Administrative Law Judge

Summary

This vacancy is for a AL - 0935 - 3, Administrative Law Judge located in the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE SEATTLE WA in SEATTLE, Washington.

Duties

• You will serve as an Administrative Law Judge and be responsible for presiding over formal proceedings involving the suspension and revocation (S & R) of Merchant Mariner Credentials as well as performing adjudicative functions pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and agency regulations, which provide ALJs with decisional independence within the parameters of the regulations and applicable law. Pursuant to interagency agreements, Coast Guard ALJs also adjudicate cases for the Department of Homeland Security (e.g., Transportation Security Administration and employee debt cases for U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement) and other agencies outside the Department of Homeland Security (e.g., Merit Systems Protection Board, Bureau of Industry and Security, and the Interna Revenue Service). Being a Coast Guard civilian makes you a valuable member of the Coast Guard team. Typical work assignments include: Administering oaths and affirmations, issuing subpoenas authorized by law, rule upon offers of proof and receiving relevant evidence. Regulating hearing proceedings through settlement conferences, procedural rulings, and tactful control of complex cases. Demonstrating excellent analytical thinking, decision-making, and writing ability to issue initial decisions and orders based upon reliable, probative and substantial evidence. Taking any actions authorized by agency rules consistent with the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act. Continuous status reviewing of all pending cases and processing cases expeditiously while recognizing responsibility to conduct administrative hearing proceedings independently and in an impartial manner. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Reasonable Accommodation Information

Qualifications

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 any new appointment (other than an incumbent ALJ). For purposes of this requirement, judicial status is acceptable in lieu of "active" status in States that prohibit sitting judges from maintaining "active" status to practice law and 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. Applicants must have a minimum of 10 years post-bar admission litigation experience (including administrative adjudication.) Relevant litigation experience can include: preparing for, participating in, and/or conducting formal hearings, trials, or appeals at the federal, state, or local level; hearing cases; preparing opinions; and participating in or conducting arbitration, mediation, or other alternative dispute resolution. Relevant administrative law experience is litigation experience in cases initiated before a governmental administrative body. Applicants must have two years prior judicial experience at either the federal (administrative or commission), state (administrative or commission, or local tribunal. Top Secret Clearance, must be able to obtain and maintain Top Secret Clearance. Financial Disclosure is required. National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The minimum qualifications for hiring at each grade level (or equivalent) are as follows:

Requirements

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.Do NOT include the following types of information in your resume: Social Security Number (SSN) Date of Birth (DOB) Photos of yourself (if included on your resume you will not be considered for this position) Personal information: such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc. Key Requirements: Must be a U.S. Citizen. Must be registered or exempt from the Selective Service. See www.sss.gov To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully pass a background investigation. This position requires a Top Secret/SCI clearance. This is not a Bargaining Unit position. All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit. In good standing (including inactive or judicial status) with appropriate state licensing authority. See "Qualifications" below for attorney and judge applicants. The Office of Personnel management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule, C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Education

This position does have a positive education requirement. All Candidates must possess a J.D. or LL.B degree from an accredited law school; AND, must be a member in good standing of the appropriate licensing authority of any state, territory of the United States, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or District of Columbia bar. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. See Required Documents section for detail. Are you qualifying based on education? Submit a copy of your college transcript (unofficial is acceptable) from an accredited institution. Once selected & prior to appointment, applicants must provide an official college transcript. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. (see FOREIGN EDUCATION below). College Transcripts: If this position requires specific educational course work to qualify, or you are qualifying based in whole or part on education, you are required to provide all unofficial transcripts (undergraduate, graduate, etc.) by the closing date of this announcement or you will be disqualified from further consideration. Transcripts should be legible and detailed, showing course number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours, and grade earned. If course content cannot be easily identified from the title of the course as listed on your transcript, you must submit an official course description from the college/university that reflects the content at the time the course was taken. FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet Federal qualification requirements if you can show that your foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States. To receive this credit, you must submit evidence of equivalency as provided by a credentialling evaluation service. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence with your application. See Recognition of Foreign Qualifications click here Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

How to apply

Only resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Font size should not be smaller than 10pts & margins no smaller than .5 inches. Resumes exceeding 2 pages will not be considered. To begin your online application, click "Apply Online" to create a USAJOBS account & follow the prompts or log in to your existing account. Your application packet must include a resume & any applicable & or required supporting documentation. Please see the "Required Documents" section for additional information. We encourage you to apply online. Applications and supporting documentation will not be accepted by mail or email. The address below is for inquiries only. You may apply more than once, but the most recent application is the only one that will be used. You must submit your resume, & any supporting documents by 11:59 PM EST on 09/14/2026. USA Hire Assessment - If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen & via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system & the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside about 2 hrs to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments & continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments & assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. It is your responsibility to verify that any information entered or uploaded is received & is accurate. Human Resources will not modify or change any part of your application. Determining your eligibility & qualifications is dependent on the supporting documentation & information provided, which may impact your referral for further consideration. If a document is not legible, we will not be able to consider it as part of your application. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://www.usajobs.gov), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. If claiming eligibility under the VOW Act: The VOW Act requires Federal agencies to treat active-duty service member as veterans, disabled veterans, and preference eligibles, when they submit, at the time they apply for a Federal job, a "certification" of active service in lieu of a DD214. In order to be considered under the VOW Act, the certification must specify that the service member is expected to be discharged or released from active duty under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted with your application package for this job announcement. The certification must be on letterhead from the appropriate military branch & include the following information: military dates of service & expected discharge or release date, character of service, military rank, type of discharge, & date when terminal leave will begin. Certifications must be signed by, or by direction of military members' military personnel offices, unit commanders or higher headquarters. Agencies are required to verify a qualifying separation from military service prior to appointment, through the DD214 or other appropriate documentation. Your preference &/or appointment eligibility will be verified prior to appointment.