General Attorney (Trademark Law)
Department of Commerce
Alexandria, USA
Category
Attorney
Experience Level
Industry
Salary Range
N/A
Job Type
N/A
Position Description
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 calendar year
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:
- Defending decisions of the Director and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board in federal district and appellate courts.
- Preparing and filing amicus briefs on behalf of the Director on issues of importance to the development of trademark law.
- Coordinating with the Department of Commerce and the Department of Justice to assist the Solicitor General in intellectual property cases before the United States Supreme Court.
- Managing all aspects of litigations and appeals, including case strategy, motions practice, oral arguments, written discovery, depositions, and trial.
- 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.
- Handling trademark clearance and enforcement matters.
- Assisting the Deputy General Counsel and the Director of the Office of Enrollment and Discipline in prosecuting practitioners charged with misconduct before an Administrative Judge (and, if necessary, defending those decisions in federal court).
Qualifications
Conditions of employment
- Applicants will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
- Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies.
- You must meet the definition of 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.
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.
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.
Qualified applicants should possess both specialized experience and professional/legal experience as listed below:
Specialized experience for this position includes:
- Drafting pleadings, briefs, and/or legal opinions in the area of trademark law; and
- Conducting legal research and drafting written work product analyzing complex and difficult legal, factual, or policy issues in the area of trademark law.
AND
Applicants must possess a minimum of four (4) years of professional law/legal experience, post J.D. as described below:
Professional Legal/Law Experience is defined as having 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.
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 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 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. Another listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) 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.
About the Organization
The Office of the Solicitor acts as litigation counsel for the USPTO on intellectual property law matters and also works in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters. The incumbent will have opportunities to brief and argue cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as manage and participate in litigation in other federal courts. The work is challenging, and the atmosphere is professional and collegial.
How to Apply
You MUST apply online. If you experience difficulties with the application process or do not have access to a computer, please contact the HR Specialist listed as the point of contact before the closing date of this job announcement.
If you are a new user to the USAJobs Site and have never registered for an account; you will first need to create an account profile with your basic contact information and a resume to begin applying. You must be a registered USAJobs user AND you must be signed-in to your account in order to apply for this position. For help setting up an account or for general help using USAJobs, go to USAJobs Help Page. Once you have gathered all of the required information and are ready to begin the application process, click the “APPLY” button at the right side of the page. You will then be directed away from USAJobs to the Department of Commerce application site for USPTO. You must click “Submit” at the end of the application process to send your application for consideration.
To return to your saved application, log in to your USAJOBS account at http://www.usajobs.gov/ and click on “Applications.” Click on the position title, then select “Update Application.”
If you experience any difficulties with the application site, help is available! OPM has a Help feature on each page. Use this option when you need assistance.
All required supporting documents will be collected electronically via the USAJobs “Saved Documents” feature.
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Please ensure that you have removed all Personally Identifiable Information from all documents prior to submitting or uploading your applications material.