Attorney-Advisor (General)

Summary

The Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Inspector General is currently looking for an Attorney-Advisor (General) in the Office of Counsel. Join our professional team of auditors and investigators who help support DOE's mission through performance and financial audits, inspections of management issues and administrative allegations, and investigations into alleged violations of law.

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Duties

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As an Attorney-Advisor (General), you will be responsible for a wide range of complex duties. Major duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Performs comprehensive legal research into statutes, court decisions, decisions of administrative tribunals, and other legal and regulatory instruments to provide OIG leadership and staff with supporting documentation, information, and precedents regarding alleged breaches of federal laws relating to DOE programs.
• Serves as the personnel legal specialist for the OIG, delivering comprehensive legal guidance to officials and safeguarding the organization's statutory obligations under federal employment laws and regulations.
• Continually demonstrates expertise in diverse areas such as administrative law, ethics law, information law, personnel law, whistleblower law, and procurement law.
• Provides complete oral and written legal opinions to the Inspector General, Deputy Inspector General, and other senior OIG officials on legal issues of significance that impact the OIG, including federal personnel statutes, regulations, and case law impacting employee relations.
• Represents the agency in administrative proceedings before the Merit Systems Protection Board and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, when authorized. Provides legal advice and litigation support to OIG officials and investigators; coordinates federal court matters with the DOE Office of General Counsel and the Department of Justice; and assists authorized government counsel in developing evidence, pleadings, legal theories, witnesses, and litigation strategy.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• This employer participates in the e-Verify program.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
• Must obtain and maintain a Q security clearance.
• This position is a Drug Testing Designated position and is subject to preemployment and random drug testing.
• May be required to successfully complete a trial period of up to two years.
• May be required to submit a Financial Disclosure Statement, OGE-450 or an Executive Branch Personnel Confidential Financial Disclosure Report upon entering the position and annually (5CFR Part 2634, Subpart I USOGE, 6/08).
• This position is not remote, the selectee will be expected to report to the duty station(s) listed. If selected, military spouses, veteran caregivers, and spouses of foreign service employees may be eligible for applicable workplace flexibilities.
• Must provide proof of current active membership in good standing in the bar of a State, District of Columbia, territory of the United States, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
• Employees must maintain active bar membership while employed as an attorney with DOE-OIG.
• Will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.

Qualifications

You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date (08/17/2026) of this announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience . For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.

For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected

To qualify for this position at the GS-15 grade level, you must possess all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

1. Must meet the minimum education requirements of successful completion of a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) with a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.); AND
2. Must be a current, active member in good standing of the bar of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

-AND-

EXPERIENCE: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate:

• Four years of professional (attorney) legal experience and active membership in a state or District of Columbia bar and advanced educational attainments that clearly indicate the ability to independently perform complex legal work.; AND
• One additional year of professional (attorney) experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to next lower grade level (GS-14) in the Federal service.

Specialized experience that meets the equivalency requirement is defined as experience providing legal advice and support on employment law matters in the federal government or private sector, which demonstrates ALL of the following:

1. Ability to conduct and direct complex legal research, engage in sound legal analysis, and present the results in a clear, precise, and persuasive manner, both in writing and verbally.
2. Ability to work collaboratively with legal and policy professionals and staff from other backgrounds to clarify agency policy objectives and program goals.
3. Ability to assist the Department of Justice with employment law litigation in the Federal courts.
4. Knowledge of the law, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and other applicable laws, rules and regulations impacting Federal employment.
5. Ability to engage with senior level officials, whether within the Executive Branch, the Congress, or the private sector.

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined above by the closing date of the announcement.

Volunteer Experience: "Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. 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.

Education

This position has a Basic Requirement/Positive Education requirement. See the Qualifications section above for detailed requirement.

You must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), grade-point average or class ranking, and date degree conferred. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: Department of Education.

You must also provide proof of bar membership or your bar number.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

Additional information

• This is an excepted service position which does not confer competitive status.
• This announcement may be used to fill additional similar positions across OIG-DOE if identical vacancies occur within 120 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.
• More than one selection may be made from this announcement.
• For general information on government-wide Telework polices visit: You will be assigned to an OIG office. Limited, situational telework flexibilities may be offered as defined by agency policy. Telework flexibilities are not guaranteed.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: Reasonable Accommodations for USA Hire

For Reasonable Accommodation information or assistance:

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Recruitment incentives: May be authorized to newly appointed federal employees, subject to available funding and management approval. If a recruitment incentive is authorized, the employee must sign an agreement to fulfill a period of service with the agency of not less than 6 months and not more than 4 years, as determined by the gaining office in accordance with agency policy. Authorization of incentives is not guaranteed.

Relocation Incentives: May be authorized, subject to available funding and management approval, to current Federal employees who must relocate to accept a position in a different geographical area. If a relocation incentive is authorized, the employee must sign an agreement to fulfill a period of service with the agency of not less than 6 months and not more than 4 years, as determined by the gaining office in accordance with agency policy. Authorization of incentives is not guaranteed.

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.

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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.