Clarification from the agency

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

The incumbent Area Counsel (Area 6) serves as a member of the Litigation and Advisory executive leadership team and is responsible for the effective management, oversight, and performance of all legal activities within their assigned geographic and program areas, in support of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Large Business & International (LB&I) and Small Business/Self-Employed (SB/SE) client(s). As such, the Area Counsel participates with the Principal Area Counsel (Area 6) in developing strategies, plans, and designs for a comprehensive and customer-oriented tax administration program to meet the interests of the IRS client within their assigned geographic area. Strategic direction, program planning and development cover both legal guidance and litigation for program areas under their jurisdiction and provide an effective top quality legal services program to both internal and external customers and stakeholders. Serves as a key advisor and technical expert to officials of the Office of Chief Counsel, IRS, Treasury, and other agencies and organizations on the legal issues, regulations, and needs relevant to serving all individuals filing schedules C, E, F, and/or Form 2106, subchapter C corporations, subchapter S corporations, partnerships, estates, and trusts.

As Area Counsel you will:

• Manage the field operations of the Area 6 organizational component of the L&A Division.
• Partners with the L&A executive leadership team to formulate short and long-range program policies, strategies, and objectives for the L&A Division; sets Area business and research strategy in alignment with overall organizational goals; and ensures performance and program objectives, strategic operating plans, and organizational policies are clearly communicated to employees.
• Responsible for ensuring program objectives are met. Monitors program measures to ensure L&A organizational goals are achieved. Identifies operational problems in assigned field offices that may impact the achievement of timely and efficient legal advice and effective engagement with the IRS client and key stakeholders.
• Implements and evaluates operational policies and procedures designed to improve the delivery of legal services to the client within the geographic area. As necessary, develops and implements program modifications, alternative methods, and novel methodologies to enhance provided legal services.
• Oversees and provides day-to-day legal advice to IRS executives and to other IRS offices within the geographic area, and is responsible for providing timely, quality support through litigation, field advice, training, and other initiatives. Works closely with the Independent Office of Appeals offices within the geographic area.
• Coordinates litigation positions and strategy with appropriate officials throughout the L&A Division, other Division Counsel offices, and Associate Chief Counsel offices.
• Through subordinate managers and attorneys, represents the government in the U.S. Tax Court and provides quality legal advice to IRS personnel. Reviews and exercises independent judgment with respect to questions concerning litigation and/or settlement of issues and cases.

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

To qualify for this position of Area Counsel you must meet the following requirements:

• 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;
• Desired Education/Experience: An LL.M. in Taxation is desired but not required. Seven (7) years of professional legal tax experience is desired.

As a basic requirement for entry into the SES, applicants must provide evidence of progressively responsible leadership experience that is indicative of senior executive level managerial capability and directly related to the skills and abilities outlined under Technical Qualifications and Executive Core Qualifications. Typically, experience of this nature will have been gained at or above the GS-15 grade level or its equivalent in Federal service. Applicants must possess the following technical and executive core qualifications:

A) Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs):
Unless you are currently serving under a Career Senior Executive Service (SES) appointment, or eligible for reinstatement into the SES, you must address the ECQs. Applicants must provide a narrative statement (not to exceed a total of 10 pages) that clearly documents and demonstrates possession of the competencies in the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs) as established by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. The following five ECQs provide the focus for certification of executive core qualifications for initial career appointment to the Senior Executive Service.

1. Leading Change - Ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment.
2. Leading People - Ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts.
3. Results Driven - Ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Ability to make decisions that produce high-quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks.
4. Business Acumen - Ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically.
5. Building Coalitions - Ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals.

B) Mandatory Technical Competencies (MTQs):
In addition to the Executive Core Qualifications, all candidates must show evidence of the following mandatory technical competencies in order to meet basic qualifications for this position. The narrative statements should demonstrate your specialized knowledge and technical competence. Please give concrete examples of your experience and demonstrate the complexity of the knowledge and skills you possess. You should address each MTQ separately, with the total narrative not exceeding ten pages.

Mandatory

1. Comprehensive, professional knowledge of and experience in applying tax laws affecting individuals filing Schedules C, E, F, and/or Form 2106, subchapter C corporations, subchapter S corporations, partnerships, estates, and trusts.
2. Strong direct or indirect experience with tax litigation, including large case litigation.
3. Demonstrated experience in managing all aspects of a large-scale law program that involves significant human and fiscal resources, including the ability to allocate, manage, and prioritize resources to achieve short- and long-term goals. Experience includes planning, directing, budgeting for, staffing, and evaluating such programs.
4. Demonstrated ability to review and evaluate programs for the purpose of assessing their effectiveness against overall organizational goals and objectives, and the ability to design and implement program improvements as necessary to increase efficiency and enhance organizational performance.
5. Demonstrated capacity for effective decision making and the ability to solve problems of very substantial impact, sensitivity, and complexity.
6. Demonstrated ability to manage with a focus on customer service and employee satisfaction.

Desirable:

1. A thorough understanding of the operations and organization of the Internal Revenue Service and Office of Chief Counsel, an understanding of the Department of the Treasury and its Office of General Counsel, and a solid understanding of the
   Department of Justice's role in tax litigation is desirable.

(Note: Failure to address these factors will result in your application being disqualified.) Narrative responses to the Technical Qualifications and Desirable Qualifications should not be more than two pages for each. Please provide the Executive Core Qualifications, Technical Qualifications and Desirable Qualifications each on separate sheets of paper.

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.

Candidates found minimally qualified will be further evaluated by an Executive Resources Board based on the extent and quality of their experience as it relates to the Mandatory Technical Competencies and the Executive Core Qualifications needed for this position. Appropriate consideration will be given for job-related training, education, awards, publications, and supervisory appraisals of job performance. Interviews of applicants may be held at the option of the Board. Selected applicant will be subject to certification of their executive qualifications by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (unless previously certified).

(Note: Current and former SES members, and other candidates who have already been OPM/QRB-certified, are not required to address the executive core qualifications. They must, however, provide documentation of certification in the form of an SF-50 showing career SES status, or an OPM issued SES qualification certificate.)

Referral: 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.