Administrative Law Judge

Summary

This position is located in Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ), Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA), Office of Finance and Operations (OFO), and reports to the Chief Administrative Law Judge (Chief ALJ). The OALJ conducts hearing appeals by grantees and other statutory and regulatory hearings administered by the Department, and as delegated by the Secretary of Education.

Duties

• APPLICATION LIMIT: This vacancy announcement is limited to the first 200 applications received and will close at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the day that we receive the 200th application, or at 11:59PM Eastern Time on the listed closing date, whichever occurs first. We encourage you to read this entire vacancy announcement prior to submitting your application. As an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), your primary function is to hear administrative proceedings which the Department is required to conduct subject to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. Section 551, et. seq.). The ALJ issues decisions and orders in adjudicatory hearings and performs other duties consistent with the APA and remains judicially independent of the Secretary. Additionally, the ALJ may conduct informal fact-finding inquiries or preside over pre-offset hearings such as requests for employee salary waiver over-payment cases. The ALJ administers oaths and affirmations, rules upon motions, regulates the course of evidentiary hearings and receives relevant evidence, holds conferences regarding settlement and other issues, and disposes of procedural requests or similar matters. The ALJ regularly prepares a complete formal record of hearings and issues formal written decisions. Depending on the case type, the ALJ may issue an initial decision subject to further appeal to the Secretary, or a final agency decision, subject only to appeal to an Article III federal court. The ALJ issues all decision and holds all hearings in a timely manner. Some types of proceedings are governed by strict timelines to which the ALJ must adhere. In consultation with, and with prior approval of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and the Chief ALJ and the Department of Education, the ALJ may be called to assist another agency on a temporary basis for the purpose of conducting formal administrative hearings before such other agency.

Qualifications

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). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills, and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. We will consider all qualifying experience, including any volunteer experience. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order to be credited towards qualifications.

Requirements

You must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. You must be a U.S. citizen or national. You will be required to successfully complete a background investigation. If tentatively selected, you will be required to submit an OF-306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and an SF-85P, Questionnaire for Public Trust Positions, and provide fingerprints. All ALJ applicants must receive a favorable personnel security adjudication before a final offer of employment is extended. You are required to register for Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/03/1959. You will be required to maintain a professional license to practice law under the laws of a state, territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. For more details, see Licensure under the Qualifications section below. You will be required to submit a Public Financial Disclosure Statement, OGE-278, before a final offer of employment is extended and annually thereafter.

Education

Graduation from an accredited university with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) or Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.). Licensure You must possess a professional license to practice law and be authorized to practice law under the laws of a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territorial court established under the United States Constitution at the time of selection and throughout the selection process. "Judicial" status is acceptable ln lieu of "active" status in States that prohibit sitting judges from maintaining "active" status to practice law. Being in "good standing" is also acceptable in lieu of "active" status in States where the licensing authority considers "good standing" as having a current license to practice law. Qualifying Experience You must have at least 6 years of experience as a licensed attorney - INCLUDING - at least 3 years of experience as a state or federal administrative law judge, administrative judge, military judge, immigration judge, magistrate, trial judge, appellate judge, or other state or federal adjudicator presiding over civil or criminal litigation or administrative law cases; OR 10 years of experience as a licensed attorney preparing for, participating in, or reviewing formal hearings or trials involving civil or criminal litigation or administrative law at the military, Federal, State, or local level. Cases must have been conducted on the record under procedures at least as formal as those prescribed by 5 U.S.C. §§ 554-559 of the Administrative Procedure Act. Qualifying "civil or criminal litigation" experience involves cases in which a complaint was filed with a court, or a charging document (e.g., indictment or information) was issued by a court, a grand jury, or equivalent military authority. Qualifying "administrative law" experience involves cases in which a formal procedure was initiated by a governmental administrative body or a private organization or individual. Both types of experience include: Preparing scheduling and other pre-trial orders; Drafting protective orders; Preparing for and participating in the adjudication of cases; Drafting opinions and decisions; Conducting and participating in in-person, virtual, and hybrid hearings; or Adjudicating cases exclusively on a written record. Non-Qualifying Experience: Experience involving cases without formal hearing procedures and uncontested cases. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) The quality of your experience will be measured by the extent to which you possess the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs). You do not need to provide separate narrative responses to these KSAs, as they will be measured by your responses to the occupational questionnaire (you may preview the occupational questionnaire by clicking the link at the end of the Evaluations section of this vacancy announcement). Knowledge of administrative law, including the substantive law, rules, regulations and procedures of the Administrative Procedure Act. Ability to preside over and control an adversary hearing in which parties are represented by counsel. Knowledge of how to conduct virtual and hybrid hearings without assistance from law clerks or legal administrators. Ability to analyze applicable facts and law, and write a timely, clear, and complete but concise decision without assistance from law clerks or other staff attorneys. Skill in mediating disputes involving adversarial parties and maintaining proper judicial temperament and demeanor in hearings with represented parties and in hearings with self-represented persons. Ability to proficiently use a computer to communicate, write decisions, and perform research through electronic means, ideally using the latest AI-enhanced versions of Westlaw, Lexis, and other legal research tools.

How to apply

Step 1: Create a USAJOBS account (if you do not already have one) at www.usajobs.gov. Step 2: Create a resume using the USAJOBS resume builder or upload a resume into your USAJOBS account. Ensure that your resume demonstrates your education, experience, training, and accomplishments as it relates to the qualifications for this position and substantiates your responses to the occupational questionnaire. Step 3: Upload any required documents into your USAJOBS account (must be less than 3MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, or Word (DOC or DOCX)). Step 4: Click "Apply Online" and follow the prompts to complete the occupational questionnaire and attach any required documents. Verify that uploaded documents from USAJOBS transfer into the agency's hiring system. You will have the opportunity to upload any additional required documents in the agency's hiring system. Click "Finish" to submit your application. NOTE: You may update your application or required documents at any time while the announcement is open by logging into your USAJOBS account, clicking on "Application Status," clicking on the position title, clicking "Update Application," and following the prompts. In order to receive consideration for this position, you must submit your complete application, including all required documents, by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on the closing date of the vacancy announcement. If the vacancy announcement has an application limit, we recommend that you submit your complete application at the time of initial application. We will not accept any required documentation after the closing date of the vacancy announcement. If you have any questions regarding submitting your application, please contact the HR Specialist listed under the Agency Contact Information.