Senior Special Counsel
About This Position
The EDGAR Business Office is seeking an Attorney Adviser (Senior Special Counsel) in the Office of Chief Counsel. As a Senior Specialist Counsel, you will act as legal and policy experts for EDGAR, writing proposed rules concerning EDGAR, collaborating on division and office rulemaking to be implemented on EDGAR, and advising and assisting in EDGAR policy, filing issues, communications, technical and other matters.
Qualifications
Applicants are responsible for confirming all required materials are submitted by the closing date of the announcement. Please check the How You Will Be Evaluated and Required Documents sections carefully, as missing documents will render the application incomplete and ineligible for review. Qualifying experience may be obtained in the private or public sector.
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. Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENT: All applicants must possess the following J.D.
OR
LL.B. degree --AND-- Active membership of the bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (Note: proof of bar membership will be required before entry on duty. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT:
In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must also meet the minimum qualification requirement. SK-16: Applicant must have at least one year of specialized experience at the GS/SK-14 grade level: Specialized experience includes: 1) Conducting legal research for SEC programs or projects; AND 2) Drafting legal memoranda, briefs, rulemakings, or other high-level policy documents; AND 3) Providing legal recommendations to and advising management concerning matters of importance to the SEC; AND 4) Representing an office professionally with other divisions/offices at the SEC and/or with members of the public. ACCOMPLISHMENT RECORD COMPETENCIES: Your Accomplishment Record narratives should address the following competencies.
See the How You Will Be Evaluated section below for more information: Critical Thinking - Considers a variety of factors, general and subject matter-specific, when making decisions and determining next steps in a case. Teamwork and Collaboration - Interacts with internal and external customers in a manner that advances SEC goals and objectives. Legal Analysis - Utilizes expert legal knowledge to apply relevant law to the facts of each case.
Legal and Regulatory Analysis - Conducts analysis and prepares documents and reports in compliance with Federal law that governs the rulemaking process.
Major Duties
In this role as an Senior Special Counsel, you will be responsible for: Providing legal advice on matters that impact the operation and development of the EDGAR system. Supporting and collaborating with divisions and offices on rulemaking efforts that create new or changed filing requirements to allow effective and timely implementation in EDGAR. Preparing action memoranda and assisting with release documentation and other materials for Commission adoption of EDGAR Filer Manual changes or changes to EDGAR-related forms.
Researching and drafting rules for proposal by the EBO; collaborates with division and office staff, and members of the Chairman's and Commissioners' offices to achieve the rulemaking objectives of the EBO. Supporting communication with external EDGAR stakeholders by drafting, reviewing and providing legal and other guidance on the content of communications, inter alia, on SEC.gov, by EDGAR Filer Support or directly to the filing community. Assisting EBO's Filer Support team by resolving problematic legal and other issues that may arise; and Assisting with other EBO legal initiatives, including but not limited to monitoring of EDGAR trademarks, FOIA requests and other matters.
Education
You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. If you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, you must submit a copy of your unofficial transcripts or equivalent by the closing date of the announcement.
Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Internal Applicants: OHR will verify education qualifications for internal applicants using documents in the Electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF).
If required transcripts or certificates are not present in your eOPF, you will be required to provide them to OHR. If selected, a start date will not be established until official transcripts are received. FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs.
For more information, click here.
Applicants may also find the following helpful: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) is an association of 19 credential evaluation services with admission standards and an enforced code of good practice. Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE) is an association of 10 credential evaluation services with a board of advisors and an enforced code of ethics.
How You Will Be Evaluated
If you are found minimally qualified, the Office of Human Resources will contact you to request an Accomplishment Record.
You will have 3 business days from the date of the request to submit it. Failure to submit the Accomplishment Record on time will remove you from further consideration. Because of the short turnaround time, you are strongly encouraged to begin preparing your Accomplishment Record in advance. Once your Accomplishment Record is received, a rating panel will review both your resume and your narrative responses.
Your Accomplishment Record must clearly demonstrate your proficiency in the competencies listed in the Qualifications section.
Click here for guidance on writing your Accomplishment Record.
Your resume must provide evidence that supports the claims in your Accomplishment Record. Each narrative must describe one specific, relevant example from your experience or training. Responses are limited to 300 words per competency; any text beyond this limit will not be reviewed.
You must upload one document containing your narrative responses for all four competencies. Failure to address each competency annotated on the announcement or failure to provide the correct document will result in loss of further consideration. Please
note: A Performance Appraisal does not satisfy the requirement for an Accomplishment Record. Required Accomplishment Record Format: Applicant First Name and Last Name Competency Title Position title and dates from your resume that this experience was obtained Describe the situation (i.e., the challenged faced, the problem solved) Describe the specific actions you took State the outcome, results, or long-term impact of your accomplishment Name and email address of someone who can verify this information Reference checks may be conducted as part of the final selection process, and you will be notified before any contacts are made. Basis for Rating: The rating panel will evaluate applicants' accomplishment records and resume, then place them into one of the following categories: Highly Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has extensive skills and experience in most of the job related competencies.
Well Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and has a moderate amount of skills and experience in most of the job related competencies. Qualified - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but may have a limited amount of experience in several of the job related competencies. Top ranked applicants will be referred to the hiring office for further review and consideration.
The hiring office may directly contact recommended candidates for interview(s). To preview the Questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12960761
Additional Information
Supplementary vacancies may be filled
in addition to the number stated in this announcement and may be filled from any division or office within the agency. SEC COMPENSATION PROGRAM: Total salary (base pay + locality) is dependent upon duty location. The overall salary range listed above is provided for informational purposes.
The pay for current SEC employees will be determined according to the procedures specified in the agency's policy. IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SURPLUS OR DISPLACED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES: Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) is available to individuals who have special priority selection rights under this plan. Individuals must be minimally qualified for this position to receive consideration for special priority selection.
CTAP eligibles will be considered minimally qualified if they meet the minimum requirements for this position. Reasonable Accommodation: If you are an applicant who needs a reasonable accommodation to participate in the SEC application process due to a medical disability, please contact [email protected]. For religious-based accommodations, please contact [email protected] .
Please be sure to submit your request at least 5 business days in advance of the date you need the requested accommodation. Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Information for SEC Job Applicants: For more information, please click here. The Fair Chance Act prohibits specific inquiries concerning an applicant's criminal or credit background unless the hiring agency has made a conditional offer of employment to the applicant.
An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information, to the agency within 30 calendar days of the date of alleged non-compliance by contacting the Legal and Policy Office in the Office of Human Resources at [email protected].
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. No additional documentation will be accepted after the closing date of the announcement. To begin, click Apply to access the online application.
You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package.
You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted.
Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position.
Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.
Required Documents
You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes: Required: Your responses to the Questionnaire. Required: Resume - Resumes should include relevant work experience, with specific employment dates, that demonstrates qualifications for the specialized experience and competencies as outlined above. If your resume does not reflect demonstrated evidence of these qualifications, you may not receive consideration for the position.
Resumes that exceed two pages will be deemed ineligible and receive no further consideration. For resume writing tips, visit USAJOBS and the SEC careers page. SEC EMPLOYEES: OHR will verify your competitive service eligibility via the SEC's personnel database.