ATTORNEY (Ethics & Legal Compliance) Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. DE-12772175-25-LO Department U.S. Postal Service
Salary $129,280.00 to $196,180.00 Grade 1 to 1
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 7/30/2025 Close Date 8/29/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

The U.S. Postal Service Headquarters Law Department is seeking an experienced, hard-working attorney to fill a vacancy in the Ethics & Compliance group.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Applicants must also be a U.S. citizen or have permanent resident alien status. Current career Postal Service employees are ineligible to apply to this posting.

Duties

The successful applicant will work in a fast-paced environment with a heavy workload to advise internal clients throughout the Postal Service on new business initiatives involving the collection and disclosure of personal information implicating the Privacy Act as well as complex legal issues pertaining requests for records under the Privacy Act and the FOIA. The successful applicant will provide ethics advice and draft communications for the second largest workforce in North America. The successful applicant will draft legally sound Privacy Act and FOIA administrative appeal decisions, legal memoranda analyzing complex ethics, Privacy Act, and FOIA issues, and written advice to clients with citations to statutes, regulations, and case law.

He or she will also create visually appealing, engaging training presentations and deliver training sessions to attorneys, clients, and the postal workforce at large. He or she will be tasked with contributing to team projects designed to proactively encourage compliance with statutes and regulations. In addition, the successful applicant may be tasked with ensuring compliance with SOX through filing quarterly and yearly financial reports, answering Federal Register questions and filing Federal Register notices, and completing other compliance-related projects.

We are looking for an experienced attorney with outstanding legal writing skills, substantial experience analyzing complex legal issues, excellent client relations skills, great presentation skills, and the ability to quickly learn new areas of the law.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

  1. Conducts legal research and prepares written material for use in representing the Postal Service and advising postal management officials.
  2. Participates in conferences necessary to representing or advising Postal Service officials.
  3. Directly advises postal management officials or represents the Postal Service in legal matters involving outside parties.
  4. Prepares replies to inquiries from Congress, government agencies, and the public.
  5. Prepares opinions, memoranda, decisions, regulations, testimonies, or formal filings in proceedings in which the Postal Service is a party.
SUPERVISION:
Manager of unit to which assigned. The United States Postal Service has the following excellent and challenging employment opportunity for highly motivated and innovative individuals.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Qualified applicants must successfully pass a pre-employment drug screening to meet the U.S. Postal Service's requirement to be drug free.

Applicants must also be a U.S. citizen or have permanent resident alien status.

Qualifications

Successful candidates must demonstrate through a combination of education, training, and experience the following requirements:
  1. Ability to prepare pretrial briefs, motions, pleadings, responses and other documents to present the issues independently with little or no direct supervision.
  2. Ability to provide legal advice and services with respect to regulations, practices, or other legal matters, and formulate opinions involving the analysis and interpretation of federal, state and local laws.
  3. Ability to litigate cases before administrative bodies and federal courts.
  4. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to include the ability to negotiate with third parties on behalf of clients and prepare legal documents and presentations.
  5. Ability to conduct legal research to gather and interpret information and ensure accuracy of details, using resources such as internal and external documents, archives, electronic databases, and interviews.
  6. EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: To be eligible for the Attorney position, you must possess a Juris Doctor from an American Bar Association accredited law school.
  7. SPECIAL CONDITION: Qualified applicants must be a current member in good standing of a state, territory of the United States, District of Columbia or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Bar Association.
  8. EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT: At least 3 years of experience in legal practice, of which one year of the experience requirement may be met through the completion of a judicial clerkship if completed by the time of hire. The clerkship must be documented in the applicant's resume.

Education

Must possess a Juris Doctor from an American Bar Association accredited law school.

Additional information

The Ethics & Compliance group's primary practice areas include the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch (5 C.F.R. § 2635), the Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the United States Postal Service (5 C.F.R. § 7001), the criminal conflicts of interest statutes (18 U.S.C. §§ 201-209), the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C. §§ 7321-7326, 5 C.F.R. § 733-734), Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. § 552a), and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. § 552). The Ethics & Compliance group also handles other practice areas with less frequency, such as European Union privacy laws, Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), the Federal Register program, the Anti-Lobbying Act (18 U.S.C. § 1913), the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. § 552b), the anti-pandering advertisement statute (39 U.S.C. § 3008), Board of Governors governance, and legal compliance in general.

Applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m., Central Time, of the posting's closing date. Applicants claiming veterans' preference must attach a copy of member copy 4 (only) of Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214) or other proof of eligibility if claiming 10-point veterans' preference. The United States Postal Service (USPS) is an equal opportunity employer. The USPS provides reasonable accommodation for any part of the application, interview, and/or selection process, please make your request to the examiner, selecting official or local manager of Human Resources. This request can also be made by someone on your behalf. Explain the nature of your limitations and the accommodation needed. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

Reimbursement of relocation expenses will NOT be authorized.

SPECIAL NOTE: Current career Postal Service employees are ineligible to apply to this posting.

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

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.

The salary will be based on previous experience, salary history, and current postal pay policies. We offer excellent benefits including health and life insurance, retirement plan, savings/investment plan with employer contribution, flexible spending, annual and sick leave.

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.

We will review your resume and supporting documents to ensure you meet the basic qualification requirements. We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided and evaluate your relevant professional, educational, and work experiences as it relates to fundamental competencies, identified in the Qualifications section above, required for this position.

Required Documents

  1. Cover Letter
  2. Resume
  3. Two recent legal writing samples that were not substantially edited by another individual.
Failure to submit these documents will result in disqualification for the position.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

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.

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.

How to Apply

You will need to apply via our on-line application process at www.usps.com/employment. You will need to create an applicant profile.

Once you are on the website, click "Search our latest job postings" OR select "Start your eCareer profile." You will have an opportunity to upload any requested documents to your profile.

This is a two-step application process requiring you to create a profile and submit an application for the position you are applying for.

You will receive two email confirmations:

  1. An email confirming your profile is complete.
  2. After submitting your application, you will receive a second email confirming your application has been successfully submitted.

Agency contact information

Human Resources
Address
US Postal Service
475 L Enfant Plaza
Suite 9801
Washington, DC 20260
US

Next steps

You will be contacted via email on the status of your application.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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