Clarification from the agency

U.S. Citizens and U.S. Nationals; no prior Federal experience is required.

The Office of Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure and Administration) provides legal advice and litigation support services on tax matters involving Federal Tax Procedure and the procedural aspects of filing returns and paying taxes; information reporting; assessment and collection of taxes (including interest and penalties); abating, crediting or refunding over-assessments or overpayments of tax; whistleblower matters; disclosure, Privacy and the Freedom of Information Act; bankruptcy practice and procedure; summonses and the gathering of information; legal ethics; the Administrative Procedure Act; Foreign Bank Account Reporting; user fees; and judicial practice and procedures.

As a General Attorney (Tax), you will:

• Draft published guidance, including regulations, notices, revenue rulings, and revenue procedures.
• Provide written legal advice to headquarters and field components of the IRS, other Associate offices in the Office of Chief Counsel and the field component of the Office of Chief Counsel.
• Make recommendations regarding litigation to the Department of Justice and review briefs and other litigation-related documents to be filed in the Tax Court, district courts, and the Court of Claims.
• Provide advice to the IRS regarding Freedom of Information Act requests and advise the Department of Justice on litigation under the Freedom of Information Act.
• Develop expertise in one or more specific areas of federal tax practice and procedure.

Conditions of employment

• Refer to "Additional Information"
• Click "Print Preview" to review the entire announcement before applying.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements detailed below by the closing date of this announcement. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application.

To qualify for this position of General Attorney (Tax), you must meet the qualification requirements listed below by the closing of this announcement:

Basic Requirements for General Attorney (Tax):

• Possess at least the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; AND
• Applicants must be an active member in good standing of the bar of a State, U.S. Commonwealth, U.S. territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

GS-13 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general professional legal experience from any area of expertise; plus
• 1 year of professional legal tax experience

GS-14 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general professional legal experience from any area of expertise; plus
• 2 years of professional legal tax experience

Professional Legal Tax Experience is defined as one or more of the following: Experience with Tax Practice and Procedure issues at the state or federal level; tax controversy (administrative practice); preparing responses to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and/or handling litigation related to FOIA requests; research and analysis of legal issues relating to complex areas of law (e.g., corporate law, business structuring/planning, securities law, international law, intellectual property); litigation of cases involving tax issues or other complex areas of law (e.g., corporate law, business structuring/planning, securities law, international law, intellectual property). At least one year of this experience must be equivalent to the work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service for the grade you are applying to. Note: Only experience gained after Bar Admission may be credited as Professional Legal Experience.

Education Substitution: An LL.M. degree in the field of the position (Tax, Public Law / Administrative Law / Regulation, or Bankruptcy Law / Insolvency Law) may be substituted for the one year of the general legal experience listed above.

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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-time work is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applicants will be considered based on their overall background as it relates to the position to be filled. Interviews may be held at the option of the office. All application materials and interviews, if conducted, will be used in the final evaluation and selection process.

Referral: Professional Order will be used to refer and select eligible candidates. Veterans' preference is applied after applicants are assessed. Preference eligibles will be listed at the top of the certificate in alphabetical order and considered before non-preference eligibles. All other candidates will be listed in alphabetical order. If you are among the top qualified candidates, you may be required to participate in a selection interview. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview, such as travel to and from the interview site.

Bargaining Unit Chief Counsel employees will be given first consideration. To receive first consideration, Bargaining Unit Chief Counsel employees seeking reassignment must be on the Master First Consideration List (MFCL). In regard to this announcement, the MFCL is only for reassignments of employees currently occupying Bargaining Unit positions. If you are applying for a promotion, please apply to the announcement.

A complete application includes 1. A resume, 2. Vacancy question responses, and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you may not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).

All applicants are required to submit a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing. (Cover letters are optional.) To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your resume. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your resume to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Please view resume tips.

In addition, applicants are required to submit:

Education Documentation: For positions with an education requirement, or if you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected. See "Education" for more details.

Certificate of Good Standing: A certified original copy of your certificate of good standing from your State Bar will be required if you are selected.

VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Office of Chief Counsel considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. If you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge. Ten-point preference eligibles must also submit an Application for 10-point Veteran Preference, SF-15, along with the required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. For more information on veterans' preference, view FedsHireVets.

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