Summary

This position is in the Department of Education (ED), Federal Student Aid (FSA), Enforcement Office (EO). The Enforcement Office is responsible and accountable for enforcing laws and rules governing the issuance, receipt and management of federal student aid. The incumbent is an attorney responsible for analyzing and investigating borrower defense claims.

Duties

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APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 200 applications received and will close at 11:59 PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 200th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first. We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application.

This is an Excepted Service position. The job will be filled by alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive civil service. Applicants selected for an excepted service position are subject to a one-year trial period.

As a Attorney Advisor, GS-0905-13/14 FPL 14 (Excepted Service), GS-0905-13, you will be responsible for:

• Exercising professional judgment on legal and factual matters relating to analysis, investigation, and adjudication of borrower defense claims or analysis and recommendations related to investigations.
• Devising and implementing strategies to investigate, analyze, and decide borrower defense claims, or recommend actions on investigations while working independently on projects of routine and moderate complexity and with supervision on more complex matters.
• Drafting legal memoranda detailing relevant evidence, applicable law, and bases for recommendations regarding alleged acts or omission by schools that may provide a basis for relief under the borrower defense regulation or may provide a basis for administrative actions arising from investigations.
• Participating in decision making for borrower defense or investigation matters.

As a Attorney Advisor, GS-0905-13/14 FPL 14 (Excepted Service), GS-0905-14, you will be responsible for:

• Exercises sound professional judgment on complex legal and factual matters relating to analysis and investigation of borrower defense claims or analysis and recommendations related to investigations.
• Devises and implements strategies to investigate, analyze, and decide borrower defense claims, or recommend actions on investigations, working independently on projects of moderate complexity and with minimal supervision on more complex matters.
• With limited supervision, writes legal memoranda detailing relevant evidence, applicable law, and bases for recommendations regarding alleged acts or omission by schools that may provide a basis for relief under the borrower defense regulation or may provide a basis for administrative actions arising from investigations.
• With limited supervision, writes legal memoranda detailing relevant evidence, applicable law, and bases for recommendations regarding alleged acts or omission by schools that may provide a basis for relief under the borrower defense regulation or may provide a basis for administrative actions arising from investigations.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a probationary period or trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: - your performance and conduct;- the needs and interests of the agency;- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period OR trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Key Requirements:

1. Must be a US Citizen.
2. Males 18 and over must be registered with the Selective Service.
3. Must complete a Background Investigation and Fingerprint check.
4. Must be determined suitable for federal employment.
5. Relocation expenses will not be paid.
6. You may be subject to serve a one-year probationary period.

You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this vacancy announcement.

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). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills, and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. We will consider all qualifying experience, including any volunteer experience.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualification Requirements GS-13

• You must be a graduate from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association,

AND

• Proof of admission to the Bar of the highest court of a state, territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and current membership in such Bar as would permit the practice of law. You must be a member in good standing of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico bar,

AND

• Has three years professional legal experience, at least one of the three years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, OR
• Has two years professional legal experience, at least one of the two years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, PLUS a second professional law degree (LL.M.) which requires one full year of graduate study, OR
• Has two years professional legal experience, at least one of the two years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, PLUS record shows superior law schoolwork or activities as demonstrated by one of the following:
  
  • Academic standing in the upper third of the law school graduating class.
  • Work or achievement of significance on his/her law school's official law review.
  • Special high-level honors for academic excellence in law school, such as election to the Order of the Coif.
  • Winning of a moot court competition or membership on the moot court team that represents the law school in competition with other law schools.
  • Full-time or continuous participation, for one year or two semesters of law school, in a legal aid program (as opposed to one-time, intermittent, or casual participation).
  • Significant summer law office clerk experience after beginning law school.
  • Other equivalent evidence of clearly superior achievement.

NOTE: For purposes of counting the number of years of legal experience after graduating from law school, equivalent writing and legal analysis performed as a judicial law clerk will be considered even if the applicant was not admitted to the bar at the time.

AND

Specialized Experience for the GS-13

One year of experience in either federal or non-federal service that is equivalent to at least a GS-12 performing two (2) out of three (3) of the following duties or work assignments:

1. Experience in drafting legal analysis and formulating recommendations to senior managers.
2. Experience in drafting pleadings, briefs, legal memoranda, or other court or administrative documents involving legal issues in civil or criminal litigation or administrative proceedings.
3. Experience in adjudicating administrative decisions with limited supervision, drafting memoranda, orders, or decisions for judges of deciding officials; conducting civil or criminal litigation or administrative law proceedings with supervision.

Minimum Qualification Requirements for GS-14:

• You must be a graduate from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association,

AND

• Proof of admission to the Bar of the highest court of a state, territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and current membership in such Bar as would permit the practice of law. You must be a member in good standing of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico bar,

AND

• Has four years professional legal experience, at least one of the four years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, OR
• Has three years professional legal experience, at least one of the three years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, PLUS a second professional law degree (LL.M.) which requires one full year of graduate study, OR
• Has three years professional legal experience, at least one of the three years MUST be at the level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the grade immediately below the one being filled, PLUS record shows superior law schoolwork or activities as demonstrated by one of the following:
  
  • Academic standing in the upper third of the law school graduating class.
  • Work or achievement of significance on his/her law school's official law review.
  • Special high-level honors for academic excellence in law school, such as election to the Order of the Coif.
  • Winning of a moot court competition or membership on the moot court team that represents the law school in competition with other law schools.
  • Full-time or continuous participation, for one year or two semesters of law school, in a legal aid program (as opposed to one-time, intermittent, or casual participation).
  • Significant summer law office clerk experience after beginning law school.
  • Other equivalent evidence of clearly superior achievement.

NOTE: For purposes of counting the number of years of legal experience after graduating from law school, equivalent writing and legal analysis performed as a judicial law clerk will be considered even if the applicant was not admitted to the bar at the time.

AND

Specialized Experience for the GS-14

One year of experience in either federal or non-federal service that is equivalent to at least a GS-13 performing two (2) out of three (3) of the following duties or work assignments:

1. Experience in performing legal analysis and formulating recommendations to senior managers.
2. Experience in composing pleadings, briefs, legal memoranda, or other court or administrative documents involving complex legal issues in civil or criminal litigation or administrative proceedings.
3. Experience in adjudicating administrative decisions, writing final memoranda, orders, or decisions for judges of deciding officials; conducting civil or criminal litigation or administrative law proceedings.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) The quality of your experience will be measured by the extent to which you possess the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs). You do not need to provide separate narrative responses to these KSAs, as they will be measured by your responses to the occupational questionnaire (you may preview the occupational questionnaire by clicking the link at the end of the Evaluations section of this vacancy announcement).

GS-13/14

1. Skill in legal analysis.

2. Skill in strategy formulation, critical thinking, and multi-tasking under pressure.

3. Skill in legal writing and editing.

4. Skill in written and oral communication.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement.

Foreign Education:

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must submit a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, please click Foreign Education.

Additional information

Veterans' Career Counseling: If you are a veteran interested in receiving tips on preparing a Federal resume and/or how to prepare for an interview, you may email [redacted] to schedule a session with a career counselor ("Veterans Counseling Session" should be placed in the subject line of the email).

Student Loan Default: If selected for this position, we will verify that you have not defaulted on any loan funded or guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Education. If you are found to be in default, we will contact you to make arrangements for repayment prior to making an official offer of employment.

Suitability and Investigation: If selected for this position, you will be required to complete the Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) to determine your suitability for federal employment and successfully complete a pre-appointment investigation/background check.

Essential/Non-Essential: This position is considered non-essential for purposes of reporting to work during federal government closures.

Financial Disclosure: