Supervisory Attorney Advisor

Summary

This position is in the Department of Program Services, Court Services Office (CSO) and reports to the CSO Deputy Chief. The Court Services Office (CSO) manages resources, programs, and services related to court administration and case management and provides support, services, and programs addressing the needs of clerks' offices.

Duties

The Court Services Office (CSO) serves as the primary liaison and support to appellate, bankruptcy, district, and bankruptcy appellate panel clerks; bankruptcy administrators; circuit executives; circuit librarians; circuit mediators; court interpreters, court reporters, and staff attorneys. The Supervisory Attorney Advisor oversees a team of attorney advisors that provide legal advice and written guidance to the CSO Chief, other AO offices, and the courts. The incumbent provides assistance, support, and coordination of a wide variety of court operations, including support for circuit, appellate, district, and bankruptcy court executives and peer advisory groups. The incumbent serves as an expert on appellate court and circuit units, and for administrative, legal, management, and judicial programs and services. The Supervisory Attorney Advisor exercises a wide overall scope and manages significant financial and human resources. The duties for this position include, but are not limited to: Supervising, directing, and evaluating the work of attorney advisors providing legal analysis, advisory services, and policy guidance to federal courts and judiciary stakeholders. Providing first-line supervision and technical guidance to attorney advisors on legal analysis, policy interpretation, drafting, research, and issue resolution. Assigning and monitoring workload priorities, establishing performance expectations, and ensuring timely completion of assignments and projects. Conducting performance management activities, including performance evaluations, coaching, mentoring, and employee development. Participating in recruitment, hiring, onboarding, and succession planning activities. Promoting collaboration, accountability, professionalism, and continuous improvement. Serving as a working supervisor performing substantive legal work in the same areas assigned to attorney advisors. Providing expert legal counsel and technical assistance to courts, judicial officers, clerks' offices, and judiciary staff regarding statutes, judiciary policies, federal rules, administrative procedures, and operational issues affecting court services programs. Reviewing and analyzing proposed legislation, regulations, judiciary policies, and administrative guidance to assess operational and legal impacts on the federal courts. Developing, interpreting, and implementing policies, procedures, guidance documents, and program initiatives supporting judiciary operations and court administration. Advising senior AO leadership and judiciary stakeholders on complex or sensitive legal and operational matters requiring authoritative interpretation and policy recommendations. Coordinating with internal AO offices, federal judiciary units, judges, court executives, and external stakeholders to resolve legal and operational issues affecting court services programs. Leading and participating in national workgroups, committees, conferences, and special projects involving judiciary operations, policy development, and legal analysis. Overseeing updates to the AO's operations manuals for clerks of court, and other guidance documents. Ensuring consistency, accuracy, and quality of legal guidance and written work products. Reviewing memoranda, reports, briefing materials, policy documents, and correspondence prepared for senior leadership, committees, and judiciary stakeholders. Identifying emerging legal trends, risks, and operational concerns affecting the judiciary and recommending appropriate courses of action. Supporting strategic planning, program management, and organizational initiatives.

Qualifications

Applicants must have demonstrated experience as listed below. This requirement is according to the AO Classification, Compensation, and Recruitment Systems which include interpretive guidance and reference to the OPM Operating Manual for Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions. Bar Membership: Applicants must currently be an active member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a federal court of general jurisdiction. Applicants are responsible for citing minimum qualifications such as J.D. and bar membership information (institution name, state(s) for bar, and dates) on their respective resumes. Failure to supply details will constitute an incomplete application. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Post J.D. Experience: Applicants must also possess at least four years of post J.D. experience. Specialized Experience: Subsequent to graduation from law school, applicants must have at least one year of specialized experience which is in or directly related to the line of work of this position. Specialized experience for this position is demonstrated experience supervising attorneys and staff in the areas of judicial administration and policy making; providing expert legal and operational advice to federal or state court judges, court executives, or court staff; and researching legal and policy issues, conducting or overseeing studies, writing reports, and analyzing and proposing policy initiatives.

Education

Applicants must possess a law degree (J.D.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA). Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on OPM's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/.

How You Will Be Evaluated

We will review your resume and supporting documentation and compare this information to your responses on the occupational questionnaire to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for this job. If you meet the minimum qualifications for this job, we will evaluate your application package, to assess the quality, depth, and complexity of your accomplishments, experience, and education as they relate to the requirements listed in this vacancy announcement. You should be aware that your ratings are subject to evaluation and verification. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume and/or narrative responses, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Failure to submit the mandatory narrative responses will result in not receiving full consideration and/or rating credit. Deliberate attempts to falsify information may be grounds for not selecting you, withdrawing an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.

Required Documents

For this job announcement the following documents and/or information are required: Resume - Any written format you choose to describe your job-related qualifications. Citizenship - Include country of citizenship on resume. Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) - All applicants outside of the AO must submit a copy of your latest SF-50 to verify current or former Federal employment status. Veterans Preference documentation - Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214), if applicable Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference (SF-15) and an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs or from a branch of the Armed Forces, certifying to the veteran's present receipt of compensation.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 10/21/2026 to receive consideration. To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account. You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application. You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account, https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. Click the following link to view and print the occupational questionnaire https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13074268

What to Expect Next

After a review of your complete application is made, you will be notified of your rating and referral to the hiring official if determined qualified. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted.

Additional Information

The AO is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Applicants must have demonstrated experience as listed below. This requirement is according to the AO Classification, Compensation, and Recruitment Systems which include interpretive guidance and reference to the OPM Operating Manual for Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions. Bar Membership: Applicants must currently be an active member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a federal court of general jurisdiction. Applicants are responsible for citing minimum qualifications such as J.D. and bar membership information (institution name, state(s) for bar, and dates) on their respective resumes. Failure to supply details will constitute an incomplete application. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Post J.D. Experience: Applicants must also possess at least four years of post J.D. experience. Specialized Experience: Subsequent to graduation from law school, applicants must have at least one year of specialized experience which is in or directly related to the line of work of this position. Specialized experience for this position is demonstrated experience supervising attorneys and staff in the areas of judicial administration and policy making; providing expert legal and operational advice to federal or state court judges, court executives, or court staff; and researching legal and policy issues, conducting or overseeing studies, writing reports, and analyzing and proposing policy initiatives.