Attorney Adviser

USPTO; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) seeks a senior attorney to provide authoritative legal advice on highly complex patent and trademark laws, regulations, and policies. This role supports agency leadership and senior management, offering strategic guidance and expert analysis on evolving legal issues.

The position is located in Alexandria, VA, with on-site requirements and potential situational telework.

Qualifications

• Specialized experience providing authoritative legal advice on highly complex patent and trademark laws, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Experience researching and interpreting statutes, regulations, case law, and administrative decisions.
• Experience preparing executive-level legal analyses, briefing materials, decision memoranda, and recommendations for senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert legal advice to agency leadership on complex patent and trademark matters.
• Represent the legal perspective in working groups, executive meetings, policy discussions, and interoffice consultations.
• Develop review plans, establish timelines, identify stakeholders, and track status of legal reviews through completion.

Skills

Legal analysis

Policy guidance

Executive briefing

Education

Master of Laws (LL.M.)

Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.)

Juris Doctor (J.D.)

Job description

This position is in the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), Office of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (OUS). The incumbent provides authoritative legal advice on highly complex patent and trademark laws, regulations, policies, and procedures and high-level strategic guidance and organizational support as an expert resource on complex matters.

Telework

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 leave year.

Duties

This rewarding career role is ideal for you if:

• You are committed to providing expert legal advice to agency leadership and senior management on complex patent and trademark laws, regulations, policies, procedures, and emerging issues.
• You are interested in representing the legal perspective in working groups, executive meetings, policy discussions, and interoffice consultations.
• You are experienced with analyzing proposed patent and trademark policies, initiatives, operational changes, regulations, guidance documents, and related materials for legal sufficiency and potential impact on agency programs.
• You are capable of developing review plans, establishing timelines, identifying required stakeholders, and tracking the status of legal reviews through completion.

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. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at General Attorney Series 0905.

Specialized Experience is 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, you must possess one full year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

• Experience providing authoritative legal advice on highly complex patent and trademark laws, regulations, policies, and procedures and high level strategic guidance and organizational support as an expert resource on complex matters.
• Experience researching and interpreting statutes, regulations, case law, and administrative decisions.
• Experience preparing executive-level legal analyses, briefing materials, decision memoranda, and recommendations for senior leadership.

Professional Legal Experience

In addition to the required specialized experience, applicants must possess the following professional law/legal experience listed below:

• GS-15: 4 years of professional legal experience, post JD.

Education

To meet minimum eligibility requirements for this position, applicants must possess at least a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree, a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree or Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an ABA accredited law school.

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.

Conditions of Employment

Applications will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals and your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies. If selected, you will be required to pass a background investigation.

The full list of conditions and qualifications can be found on the USAJOBS posting.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation), national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, retaliation for engaging in protected activity, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors.