Chief Counsel

Duties

The Chief Counsel:

Implements local procedures and policy consistent with and in coordination with the NASA General Counsel.
Provides problem-solving and timely and decisive analysis and advice to address legal issues and questions for the Center. Strategically advises the Center Director and senior managers on potential efficiencies, required compliance and other benefits of legal function initiatives. Also strategically advises the General Counsel and other legal subject matter experts across the NASA Legal Enterprise on such matters.
Represents NASA interests in litigation in which the Center is a party and provides advice and assistance to the Department of Justice.
Accepts process or pleadings in legal proceedings on behalf of the Center Director and takes all necessary further actions to protect NASA's interests in real or personal property and adjudicates claims presented to the Center for personal injury or damage to or loss of real or personal property.
Ensures legal representation in matters involving other Federal, state, and local Government agencies when the Center's interests are involved and as required in formal regulatory proceedings where the Center's interests require representation and in appropriate courts and administrative agencies.
Maintains extensive contact and coordination with the NASA General Counsel, as well as other OGC counsel and management officials, and other NASA officials either directly or in conjunction with the Center Director in the areas of policy, program objectives, funding, and other pertinent activities.
Responsible for the direct supervision of staff members of the center's legal office and other staff members from the NASA Legal Enterprise as may be assigned. Enables utilization of Center legal staff across the Legal Enterprise as needed in support of the NASA Mission and in support of development of legal staff.
Exercises responsibilities delegated to Center Chief Counsel in NASA agency directives, is responsible to the Designated Agency Ethics Official and Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official for all ethics activities at the Center and is responsible for the administration of the Center's patent program.
Develops and executes Center's legal staffing plan and legal office procurement budget in close coordination with the NASA Legal Enterprise and as part of the Enterprise's annual Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) cycle.
Fosters and continually drives a culture of engagement, diversity, inclusiveness, excellence, and innovation within and outside of the organization and NASA. Champions the Agency's commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) and creates an environment and culture that promotes and enables the Agency's commitment to safety, inclusion, integrity, teamwork, and excellence.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

The individual selected will be required to file an 'Executive Branch Personnel Financial Disclosure Report' (OGE-278) in accordance with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.
Initial Senior Executive Service (SES) Career appointee is subject to a one-year probationary period.
Successful completion of a background investigation commensurate with the risk and sensitivity level of the position.
Successful completion of pre-employment and random drug testing may be required.
Must meet qualifications requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

You must have the skill and ability to perform the duties described above as demonstrated by progressively responsible supervisory/leadership experience, normally obtained over several years by serving in positions at the GS-15 level or equivalent.

Your application package must be in your own words. Experience statements copied from a position description, vacancy announcement, or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job. NASA prohibits the use of artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted tool in drafting application and assessment responses. Please visit https://www.nasa.gov/careers/how-to-apply/#Artificial-Intelligence to review NASA's guidance on the use of AI tools during the application process.

To meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position, you MUST address each Executive Core Qualification (ECQ) and Mandatory Technical Qualification (MTQ) separately. If you fail to do so, your application will be rated ineligible. We recommend you provide two (2) examples of relevant experience for each ECQ. Responses to ALL ECQs must not exceed ten (10) pages; MTQ responses must not exceed one (1) page per MTQ. Please include your full name on all documents submitted.

If you are currently serving under a career SES appointment, are eligible for reinstatement into the SES (this means you were previously employed as a Career SES employee and you successfully completed a one-year probationary period), or have successfully completed a SES Candidate Development Program and been certified by Office of Personnel Management (OPM) you MUST submit a resume and in a separate document address the MTQs. Any ECQs submitted will not be considered. Your resume must clearly state that you are a current career SES, eligible for reinstatement, or SES CDP certified and year of certification.

When preparing your responses to the ECQs and MTQs, you are encouraged to follow the Challenge, Context, Action, and Result model outlined in the OPM's Guide to Senior Executive Service Qualification. For a sample template on how to format your ECQ narrative visit NASA's Executive Leadership Opportunities.

EXECUTIVE CORE QUALIFICATIONS:

ECQ 1 - Leading Change: The ability to bring about strategic change, both within and outside the organization, to meet organizational goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to establish an organizational vision and to implement it in a continuously changing environment.

ECQ 2 - Leading People: The ability to lead people toward meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to provide an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others, facilitates cooperation and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts.

ECQ 3 - Results Driven: The ability to meet organizational goals and customer expectations. Inherent to this ECQ is the ability to make decisions that produce high-quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks.

ECQ 4 - Business Acumen: The ability to manage human, financial, and information resources strategically.

ECQ 5 - Building Coalitions: The ability to build coalitions internally and with other Federal agencies, State and local governments, nonprofit and private sector organizations, foreign governments, or international organizations to achieve common goals.

MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS:

MTQ 1 - Demonstrated experience with significant and diverse legal professional experience as a practicing attorney dealing with highly complex issues, including litigation, in more than three of the following core legal functions: procurement law, intellectual property law, commercial partnership transactions, interagency agreement law, international law, space law, fiscal/appropriations law, employment law, labor relations law, property law, environmental law, security and safety law, ethics law, and litigation.

MTQ 2 - Demonstrated experience interfacing and rendering legal advice with a varied audience (such as senior and subordinate managers, Federal agencies, and external stakeholders); with demonstrated experience in communicating, negotiating, and advocating to the highest levels within a Federal agency or large organization, on legal matters related to agency/organization practice.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement. To be eligible, you must clearly state in your resume the following: degree, major and/or minor, and college/university.

You must possess a J.D. or LL.M from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association and be a member in good standing of a bar in a state/territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs. These education credentials must be deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, click here.

Additional information

Must be able to obtain and maintain a TS/SCI security clearance.

Benefits
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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

All qualifications requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement. You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

We will review your resume and required documents to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. If you meet the basic qualification requirements, your application will be evaluated based on your narrative statements addressing the ECQs and MTQs. Your application may then be referred to and evaluated by an Executive Resources Panel (ERP) and will be placed in one of the following categories: Not Qualified, Qualified, or Highly-qualified. Candidates may receive an interview and/or be asked to provide a list of references. The ERP will make a recommendation to the appropriate approving authority.