherwise, your application may be considered incomplete.
STEP 2 - Complete the 1st part of the application process (USAJOBS) Once you have identified a job on USAJOBS that you wish to apply for, click on the title and click the "Apply" button. For questions about the vacancy, contact the Agency Contact at the bottom of the announcement. Click “Start Application” and proceed through the 5 steps noted at the top of the USAJOBS page. You will be able to select a resume and documents from your USAJOBS Account that you can submit as a package as part of your DOL application. At Step 5, click “Continue to Agency Site”.
STEP 3 – Complete the 2nd part of the application process (DOL) On the Department of Labor (DOL) page, create a DOL Account if you have not already and click “APPLY TO THIS VACANCY”. Continue through the 7 progress steps indicated by circles at the top of the DOL page. The 3rd progress step is where you answer the vacancy specific questions. The 4th progress step "Documents" is where you submit required documents (only if applicable to you) specified in the "Required Documents" section of this vacancy. If you submit a document using the same document title, the 2nd submission will OVERWRITE the 1st submission.
STEP 4 – On the “Review and Submit” step, click “Submit Application” The last “Confirmation” step will turn green noting that your application was submitted successfully.
STEP 5 - Edit Application as needed by 11:59 pm ET of Closing Date by returning to USAJOBS, clicking the vacancy, then “Update Application”.
Labor, Office of the Solicitor
OHR-Philadelphia Service Center
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106
United States
Next steps
Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications and refer candidates for selection consideration. Candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview. You will be notified of the outcome. A selection is expected to be made within 30 calendar days from the issuance date of the certificate.
For instructions on how to check the status of your application, go to: USAJOBS Help Guide.
USAJOBS will no longer send status alert email notifications. You can check your application status in the TAS by logging into USAJOBS and in the Applicant Dashboard, click the hiring agency Talent Acquisition System (TAS). If the TAS does not provide application tracking information, contact the agency point of contact on the job announcement.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
