Contract Attorney - Litigation Support (Multiple Openings)

ZemiTek, LLC is a Woman-Owned, SBA-certified 8(a) Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) based in the Washington, DC metro area. We have a strong record delivering innovative and high-quality solutions. Since 2007, ZemiTek has provided technical assistance, project management, information technology (IT), knowledge management, monitoring and evaluation, training and learning development, and institutional support services.

Location: Washington D.C.
Work Schedule: Full-time, Hybrid preferred; remote eligible 
Starting Salary Range: $132,368- $167,538.16 per year with the starting salary determined based on candidate’s knowledge, skills, experience, and education.

Clearance: Ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance

Core Working Hours: 1000-1500 EST

Introduction

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Office of the General Counsel (OGC), represents OPM and other agencies in administrative litigation before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in matters involving civil service and employment law.  OPM seeks contract attorney support for its representation of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The Opportunity

Contract attorneys will work as part of a large, coordinated litigation team alongside experienced OPM attorneys and paralegals. The volume and complexity of the caseload provide rapid professional development across legal research and writing, case development, discovery, and hearing practice, and offer meaningful responsibility from the outset. Attorneys who want substantive litigation experience at scale will find this engagement well-suited to that goal.

Contract attorneys assigned to OPM OGC provide litigation support services to OPM government attorneys. Contract attorneys may perform the following functions, consistent with and driven by the government's litigation and settlement strategy decisions:

• Legal Research and Analysis: Conduct legal research and analysis on complex and novel legal issues, providing research memoranda and analytical summaries.
• Legal Writing: Draft litigation reports, pleadings, motions, briefs, and settlement documents.
• Case Development: Interview agency witnesses and prepare them to give testimony; coordinate and assist with overall preparation for hearings.
• Discovery: Take and defend witness depositions in accordance with instructions from government attorneys; conduct document review and assist with e-discovery, including use of e-discovery software platforms.
• Conferences and Hearings: Assist government attorneys at conferences and hearings before administrative judges, including examining witnesses at hearing.
• Coordination and Communication: Draft litigation-related communications; negotiate proposed settlement terms with opposing parties as directed; coordinate across the litigation team to advance assigned matters.

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an ABA-accredited law school.
• Current active bar membership in good standing in the bar of any state or territory of the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or the District of Columbia.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in administrative or judicial litigation is required, with demonstrated experience in civil service, labor and employment, or related Federal law.
• Experience on matters presented before the MSPB, EEOC, or other Federal administrative tribunal proceedings preferred.