EXPERIENCED ATTORNEY, GS-905-14/15
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
CRIMINAL DIVISION
OFFICE OF OVERSEAS PROSECUTORIAL DEVELOPMENT,
ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING
RESIDENT LEGAL ADVISORS IN BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
11-CRM-DET-003
The Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT), Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice, seeks experienced Department of Justice (DOJ) trial attorneys or Assistant United States Attorneys or State Prosecutors to fill two (2) Resident Legal Advisor (RLA) positions in Bogota, Colombia, beginning in the spring of 2011. These assignments are for a period of one year with the possibility of an extension, contingent on additional funding. (These are reimbursable details.)
About the Office: The mission of the Criminal Division’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) is to develop and administer technical and developmental assistance designed to enhance the capabilities of foreign justice sector institutions and their law enforcement personnel, so those institutions and their personnel can more effectively combat terrorism, organized crime, corruption, financial crimes, trafficking in persons and other types of crime, in a manner consistent with the rule of law, and can more effectively cooperate regionally and with the United States in combating such crime.
Responsibilities and Opportunity Offered: The RLAs will join others assigned to the U.S. Embassy Bogota representing the Department through its Justice Sector Reform Program, a major U.S. law enforcement program developed to assist the Government of Colombia strengthen its criminal justice system. The RLAs focus on trial advocacy, the transition toward an accusatory system, implementation of a new criminal procedure code, advancing the justice and peace process, human rights, asset forfeiture, and narcotics. The RLAs work closely with Colombian law enforcement and government officials, particularly Colombian prosecutors, to design and implement technical assistance and development projects. These projects include technical advice to the Colombian Prosecutor General’s Office on the development of major task forces, including those dealing with human rights violations, narcotics, money laundering and asset forfeiture, corruption, kidnapping and terrorism. RLAs manage assistance projects, including developing curricula, selecting experts, evaluating results, and reporting. When appropriate, RLAs personally provide assistance. RLAs interact with other U.S. law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, DEA, Customs, ATF, Secret Service, IRS and U.S. Marshals Service. The assistance and development projects managed by RLAs are closely coordinated with those of ICITAP, the police assistance entity of the Criminal Division. RLAs also have financial management responsibilities. The RLA would work under the direct supervision of the JSRP Manager in the U.S. Embassy in Bogota.
Required and preferred Qualifications: Required qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, duly licensed and authorized to practice as an attorney under the laws of State, territory, or the District of Columbia and have at least three years of post-J.D. legal experience.
The applicant must have excellent interpersonal skills; possess the ability to function effectively in a Latin American environment; be mature and able to deal with delicate legal and political issues; be able to efficiently initiate and manage work projects; be able to handle stressful and time sensitive situations and projects. The applicant must have extensive prosecution experience in violent crimes and homicides and/or narcotics and complex criminal prosecutions. Experience in task force settings is desirable. The applicant must be a fluent Spanish-speaker and proficient in reading and writing in Spanish. The position will require frequent travel within Colombia and occasional travel back to the United States
Relocation Expenses: Relocation expenses are authorized.
Salary Information: Current salary and years of litigation experience will determine the appropriate salary. Compensation will be at either the General Schedule (GS)-14 or GS-15 level. Exact amounts of salary within these GS levels vary depending on the individual’s home office. The Washington, D.C. salary ranges for these levels during 2010 are: GS-14: $105,211 – $136,771 per annum; GS-15: $123,758 – $155,500 per annum. Locality pay tables for all U.S. locations during 2010 can be found at: http://www.opm.gov/oca/10tables/indexGS.asp
Application Process Interested applicants should send a resume and cover letter to Carlos F. Acosta, Acting Deputy Regional Director, Latin America and the Caribbean or Martin Fleming, Program Analyst. Faxed or e-mailed submissions are acceptable. The fax number is (202) 616-6770. The e-mail addresses are: Carlos.Acosta@usdoj.gov or Martin.Fleming@usdoj.gov or mail to the attention of:
U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training, Criminal Division
1331 F Street, NW, Suite 400,
Washington, DC 20004
ATTN: Martin Fleming, Program AnalystApplications will be accepted until the position is filled.
Internet Sites: For information about the Criminal Division, see www.usdoj.gov/criminal/index.html.
For other attorney vacancy announcements, see www.usdoj.gov/oarm/attvacancies.html
Department Policies: The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination based on color, race, religion, national origin, politics, marital status, disability, age, sex, sexual orientation, status as a parent, membership or nonmembership in an employee organization, or personal favoritism. The Department of Justice welcomes and encourages applications from persons with physical and mental disabilities. The Department is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department of Justice. This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
It is the policy of the Department to achieve a drug-free workplace and persons selected for employment will be required to pass a drug test which screens for illegal drug use prior to final appointment. Employment is also contingent upon the completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the United States Attorneys’ Offices. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, non-U.S. citizens may apply for employment with other organizations, but should be advised that appointments of non-U.S. citizens are extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department’s mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. Applicants who hold dual citizenship in the U.S. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
There is no formal rating system for applying veterans’ preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans’ preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans’ preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions. Although the “point” system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service-connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).
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