General Attorney (Ethics)

About the role

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) is seeking an energetic and dedicated attorney to join the Ethics Division's Washington, D.C. location. One or more positions may be filled using this vacancy announcement. NOTE: Applicants currently serving in attorney positions for ICE cannot use this announcement for reassignment.

What you will do

• OPLA is the largest legal program in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), employing over 3,000 attorneys nationwide to provide a full range of legal services to all ICE programs and offices.
• OPLA's Enforcement, General Law, and Litigation (EG&L) divisions, through close client engagement, advance ICE's homeland security and public safety mission by providing expert legal advice and guidance to ICE personnel enforcing our nation's 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.
• An ICE ethics attorney will work as a member of a collaborative team in the Ethics Division within EG&L to provide training and guidance on the Executive Branch Standards of Conduct program for government employees and on attorney professional responsibility matters.
• The responsibilities of the position will consist primarily of providing counsel to ICE employees at all grade levels to include senior officials, including providing guidance and issuing advisory opinions in response to written and verbal requests for advice; reviewing public and confidential financial disclosure reports filed by covered management officials and researching the investments and positions held to identify and assess potential conflicts of interest; assisting with the implementation of agency ethics rules, instructions, and policies; and providing group training to ICE program offices on government ethics.
• The position may also involve providing attorney professional responsibility advice and training to OPLA attorneys in addition to litigation before the Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO) in pursuit of private bar attorneys and other document preparers engaged in fraud; as well as addressing fraud and other professional misconduct through review and referral of internal reports of potential private bar misconduct to state and/or federal disciplinary agencies.
• Selected attorneys will be provided requisite training and will then be given significant responsibilities and will be expected to craft persuasive, legally supportable positions to address the needs of agency operational components.
• Selected attorneys will be expected to routinely provide timely legal opinions to ICE officers and agents, division management, and leadership within OPLA, ICE, and the DHS Office of the General Counsel Headquarters.
• 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.

Education

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.

How you will be evaluated

All information and documents submitted as set forth in the Required Documents section will be reviewed to ensure you meet the minimum qualification requirements. Qualified candidates will be rated by comparing each candidate's qualifications to the skills and experience pertinent to the position to be filled.

Experience, education, training, awards, and performance will be considered. An applicant need not have specific knowledge and experience regarding each item listed in the Qualifications section to qualify for the position.

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.

Documents you must provide

• You must include all required documentation, as set forth below, with your application package before the closing date.
• No extensions will be granted.
• Failure to provide all the required information as listed in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect your overall rating.
• Cover Letter: Your cover letter should detail the knowledge, skills, and abilities that qualify you for the position, consistent with this announcement.
• It will be assessed as part of your application package.
• Your cover letter must also include your full name; home address; home or work e-mail address(es); phone number(s) where we may contact you; name of law school, year of graduation, and year admitted to the bar.
• Résumé: Your résumé must include the announcement number (DE-13115666-27-DM), your complete contact information (physical address, phone number, email address), work experience, education, training, and any professional awards you have received.
• For each work experience listed, please include job title, duties, employer's name, employer's telephone number, employer's address, and starting and ending dates (MM/YY).
• Please indicate whether we may contact your current supervisor.
• Note: USAJOBS restricts resume submissions to two pages.
• Be sure your resume meets this requirement before applying.
• Writing Sample: A writing sample demonstrating your legal analytical abilities must be submitted as part of your application package, for which you must be the principal author.
• It should not exceed 10 double-spaced pages.
• Your writing sample will be assessed based on the sophistication of the legal reasoning presented; coherency; proper grammar, spelling, and syntax; and conformity to applicable formatting and citation guidelines.
• Bar Membership/Certificate of Good Standing: Submit a copy of your bar card, certificate of good standing, or other documentary evidence to prove that you are an active member in good standing of the bar of a state, a U.S. a territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
• If you are a current or former federal employee: Submit a copy of your most recent SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action that demonstrates your eligibility for consideration, e.g., length of time you have been in your current grade; your highest grade held.
• Examples of appropriate SF-50s include promotions, within-grade increases and accessions.
• If you are a current or former political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee: Submit a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information about your most recent political appointment: position title, type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee), agency, and beginning and ending dates of appointment.
• Veterans Preference Documentation (if applicable): You must provide acceptable documentation of your preference or appointment eligibility.
• The member 4 copy of your DD214, "Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty," is preferable.
• If claiming 10-point preference, you will need to submit a Standard Form (SF-15), "Application for 10-point Veterans' Preference." If applying based on eligibility under the Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act, you must submit certification from the Armed Forces that you will be discharged or released from active duty within 120 days from the date on the certification.
• This must indicate your dates of service, your rank, and confirm that you will be separated under honorable conditions.
• View more veterans' information.
• You may be asked to provide a law school transcripts and/or a copy of your most recent performance appraisal.

What to expect next

You will receive an email confirmation once you have successfully submitted your application. Applications will be reviewed for completeness.

Failure to provide all required documentation as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating.

Eligible applicants will be referred to the hiring official for further consideration as vacancies become available. Highly qualified applicants may be contacted for an interview. If you are selected, you will receive a tentative offer.

Upon acceptance, the drug test and the suitability/background investigation will be initiated.

Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and OMB plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.

Additional information

E-Verify: DHS uses E-Verify 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. Bargaining Unit Status: This is a non-bargaining position.

Promotion Potential: This position has promotion potential to the GS-15 level. 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 duties at a higher level and administrative approval.

Further, promotion from the GS-14 level to the GS-15 level is subject to OPLA's internal guidance. 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 for this position must undergo a background investigation and successfully obtain and maintain a security clearance at the [Top Secret/Secret] level as a condition of placement into this position.

This process 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. General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under? Salaries & Wages.