Summary
This position is a staff attorney in FTA's Office of Chief Counsel, Litigation and Regional Operations Division, and functions, specifically, as the Regional Counsel in Region 10 in Seattle, WA. You will provide a wide range of legal services involving all functional areas assigned to the Office of Chief Counsel, including research and counseling on all legal requirements pertaining to the regional office's administration of FTA's grant and loan programs, and the agency's related authorities.
Duties
As an Attorney Advisor, you will: Serve as counsel to the agency and as a member of the Chief Counsel's staff. Serve as a legal resource, respond to questions posed by FTA Regional staff and others within and outside the Federal Government and prepare necessary documentation to support the agency's position on matters for which the incumbent has primary responsibility. Advise on questions of law or administrative policy involved in the operation of FTA and in its contacts with industry, private and professional associations, State and local governments, and the public. Provide litigation support in cases involving FTA, as needed, which may include compiling the administrative record; performing legal research; reviewing/editing litigation papers; and working with attorneys from FTA, DOT, the Justice Department, and other Federal agencies on case strategy and legal positions. Evaluate pending grant applications for legal sufficiency, ascertaining whether the Regional Administrator has an adequate basis upon which to make the findings and determinations that are a prerequisite to grant approval. Provide timely review of draft environmental documents and historic preservation documents to ensure supporting documentation is in compliance with federal requirements and adequate for an administrative record. Following the execution of grant agreements by FTA's grant recipients, the candidate assists in ensuring proper execution of the funded projects. Provide legal advice relating to public safety and security of transit agencies in FTA Region 10, including compliance oversight and enforcement. Draft legal opinions and perform legal services concerning the negotiation, drafting, execution, and administration of Federal grants, and cooperative agreements regarding various agency programs. The ideal candidate is the ideal candidate is one with experience in general law, including the following areas: government contracts, administrative procedure, grants agreements, real property, Federal ethics, environmental and/or civil rights law.
Requirements
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT: SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service. TRIAL PERIOD: This is an Excepted Service position. This job will be filled by an alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive service. Applicants selected for an excepted service position may be subject to a two-year trial period. ETHICS/CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT: All employees are subject to the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 2635, including restrictions on owning financial interests that may conflict with performance of their duties. Some employees, like those involved in contracting or regulating non-Federal entities, are subject to Executive Branch Financial Disclosure requirements set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 263. GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contract-issued travel cared will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS: In order to qualify for this position, candidates must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have a professional law degree, and must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.
How you will be evaluated
DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume/ application does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Your resume must contain sufficiently detailed information upon which to make a qualification determination. Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational and specialized experience requirements. Applicants will not be rated or ranked. All applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official. The answers you select in the on-line process must be substantiated in your application package. If upon review, it is determined that your described work history, competencies, and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, you may not be referred to the selecting official. Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. You may preview questions for this vacancy.