Attorney Adviser

Summary

This position is located in the Office of Electronic Filing and Public Web Services, Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Administration,Patent and Trademark Office. As a staff attorney and liaison, the employee is responsible for performing a variety of duties regarding the legal impact of rulemaking decisions, legislation or proposed legislation, and related issues, on trademark matters, agency policy, strategic planning, international treaty obligations, and various stakeholders.

Duties

The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria, Virginia. Presence at the Alexandria, VA campus is required for this role, as it includes on site functions that must be performed in person. Position may be eligible for situational telework in accordance with agency policy/business unit discretion. The agency currently allows for 52 hours of telework per leave year. You are ideal for this position if: You enjoy providing legal policy advice and guidance in connection with petitions to the Director, letters of protest, and other trademark matters and proceedings. You have a passion for conducting advanced or complicated research involving data and information related to trademark filing submissions, and providing related analysis to provide legal advice regarding a variety of legal policy issues related to trademark register integrity and improper trademark filing activities. You are excited about preparing responses to policy-related questions, including those from Congress, outside attorneys, registrants, business customers and the public received by the Commission for Trademarks and the Director, USPTO. You are delighted about developing legal policy documents, such as notices of proposed and final rulemaking and examination guidelines as well as training and educational materials. You are enthusiastic about serving as a legal policy expert regarding the compliance of new applications with the legal requirements for receiving a filing date. You are eager to develop and/or deliver presentations on legal policy topics to the USPTO audiences.

Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at General Attorney Series. Specialized Experience is experience that has equipped applicants with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, you must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to GS-14 in the Federal service: For this position, the next lower grade level is a GS-13; and for the position at the GS-15, the next lower grade level is a GS-14. In order to qualify for the position at the GS-14 level, you must possess at least one (1) year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade level AND three (3) years of the Professional Legal/Law Experience (post Juris Doctorate): Specialized experience for the GS-14 position is defined as: Experience in developing research strategies and investigating critical legal matters in trademark law, treaties, regulations, examination practice and procedures; Experience in preparing a variety of legal documents, such as legal memoranda, briefs, opinions, guides, policies, draft legislation; Experience in communicating orally, developing and maintaining effective working relationships with high-level officials and the public on matters pertaining to trademark law; Experience with the principles of plain language writing; In order to qualify for this position at the GS-15 level, you must possess at least one (1) year of Specialized Experience equivalent to the next lower grade level AND four (4) years of the Professional Legal/Law Experience (post Juris Doctor): Specialized experience for the GS-15 position as defined as: Experience in developing research strategies and investigating critical legal matters in trademark law, treaties, regulations, examination practice and procedures; Experience preparing a variety of legal documents, such as legal memoranda, briefs, opinions, guides, policies, draft legislation; Experience in communicating orally, developing and maintaining effective working relationships with high-level officials and the public on matters pertaining to trademark law; Experience with the principles of plain language writing; Experience providing demonstrable ability to independently coordinate projects, provide instructions and ensure on-time delivery of work product and strict deadlines. AND Professional law/legal experience is post-J.D./LL.M. experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled. Candidates for the GS-14 grade level must have at least three (3) years of the professional law/legal experience defined below. Candidates for the GS-15 grade level must have at least four (4) years of the professional law/legal experience defined below. Professional law/legal experience is experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled. This experience is characterized by breadth and depth of experience in rendering professional legal advice and services with respect to questions, regulations, practices, or other matters failing within the purview of a Federal government agency, private sector, law firm, or other organizations; preparing interpretive and administrative orders, rules, or regulations to give effect to the provisions of governing statutes or other requirements of law; drafting, negotiating, or examining contracts or other legal documents; drafting, preparing formal comments, or making substantive recommendations regarding proposed legislation; editing and preparing for publication statutes enacted by Congress and opinions or decisions of a court, commission, or board; drafting and reviewing decisions for consideration and adoption by an organization or official; conducting investigations to obtain facts; determining questions of law; and studying, analyzing and evaluating legal precedents, to present findings. 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

You must possess (and provide proof of) a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree or Master of Laws (L.L.M) degree from an American Bar Association accredited law school and an active bar membership of any state. If this position requires proof of higher education, or you are substituting education for experience, you must submit an unofficial transcript or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. Please refer to General Schedule Qualification Policies for more information. You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and uni