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Attorney Advisor

Department of State
Department of State - Agency Wide
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This is a public notice flyer to notify interested applicants of anticipated vacancies. The APPLY button is deactivated. Applications will not be accepted through this flyer. Interested applicants must follow the directions in the "How to Apply" section of this flyer to be considered. This notice is to gather applications that may or may not result in a selection. Notice of Result letters will not be sent to applicants who respond to this flyer.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
06/05/2025 to 06/25/2025
Salary
$120,579 to - $195,200 per year

Pay includes full range of all grades displayed. The actual salary will be based on the grade level the individual(s) is selected for.

Pay scale & grade
GS 13 - 15
Location
FEW vacancies in the following location:
Washington, DC
FEW vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
25% or less - May be required to travel overseas.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Term - May be converted to permanent at a future date at management discretion.
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None - Promotion potential will be determined at the time of selection.
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk
Financial disclosure
Yes
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
OIG-2025-0038
Control number
838276000

Duties

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As an Attorney at a minimum you will:

  • Analyze and provide cogent and concise verbal and written legal counsel, advice, recommendations, and reviews on a variety of issues of law relevant to (1) general OIG operations (e.g., HR, IT, Procurement, Appropriations, Ethics, Financial Disclosure, and other areas) and (2) to particular OIG work products such as reports of audits, investigations, inspections, special projects and evaluations.
  • Review OIG audit, evaluation, investigation, inspection and other review reports for legal sufficiency, which includes ensuring that any sensitive information is properly marked and withheld in accordance with the law.
  • Handle litigation; and to draft and review agreements, subpoenas; provide legal support to criminal and civil investigations, and conduct ethics, independence, and financial disclosure reviews.
  • Advise on, review, and respond to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act requests, appeals, and litigation.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Incumbent will be subject to random drug testing.
  • Copy of license to practice law.
  • Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
  • Statement of Employment & Financial Interest required prior to appointment
  • 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.
  • Males born after 12-31-1959 must be registered for Selective Service.

Qualifications

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Applicants that apply for this position must meet the following requirements to be eligible for further consideration:

Law Degree: Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a J.D. or LL.B.

Bar Membership: Applicants must be a current member of a bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

FOR GS-13 Applicants: All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Applicants that apply for this position must meet the following requirements to be eligible for further consideration: Law Degree: Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a J.D. or LL.M. Bar Membership: Applicants must be a current member of a bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Experience: Applicants must have at least two years of specialized experience with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal Service, which provided you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of this position. The specialized experience must have been gained after admission to the bar. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

  • Knowledge of various federal practice legal disciplines, including fiscal/procurement laws, ethics, federal grants or assistance, administrative law, personnel law, criminal law and procedures, and privacy law.
  • Experience assisting with sensitive or highly visible/high level official matters.
  • Experience assisting with the provision of clear and concise verbal and written legal guidance, including persuasive memoranda, advisory opinions, and other legal documents.
  • Experience assisting with various aspects of litigation.

 There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-13 position.

FOR GS-14 Applicants: All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Applicants that apply for this position must meet the following requirements to be eligible for further consideration: Law Degree: Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a J.D. or LL.M. Bar Membership: Applicants must be a current member of a bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Experience: Applicants must have at least three years of specialized experience with at least one year equivalent to the GS-13 level in the Federal Service, which provided you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of this position. The specialized experience must have been gained after admission to the bar. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following: 

  • Experience in a broad range of federal practice legal disciplines, including fiscal/procurement laws, ethics, federal grants or assistance, administrative law, personnel law, criminal law and procedures, and privacy law.
  • Experience independently handling sensitive or highly visible/high level official matters, with minimal supervision.
  • Experience providing clear and concise verbal and written legal guidance, including persuasive memoranda, advisory opinions, and other legal documents, with minimal supervision.
  • Experience handling various aspects of litigation, with minimal supervision.

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-14 position.

FOR GS-15 Applicants: All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Applicants that apply for this position must meet the following requirements to be eligible for further consideration: Law Degree: Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a J.D. or LL.M. Bar Membership: Applicants must be a current member of a bar in good standing in any state, territory of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Experience: Applicants must have at least four years of specialized experience with at least one year equivalent to the GS-14 level in the Federal Service, which provided you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of this position. The specialized experience must have been gained after admission to the bar. Qualifying specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

  • Expertise in a broad range of federal practice legal disciplines, including fiscal/procurement laws, ethics, federal grants or assistance, administrative law, personnel law, criminal law and procedures, and privacy law.
  • Expertise in handling sensitive or highly visible/high level official matters.
  • Expertise in providing clear and concise verbal and written legal guidance, including persuasive memoranda, advisory opinions, and other legal documents.
  • Experience independently handling various aspects of litigation.

There is no substitute of education for specialized experience for the GS-15 position.

Education

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For a list of accredited organizations recognized as specializing in interpretation of foreign education credentials, visit: www.naces.org/members.php.

See the qualifications section of this vacancy announcement for education requirements.

Additional information

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.  Acceptance of an excepted service appointment from applicants in the competitive service will require a written statement of understanding when voluntarily leaving the competitive service.

Merit promotion procedures do not apply.

Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, be duly licensed and authorized to practice as an attorney under the laws of any State, territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia, and be an active member of the bar in good standing.

To be eligible for Federal employment, male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must certify at the time of appointment that they have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law.

A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any of the scheduled appointments.

If found to be in the best interest of the government and agency, recruitment or relocation incentives may be authorized.

More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional vacancies occur. If eligible, applicants to this announcement may be referred to other similar positions in other Bureaus/Offices in the Department for up to 240 days. Telework eligibility and security clearance requirements may vary for such similar positions.

  • Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. Security clearance requirements may vary for such similar positions. 
  • Relocation or other incentives may be offered if found to be in the best interest of the government.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER - Your Social Security Number is requested under the authority of Executive Order 9397 to uniquely identify your records from those of other applicants who may have the same name. As allowed by law or Presidential directive, your Social Security Number is used to seek information about you from employers, schools, banks, and others who may know you. Failure to provide your Social Security Number on your application materials will result in your application not being processed.

BUYOUT - If you previously left federal employment and received a separation incentive (buyout) and you are selected for this position; you may be required to repay the full amount of the buyout to the agency that paid you.

PRIVACY ACT - Your application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579.- 5 USC 552a). This information is used to determine qualifications for employment and is authorized under Title 5 of the U.S. Code, Sections 3302 and 3361.

FALSE STATEMENT - If you make false statements in any part of your application, you may not be hired; you may be fired after you begin work; or you may be subject to fine, imprisonment, or other disciplinary action.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION - For reasonable accommodation at the U.S. Department of State, please contact the Office of Accessibility and Accommodations at (202) 663-3474 or OAA@state.gov. If eligible, situational telework agreements may be permitted with supervisory approval. 

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. 

As vacancies occur and selection(s) are made, the Human Resources Office will review your resume to ensure you meet the hiring eligibility and qualification requirements for this position.

There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of State considers veterans' preference eligibility a positive factor in the hiring process. For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the qualifications for this position, specifically, the education and specialized experience requirements. Applicants will not be rated or ranked. All applicants that are verified to meet the required qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.

Your resume will be evaluated to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications required; and on the extent to which your application shows that you possess the knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs), and other characteristics that are relevant to the duties of this position as defined below:

  • Knowledge of civil, criminal, and administrative law.
  • Skills in partnering, influencing, and negotiating.
  • Skills in successfully building relationships with customers, peers, and colleagues.
  • Ability to provide legal counseling, legal written and verbal opinions/ memoranda to customers.
  • Ability to provide clear and concise verbal and written communication.

Your resume serves as the basis for qualification determinations and must highlight your most relevant and significant work experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to this job opportunity. 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). Your resume should include the dates of all qualifying experience (from month/year to month/year) and the number of hours worked/volunteered per week. For assistance with creating a resume, please click here.

Applicants must meet all the qualification requirements and submit any supporting documentation by the closing date of this announcement. Your application package must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the basic/specialized experience requirements as stated in this job opportunity announcement for each grade level(s) for which you are applying.


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