Summary Join the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) as Counsel for the Enforcement and Removal Operations Law Division (EROLD) to leverage your legal experience to serve your country. Selected attorneys will collaborate within a dynamic team of enforcement attorneys to provide legal advice and guidance to Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers and other stakeholders on high-profile agency matters in a fast-paced environment. Responsibilities 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 for EG&L also defend the operational authorities and decisions of ICE officers and agents in the federal courts, and support the advocacy of ICE attorneys before the 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. EROLD attorneys serve as agency counsel to ERO at the headquarters level, providing guidance and timely legal counsel on a variety of law enforcement authorities and functions, including civil immigration arrest; detention and release authorities; conditions of confinement; detainers; alternative processing pathways (e.g., expedited removal); fugitive operations; juvenile and family unit issues; repatriation initiatives; and the 287(g) Program. EROLD attorneys develop legal opinions and review and draft policy directives, legislation, regulations, and other materials for DHS, ICE, and OPLA leadership on the legal and policy aspects of ERO immigration enforcement functions. EROLD attorneys frequently engage with ICE leadership, the DHS Office of the General Counsel Headquarters attorneys, other DHS component legal offices, and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to coordinate the successful resolution of federal litigation and immigration enforcement matters impacting ERO equities. EROLD also houses ICE's regulatory program consisting of regulatory attorneys, analysts, and economists. Selected attorneys will be given significant responsibilities and will be expected to research and 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. Selected attorneys will also provide litigation support to DOJ. 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. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Unless otherwise noted, you must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements by 11:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time on 04/27/2026. Please note that qualification claims will be subject to verification. 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. Education Applicants must be graduates of an accredited law school with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) or LLM degree. Additional Information 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: Bargaining Unit Status varies in which division the position resides. The exclusive representative for this bargaining unit position is the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), with representation provided by AFGE, Local 511. 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. A student loan repayment incentive may be available, in which case a service agreement will be required.
