Closing Date: 1st April, 2024
Description:
Summary:About the Position: This position is located at U.S. Army Legal Services Agency, Office of the Soldier's Counsel (OSC), Fort Cavazos, Texas.
If you are currently serving in a permanent, competitive service appointment in the Federal service, and are selected for this position, the appointment will remove you from the competitive service while you occupy this position.
Duties:
- Serves as the Lead Soldiers' Medical Evaluation Board Counsel (SMEBC), provide overall supervisory assignments and assure completed work is accurate with respect to legal citation, treatment of facts and other procedural and substantive aspects.
- Incumbent will coordinate legal advice, legal briefings, and counsel to Soldiers in the Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) process, to include certain pre-MEB issues, and during the Soldiers' receipt of their informal PEB results if requested.
- Incumbent will consult and work closely with their Regional Supervisory Counsel (RSC) to ensure consistent development and presentation of each case.
- Provide outreach to educate and inform Soldiers of the services offered by the Office of SMEBC (OSMEBC) and importance of exercising the right to counsel.
- Research and analyze all relevant medical, legal, and factual issues, to include the possibility of requesting additional medical evaluations or tests and personally interviewing the client's health care providers, chain of command, witnesses, etc.
- Incumbent will educate and explain the mechanics of the Army Physical Disability Evaluation System (PDES).
- Incumbent will assist in the identification of potential witnesses, interview relevant witnesses, and prepare legal memoranda in connection with medical evaluations and medical board proceedings.
- Counsel will work closely with the Soldier to ensure that relevant medical records are requested and obtained to document relevant medical issues in the Soldier's military medical records.
- Incumbent must have a working knowledge of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits, medical terminology, treatment of diseases and injuries, and disability evaluation procedures.
- Develop training plans and materials to be presented via live briefings, video teleconferencing, and video tapings to perform the outreach mission.
- Incumbent acts as liaison for the Regional OSC and Staff Judge Advocate or Center/Command Judge Advocate, within their assigned area of responsibility, and will communicate with the servicing PEB and USAPDA, as needed.
- Incumbent will work closely with the assigned SPEBC to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for the Soldier from the MEB to the PEB phase of the Army PDES.
- Supervises at least one paralegal specialist (GS-9 or equivalent).
- Manages the SMEBC office operations. Serves as primary office point of contact for the Regional Soldiers' Counsel (RSC), Director, OSC, and local Army leaders, organizations, and administrative organizations.
- Incumbent will provide administrative oversight and mentor co-counsel, coordinate leave within the office to ensure staffing is adequate for client needs, ensure the assignment of cases is appropriate, and resolve scheduling conflicts.
Requirements:
Conditions of Employment:
- Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
- A two-year trial/probationary period may be required.
- This position requires the incumbent to maintain active bar membership, in good standing (as defined by the pertinent bar) of the bar of the highest court of a State, U.S. territory, the District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
- Position requires all employees assigned to a MTF are required to be screened for applicable immunizations regardless of series, based on occupational risk, and are subject to missing/required immunizations IAW AR 40-562, Chapters 3 and 4.
- Physical exam may be required.
Qualifications:
Who May Apply: US Citizens
Applicants will be evaluated to determine if they meet the minimum qualification requirements and on the extent to which their application shows possession of the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with the position.
KSA's:
- Skill in identifying legal issues and conducting relevant legal research within Legal Assistance, Administrative Law, or Health Law.
- Skill in administrative hearings practice.
- Skill in oral and written advocacy.
- Ability to effectively, professionally, and ethically manage a heavy caseload of clients with complex legal needs.
Qualification Requirements: The following minimum qualification requirements must be met before applicants are eligible for further consideration:
Education Requirements: Position requires the possession of the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) AND a member in good standing with the highest court of a State, U.S. commonwealth, U.S. territory, or the District of Columbia. Applicants for initial appointment into attorney positions within the Department of Army must be graduates of law schools accredited by the American Bar Association at the time of the applicant's graduation. As indicated below, a law school transcript must be submitted with your application materials.
Bar Membership: Applicants must currently be a member in good standing (as defined by the pertinent bar) of the bar of the highest court of a State, U.S. territory, the District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. As noted below, proof of such membership and good standing must be submitted with your application materials.
Experience: In addition to the requirements above, applicants for the GS-13 or equivalent Attorney positions must also possess 2 years of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. Graduation from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% of the class or an advanced law degree such as an LLM may substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience.
Time in Grade: The Qualifying Authorities (QA's) will make a determination as to the applicability of time in grade based on the requirements of the position. If you are currently employed as an attorney by the Federal government you must have completed one year at the next lower grade level within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement, or previously served at the same or higher grade level as the position being filled.
Notice of Veteran's Preference: There is no formal rating system for applying veteran's preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of the Defense considers veterans' preference eligibility a positive factor for attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., DD Form 214, "Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty") to their submissions.
Although the point-preference system is not used, applicants eligible to claim a 10-point preference must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference", and supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed. The SF 15 will identify the supporting documentation required along with the list of the types of 10-point preference.
Education:
Only degrees from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education are acceptable to meet positive education requirements or to substitute education for experience.
