Clarification from the agency

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About the Office

The incumbent serves in the Departmental Ethics Office (DEO) in the Justice Management Division (JMD). DEO administers the Department of Justice's (DOJ) ethics program for the Assistant Attorney General for Administration, who serves as the Department's Designated Agency Ethics Official (DAEO). Among other responsibilities, DEO staff members provide advice and guidance to Department leadership, career employees, and managers on the interpretation and application of the ethics rules and the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch. DEO also provides oversight of the ethics, financial disclosure, and Standards of Conduct training programs at DOJ's components, including the FBI, Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Attorneys' Offices, and U.S. Marshals Service.

Job Description

Among other responsibilities, DEO staff members provide ethics advice and support to various DOJ offices, including the Office of the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, Solicitor General, and the Justice Management Division. The incumbent serves as an ethics attorney and must have in-depth knowledge of Federal ethics laws and regulations. The selected attorney's work will include assisting Deputy DAEOs in the Department's components on matters relating to the Federal ethics program. The work of the attorney also includes communicating with ethics officials in the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), U.S. Office of Special Counsel, and other Executive Branch departments and agencies to address issues related to the Department's ethics program.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a United States Citizen or National.
• You will be required to complete a pre-employment security investigation and background check which includes a drug screening.
• You may be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born on, or after, December 31st 1959. Those not registered should have an approved exemption on file.

Qualifications

Qualifications

Applicants must be:
1) A United States citizens;
2) Have a J.D. degree (or equivalent);
3) Be an active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction) and have at least four (4) years of post-J.D. (or equivalent) experience in a Federal executive branch ethics office responsible for an agency or component ethics program, at least three (3) of which were equivalent to the GS-14 grade level or higher. While job duties need not have been exclusively related to ethics, at least 50% of work time must have been dedicated to applicable Federal executive branch ethics experience.

Applicable Federal executive branch ethics experience includes: independently performing legal analysis and composing memoranda or other documents on Federal ethics issues; providing legal advice to senior officials, managers, and employees on Federal ethics statutes and regulations; experience administering Federal financial disclosure requirements, including the use of Integrity or FDOnline; experience reviewing PAS nominee financial disclosure reports, advising nominees, and preparing nominee ethics agreements in coordination with the Office of Government Ethics; training Federal employees on the Standards of Conduct, ethics requirements, and related issues; experience preparing waivers under 18 U.S.C. § 208 and authorizations under 5 C.F.R. § 2635.502; experience advising on issues relating to the Hatch Act and the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act; experience advising on DOJ supplemental regulations including 5 C.F.R. § 3801 and 28 C.F.R. § 45; experience responding to OGE-201 requests or requests under the FOIA for ethics related documents; experience advising on issues relating to 18 U.S.C. § 203 and §205; and, experience advising current and former employees on matters relating to 18 U.S.C. § 207.

DEO is looking for candidates with experience in as many of the areas listed in the preceding paragraph as possible. DEO is also interested in candidates with demonstrated ability to efficiently and thoroughly research and incisively analyze a wide variety of complex issues; express themselves clearly and persuasively orally and in writing; exercise sound judgment; manage a workload consisting of a number of varied projects, without specific guidelines and often with short deadlines; and contribute to and work in a supportive and collaborative environment.

How you will be evaluated

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

All application materials must be in a single PDF document and should be emailed to Melissa Flagg, Deputy Director, Departmental Ethics Office, Justice Management Division, U.S. Department of Justice at: deo@usdoj.gov.

Subject line should read "Application for DEO Ethics Attorney - 2026."

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

When addressing the specialized experience statement, applicants must present evidence of the experience in their resume. If the specialized experience statement is repeated, in the applicant's resume, Human Resources will deem the applicant as ineligible.

To apply, interested individuals must submit:

• A cover letter highlighting the applicant's interest in the position and detailing how the applicant meets the qualifications.
• A current resume (not to exceed two pages) that details the month/year of education and employment and includes the month and year of earliest bar admission.
• A brief writing sample or part of a longer writing sample (not to exceed five pages), which is exclusively or primarily the applicant's work and includes legal analysis.
• The applicant's most recent performance appraisal.
• List of references.
• The applicant's contact information.

Applicants should familiarize themselves and comply with the relevant rules of professional conduct regarding any possible conflicts of interest in connection with their applications. In particular, please notify this Office if you currently represent clients or adjudicate matters in which this Office is involved and/or you have a family member who is representing clients or adjudicating matters in which this Office is involved so that we can evaluate any potential conflicts of interest or disqualification issues that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.

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