General Attorney

Summary

Launch a prestigious career as an Attorney with ICE's Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA)! Join a legal team dedicated to defending the nation's immigration laws and safeguarding the United States with expertise and integrity.

This role may offer up to $50,000 in signing and retention bonuses. If you're a passionate legal professional and ready to serve your country, join OPLA and become a vital part of homeland security!

Summary

Launch a prestigious career as an Attorney with ICE's Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA)! Join a legal team dedicated to defending the nation's immigration laws and safeguarding the United States with expertise and integrity.

This role may offer up to $50,000 in signing and retention bonuses. If you're a passionate legal professional and ready to serve your country, join OPLA and become a vital part of homeland security!

Overview

Help

Accepting applications

Open & closing dates

12 / 11 / 2025 to 12 / 26 / 2025

Salary $63,163 to - $139,296 per year

This salary range reflects the GS base rate only. The link to the locality pay tables is located in the announcement.

Pay scale & grade GS 11 - 14

Locations

Few vacancies in the following locations :

Birmingham, AL

Jacksonville, FL

Miami, FL

Naples, FL

Show morefewer locations (19)

Atlanta, GA

Boise, ID

Louisville, KY

Boston, MA

Chelmsford, MA

Grand Rapids, MI

Raleigh, NC

Columbus, OH

Oklahoma City, OK

Pittsburgh, PA

Columbia, SC

El Paso, TX

Harlingen, TX

Laredo, TX

Los Fresnos, TX

Pearsall, TX

San Antonio, TX

Richmond, VA

Seattle, WA

Remote job No Telework eligible No Travel Required Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position. Relocation expenses reimbursed No Appointment type Permanent Work schedule Full-time Service Excepted

Promotion potential

14

Job family (Series)

• 0905 Attorney

Supervisory status No Security clearance Secret Drug test Yes Position sensitivity and risk Critical-Sensitive (CS) / High Risk

Trust determination process

Financial disclosure No Bargaining unit status No

Announcement number OPLA-FLO-12848947-JP Control number 852141700

This job is open to

Help

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Clarification from the agency

You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.

Duties

Help

OPLA is the largest legal program in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), employing over 1,700 attorneys nationwide. In addition to Headquarters in Washington, D.C., there are 24 OPLA Field Locations in more than 60 cities throughout the United States. Pursuant to statute, OPLA serves as the exclusive representative of DHS in removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review litigating cases involving criminal aliens, terrorists, human rights violators, and other priority aliens. OPLA also provides a full range of legal services to all ICE programs and offices.

OPLA attorneys provide legal advice and prudential counsel to ICE personnel on their law enforcement authorities, legal liability under the Federal Tort Claims Act and Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Fed. Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), the Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act, ethics, and a range of administrative law issues, such as contract, fiscal and employment law. OPLA attorneys represent the agency before the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Contract Board of Appeals. OPLA attorneys support the Department of Justice in the prosecution of ICE cases and in the defense of civil cases against ICE.

The selected attorney will immediately be given significant responsibilities and will be expected to craft legally supportable policies to address the needs of agency operational components. The attorney will be expected to routinely provide timely legal opinions to ICE officers and agents, management, and leadership within OPLA, ICE, and DHS's Office of the General Counsel Headquarters. The selected attorney will be required to assess litigation risk and provide litigation support to the Department of Justice.

As a General Attorney, you will perform the following duties at the full performance level :

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.

Organizational Location : This announcement will be used to fill multiple vacancies at Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) Field Locations.

The salary range listed is the General Schedule (GS) base rate. Click here to access the GS locality pay tables.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

Qualifications

Unless otherwise noted, you must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements by 11 : 59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time on 12 / 26 / 2025. Please note that qualification claims will be subject to verification.

Applicants should possess an ability to efficiently produce quality legal analyses of complex and novel issues, exercise sound legal judgment, be detail oriented, prioritize competing assignments, and work effectively independently, as part of a team, and across work units. Applicants should have a strong interest in supporting and providing stellar client services to diverse 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 demonstrate an ability 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.

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, in which case a service agreement will be required.

Additional information

Promotion Potential : This position has promotion potential to the GS-14. 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.

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

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.

One or more positions may be filled using this vacancy announcement.

Expand Hide additional information

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.

Benefits

Help

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.

Review our 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.

How you will be evaluated

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

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 in order 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.

Benefits

Help

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.

Review our 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 documents

Required Documents

Help

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 of the required information as listed in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect your overall rating.

Resume : Your resume must include announcement number (OPLA-FLO-12848947-JP), education, work experience, training, awards, and work experience. 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.

Bar Membership / Certificate of Good Standing : Submit a current 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 writing sample, cover letter, and / or a copy of your recent performance appraisal.