Attorney Advisor Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. OIG-26-DE-12910316-MS Department U.S. Agency for International Development
Salary $85,447.00 to $187,093.00 Grade 11 to 14
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 3/17/2026 Close Date 3/31/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

USAID Office of Inspector General is responsible for preventing and detecting fraud, waste, abuse, and violations of law, and for promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of USAID programs. OIG provides oversight of the U. S. African Development Foundation (USADF), the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). OIG's Mission is to safeguard and strengthen U.S. foreign assistance through timely, relevant, and impactful oversight.

This job is open to

The public

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

Federal employees - Excepted service

Current federal employees whose agencies have their own hiring rules, pay scales and evaluation criteria.

Veterans

Veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces or a spouse, widow, widower or parent of a veteran, who may be eligible for derived preference

Military spouses

Military spouses of active duty service members or whose spouse is 100 percent disabled or died on active duty.

Clarification from the agency

All qualified U.S. Citizens.

Duties

As an Attorney Advisor at the full performance level, you will,

  • Provide legal advice and guidance on all matters related to OIG audits, investigations, and operational activities.
  • Conduct legal research and prepare memoranda and reports on congressional inquiries, oversight matters, and legal issues affecting OIG programs and authorities.
  • Perform legal research and advisory work related to criminal, civil, and administrative enforcement matters within the OIG's jurisdiction.
  • Prepare legal documents such as subpoenas, administrative pleadings, and other investigative and litigation support materials.
  • Participate in matters involving the Department of Justice and other enforcement authorities and coordinate on criminal, civil, and administrative referrals.
  • Serve as legal counsel on personnel matters and discrimination complaints, including EEO matters, MSPB appeals, Foreign Service Grievance Board (FSGB) proceedings, and related matters.
  • Interpret and apply laws governing federal personnel ethics, whistleblower reprisal matters, suspension and debarment, and FOIA and Privacy Act matters.
  • Advise on procurement, fiscal law, grants and cooperative agreements, foreign assistance authorities, and interagency agreements and arrangements.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • United States Citizenship is required.
  • Relevant experience (see Qualifications below).
  • Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret clearance.
  • Males born after 12/31/1959, must be registered with the Selective Service.
  • You may be required to serve a one-year probationary period.
  • Must either be currently in good standing (certified) with a State Bar or able to obtain certification.
  • This position is subject to the filing of financial disclosure reports
  • Designated and/or random drug testing required
  • Domestic and international travel is expected for this position

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the Basic and the Qualification Requirements described below. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience. A copy of your unofficial or official transcripts must be provided with your application.

Basic Requirements (applicable to ALL grade levels):

A. Education: Possess a J.D. or LL.B degree from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association.

AND,

B. Bar Membership: Be an active member in good standing of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States.

In addition to meeting both of the Basic Requirements above, you must meet the qualification and/or education requirements for the applicable grade level listed below.

Minimum Qualification Requirement for GS-11:
Applicant must possess the minimum requirements of (1) a law degree (J.D. or LL.B.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association, and (2) Bar admission, being licensed and in good standing to practice law as an Attorney under the laws of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or territory of the United States.

Qualification Requirement for GS-12: Applicant must have at least 1 year of progressively responsible professional experience working as a practicing attorney in any of the following duty areas: compliance, litigation, investigations, legal review, regulations/policy, or other similar areas. This experience must be comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-11 federal grade level, participating in providing legal advice, analysis, research, or litigation work. This must include activities such as: (1) conducting legal research of policies, regulations, and/or compliance questions, including researching legal precedent; (2) drafting briefs, motions, or other legal documents; (3) assisting with taking depositions and/or sworn statements from witnesses or parties; and (4) making oral presentations of legal research/analysis.

Qualification Requirement for GS-13: Applicant must have at least 2 years of progressively responsible professional experience working as a practicing attorney in any of the following duty areas: compliance, litigation, investigations, legal review, regulations/policy, or other similar areas. At least one year of this experience must be comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-12 federal grade level participating in providing legal advice, analysis, research, or litigation work. This must include activities such as: (1) conducting legal research of policies, regulations, and/or compliance questions, including researching legal precedent; (2) drafting briefs, motions, or other documents in preparation for trial or administrative proceedings; (3) assisting with taking depositions and/or sworn statements from witnesses or parties; (4) assisting senior staff with settlement negotiations with another party or their respective counsel; or (5) making oral presentations of legal arguments or results of legal research/analysis.

Qualification Requirement for GS-14: Applicant must have at least 3 years of progressively responsible professional experience working as a practicing attorney in any of the following duty areas: compliance, litigation, investigations, legal review, regulations/policy, or other similar areas. At least one year of this experience must be comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-13 federal grade level providing legal advice, analysis, research, and/or litigation work. This must include activities such as: (1) conducting extensive legal research of policies, regulations, and/or compliance questions, including researching precedent or opinions bearing on a legal issue; (2) writing briefs, motions, reports, or recommendations in preparation for trial or administrative proceedings; (3) taking depositions and/or sworn statements from witnesses or parties; (4) participating in negotiating settlement agreements with another party or their respective counsel; or (5) presenting oral arguments in a court or administrative hearing.

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, relevant to the duties of the position to be filled, including volunteer experience.

Qualifications must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement.

CTAP/ICTAP

If you are requesting special employment consideration under the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) or CTAP, you must provide eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP or CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP or CTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy.

To be well-qualified you must meet the following: OPM qualification requirements for the position, all selective factors, where applicable; special OPM approved qualifying conditions for the position; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate, to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and receives a rating of at least "well-qualified" on the questionnaire. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of ICTAP or CTAP eligibility, or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information regarding ICTAP or CTAP eligibility is available from Career Transition (opm.gov). Note: Appointing an individual under an excepted service appointing authority may be an exception to ICTAP selection priority.

Education

This position has a positive education requirement, therefore, transcripts are required.

Additional information

These are Testing Designated Positions (TDP's) under the Agency's approved Drug-Free Work Place Program. All applicants selected for this position will be subject to random drug testing once they begin working for the Agency.

Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer is required.

Moving and relocation expenses are not authorized.

Mythbuster on Federal Hiring Policies: https://hru.gov/Studio_Recruitment/tools/Mythbuster_on_Federal_Hiring_Policies.pdf.

EEO Policy: EEO Policy Statement.

Veterans' Information: Veterans Information.

Telework: https://www.telework.gov/.

Selective Service Registration: http://www.sss.gov/.

Reasonable Accommodation Policy:
USAID is committed to equal employment opportunity; therefore, reasonable accommodations are available to applicants and employees with disabilities. If you need an accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the Reasonable Accommodation Division in the Office of Civil Rights at reasonableaccommodations@usaid.gov. Reasonable accommodation decisions are made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more about the Reasonable Accommodation Division, please visit our website at: https://www.usaid.gov/careers/reasonableaccommodations.It is the Government's policy not to deny employment simply because an individual has been unemployed or has had financial difficulties that have arisen through no fault of the individual. USAID will use information about an individual's employment experience only to determine their qualifications and assess their relative level of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Although an individual's conduct may be relevant in any employment decision, including behavior during periods of unemployment or evidence of dishonesty in handling financial matters, financial difficulty that has arisen through no fault of the individual will generally not be the basis of an unfavorable suitability or fitness determination.

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.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

We use a multi-step process to review and evaluate applicants:

Evaluation will be based on your application materials (such as your resume and supporting documents), your responses to the application questionnaire, and the results of all required assessments.

Resume Requirement Please limit your resume to 2 pages with the font size no smaller than 10 points. If your resume is more than 2 pages, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed and considered for the qualification's determination.

Minimum Qualification Question As part of the application process, you must answer a minimum qualification question addressing whether you meet the Specialized Experience required for this position, as described in this announcement.

Your response must be supported by the experience documented in your resume. If your resume does not demonstrate the required Specialized Experience, you may be found not qualified.

SME Resume Review Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will review your resume to determine whether you meet the required Specialized Experience.

SME Structured Interview You may be invited to participate in a structured interview with one or more Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to assess the required competencies for the position.

Applicants who successfully pass the assessment(s) may be referred to the Hiring Manager for consideration.

You must complete all required steps in the process, including submitting an application and resume and participating in the structured interview, to be considered for this position.

Required Documents

  • Your resume must support the qualification requirements described in this announcement. Please limit your resume to 2 pages with the font size no smaller than 10 points. If your resume is more than 2 pages, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed and considered for the qualifications determination.
  • Veterans' documentation, if requesting consideration under any Veterans' hiring eligibilities (veterans' preference and Veterans Recruitment Appointment). To verify the type of veterans' preference you are eligible for, we recommend using the Department of Labor's Veterans' Preference Advisor.
  • ICTAP Eligibles: Must submit a copy of the appropriate documentation such as a reduction-in-force (RIF) separation notice, an SF-50 reflecting your RIF separation, or a notice of proposed removal for declining a direct reassign or transfer of function to another commuting area. You MUST also submit documentation to reflect your current (or last) performance rating of record of at least "fully successful" (Level III) or equivalent, along with your application/resume package.
  • If this position requires proof of higher education, you must submit a copy of your transcript(unofficial transcript) or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours rated. You may use education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the requirements. Please refer to http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/policy/ApplicationOfStds-04.asp for more information. Please be advised that an official transcript will be required if the hiring manager selects you 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

The following instructions outline our application process. You must complete this online application process and submit any applicable required documents by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement. If applying online poses an extreme hardship, you must contact the human resources office no later than two business days before the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Our Office will provide an alternative application method upon approval of the hardship notification. After the advertisement has closed, we will not grant requests to apply via alternative plans.

Please note, we must receive all required documents by the closing date via online or alternative methods. We will determine your eligibility and qualifications based solely on the material received by the closing date.

Step 1 - Review the Job Announcement (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12910316)
Before you apply, we suggest you review the entire job announcement. Pay close attention to the Major Duties section and the How You Will Be Evaluated section, where you will see the areas upon which an HR Specialist or Subject Matter Expert will evaluate your application and a link for previewing online questions.

Step 2 - Create or Upload a resume with USAJOBS (www.usajobs.gov)
Create or upload a resume in USAJOBS. You may wish to customize your resume to ensure it supports your responses to the online questions and addresses the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section of the job announcement. For resume tips, click here.-Although you must enter your Social Security Number (SSN) for USAJOBS, we will only see the last four digits for identification purposes.

Step 3 - Apply Online
Click the "Apply Online" button on this announcement and then select the resume you wish to submit with your application. You will be redirected to the OPM's USA Staffing website to complete the application process.

Step 4 - Answer the Online Questions and Submit Your Online Application
If this is your first time on OPM's USA Staffing website, the system will prompt you to register by answering questions about your eligibility for Federal employment. Select "Take me to the assessment" and click on the "Next" button to answer the job-specific questions. The system will save these responses and take you back to the main screen so that you can answer the job-specific questions. You must answer all the questions and click the "Finish" button.

Step 5 - Review and Confirm Your Submission
You will now have the option to upload a document or print fax cover sheets for documents (see Step 6 for details). Once you click "Done," you will see a summary of your application for your review, and you may also print a copy for your records. When you click "Finish" at the bottom of the page, our system will then direct you back to USAJOBS, where you can confirm that you correctly submitted your application, and you can track your application status.

Step 6 - Submit Documents
You can submit any applicable required or optional documents (see below) by document upload, fax, or e-mail. Whichever method you choose, please include the job announcement number with your records. To protect your privacy, we encourage you to remove your SSN from any documents that you submit.

Document Upload: You may upload documents in one of two ways:

  1. Once you finish answering the questions in the job announcement, the system will prompt you to upload your document(s) to your application. You will be given a choice to either upload the document as part of the application process or select a copy that you've already loaded on USAJOBS. Or
  2. You can upload a document to an existing application by logging into your USAJOBS account profile. Click on "My Applications" and search for the vacancy. Once you've located the vacancy, click on the vacancy and select "Apply Online." Move through your existing application to the Documents page and select upload to add a document to your application. Be sure to review your complete application for confirmation that you uploaded the document.

Agency contact information

OIG HR Operations Washington

Next steps

You must complete the online application/Occupational Questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below to apply for this position.

You must submit a complete application package by 11:59 PM (EST) on the announcement's closing date to receive consideration.

To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you must create one before beginning the application.

Follow the prompts to select your resume and other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.

After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.

Our automated system will take you to the online application you must complete to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and apply.

To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.