General Attorney job in Alexandria, VA

Closing Date: 24th April, 2024

Description:

Summary:
The Office of the Solicitor acts as legal counsel to the USPTO on intellectual property law matters and also works in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters. The work is challenging, the atmosphere is professional, and the diverse attorneys enjoy a high quality of work life rarely found in the legal field.

Duties:
The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria,Virginia.This position is eligible for maximum telework per agency and business unit discretion/policy.

Telework:

You May Be Asked to Report to Uspto's Alexandria, Va Campus Occasionally, and Such Travel Expenses Will Not Be Paid.
If selected for an interview, applicants are encouraged to discuss telework options and eligibility specific to the position in which they applied with the hiring manager.
This position is located in the Office of General the Counsel, Office of the Solicitor.

As a lead attorney on a particular case or policy matter, the individual selected for this position must ENJOY:

Providing legal counsel to the USPTO Director and Agency senior management on trademark and other intellectual property matters.
Representing the USPTO Director in federal district courts and appellate courts, including defending decisions of the USPTO Director and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, preparing amicus briefs on behalf of the USPTO Director on issues of importance to the development of intellectual property law, and working with the Department of Justice to assist the Solicitor General in trademark and other intellectual property cases before the United States Supreme Court.
Serving as counsel to the Director of the Office of Enrollment and Discipline in disciplinary cases before administrative law judges and in cases on appeal to the USPTO Director and federal courts.
Managing all aspects of litigations and appeals. You will be responsible for developing case strategy, drafting and responding to briefs and motions, drafting complaints, all aspects of discovery, taking and defending depositions, oral arguments, and conducting trials.
Providing legal and policy advice to senior management and other offices within the Agency on trademark, copyright, ethics and disciplinary matters, including rulemaking, procedures, and proposed legislation. You will analyze legal and factual issues, develop the strategy to deal with these issues, and produce memos on the matter as needed.
Handling trademark clearance and enforcement matters.
Representing the Director at depositions and testimony of USPTO employees.
Providing training to USPTO employees on a variety of intellectual-property related subjects.
Performing various administrative tasks as assigned.

Requirements:
Conditions of Employment:

Applicants will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
You must meet the definition of professional and specialized experience.
Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov) Suitable for Federal employment.
If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period.
You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
Financial disclosure statement (OGE Form 450) is required for this position. For more information, please visit www.OGE.gov.
You must possess a Law Degree and an active bar membership of any state.

Qualifications:
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has not issued qualification standards for attorney positions. However, the USPTO sets minimum qualifications for attorney positions and sets forth these qualifications in each vacancy announcement. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement.

Specialized Experienceis 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, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the federal service. For this position, the next lower grade level is a GS-14.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

Primary drafting responsibility for briefs, complaints, motions, memos, and/or legal opinions in the area of trademark law; and
Independently conducting legal research and preparing written analyses of complex and difficult legal, factual, or policy issues in the area of trademark law.

In addition to the Specialized Experience, applicants must possess professional experience defined as four (4) years, post J.D. experience, including judicial clerkship(s), in the area of trademark litigation. Trademark litigation includes federal district court trademark cases, trademark appeals to the U.S. federal courts of appeal, and trial proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. It is preferred, but not required, that the applicant also have experience conducting trademark clearance, prosecuting trademark applications before the USPTO, and handling trademark enforcement matters. In addition, substantive knowledge in the area of copyright and/or patent law is desirable.

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 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 http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/policy/ApplicationOfStds-04.asp 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 universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - US Department of Education (http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html). Another listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) (http://www.naces.org/members.htm) website. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration.

Note: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.