General Attorney (Regulatory Affairs)
Job Location:
Washington, DC - USA
Yearly Salary:
Posted:
Application Deadline:
Vacancies:
Job Summary
Join the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) as Counsel for the Regulatory Affairs Unit (RAU) to leverage your experience to serve your country. The individual selected will collaborate within a dynamic team of economists regulatory analysts attorneys and other stakeholders on high-profile agency matters in a fast-paced environment.
OPLA is the largest legal program in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employing over 3000 attorneys nationwide to provide a full range of legal services to all ICE programs and offices. OPLAs Enforcement General Law and Litigation (EG&L) divisions through close client engagement advance ICEs homeland security and public safety mission by providing expert legal advice and guidance to ICE personnel enforcing our nations immigration customs and criminal laws and policies. Counsel in EG&L also defend the operational authorities and decisions of ICE officers and agents in federal courts and support the advocacy of ICE attorneys before immigration courts and the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) with special emphasis on cases involving criminal aliens human rights violators and aliens who threaten our national security.
Within EG&L the RAU consists of regulatory attorneys analysts and economists. RAU attorneys serve as regulatory counsel and play a significant role in the development and promulgation of regulatory actions relating to a variety of law enforcement authorities and functions including immigration arrest detention and processing as well as oversight of the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. RAU personnel review and draft regulations policy directives and other materials for DHS ICE and OPLA Senior Leadership. The RAU frequently engages with policymakers ICE operational clients the DHS Office of the General Counsel Headquarters and DHS components to develop rules that further DHSs and ICEs enforcement objectives and strategic initiatives.
The selected attorney(s) will be expected to:
- Draft and interpret regulations as well as advise clients on statutory authority for rulemaking and application of the Administrative Procedure Act the Paperwork Reduction Act the Regulatory Flexibility Act and related authorities.
- Assist with crafting legally supportable policies to address the needs of agency operational components.
- Routinely provide timely legal opinions to ICE officers and agents EG&L managers and leadership within OPLA ICE and the DHS Office of the General Counsel Headquarters; and
- Provide litigation support to the Department of Justice and review documents for responsiveness and privilege as part of discovery in civil litigation as necessary.
- You must successfully pass a background investigation and drug screen for federal employment.
- If you are a male born after 12/31/59 you must certify registration with the Selective Service.
- You must have relevant experience (see How You Will Be Evaluated and Qualifications tabs).
- You must meet all requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
- You may be required to serve a two-year trial period if the requirement has not been met.
- You must be an active member in good standing of the bar of a U.S. state territory of the United States the District of Columbia or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Applicants should be able to efficiently produce quality legal analyses of complex and novel issues exercise sound legal judgment prioritize competing assignments and work effectively independently as part of a team and across work units. Applicants should be detail-oriented and have a strong interest in supporting and providing stellar client services to program offices including law enforcement officers policymakers attorneys and agency senior leadership and must be able to tailor communications to a particular audience. Applicants should be able to take initiative and work in a reliable decisive and professional manner.
Applicants should possess the following characteristics and competencies: integrity sound professional judgment organizational skills decisiveness initiative stellar client services the ability to function independently and cooperatively and superior written and oral advocacy skills.
Bar Membership: You must be an active member in good standing of the bar of a state territory of the United States the District of Columbia or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Current or Former Political Appointees: 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.
The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply to include persons with intellectual severe physical or psychiatric disabilities as defined by 5 C.F.R. 213.3102(u) and/or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 C.F.R. 315.707. Veterans Peace Corps/VISTA volunteers and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents experiences and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs.
Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) or LLM degree. Please see Required Documents for more information.
A student loan repayment incentive may be available; if such an incentive is available and is authorized a service agreement will be required.
Promotion Potential: This position has promotion potential to the GS-15. When promotion potential is shown the agency is not making a commitment and is not obligated to provide future promotions to you if you are selected. Future promotions will be dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level the continuing need for an employee assigned to the higher level and administrative approval.
Bargaining Unit Status: This is a non-bargaining position.
E-Verify: DHS uses E-Verify an Internet-based system to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities.
Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
Veterans Preference: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans preference to attorney appointments in the Excepted Service; however OPLA considers veterans preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring.
Financial Disclosure: If you are hired you may be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) within 30 days after appointment.
Suitability: If you receive a conditional offer of employment you must complete an Optional Form 306 Declaration for Federal Employment and sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment dismissal after beginning work fine or imprisonment.
Background Investigation: DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet these standards all selected applicants must undergo a background investigation and successfully obtain and maintain a security clearance at the Secret level as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check a review of financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts child support and tax obligations and a review of certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
Drug Test: Pursuant to Executive Order 12564 and the DHS Drug-Free Workplace Plan ICE is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace. All applicants tentatively selected for employment are subject to pre-employment drug testing and a final offer of employment is contingent upon a negative result.
OPLA will ensure that applicants with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations when appropriate. If reasonable accommodation is required for any part of the application process please contact the OPLA representative listed on this announcement.
Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government passionate about the ideals of our American republic and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
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.
Required Experience:
IC
