Attorney Advisor

This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Coast Guard (USCG) Headquarters, Commandant (CG-08), National Pollution Funds Center, Legal Division (CL), in Washington, D.C.

As a General Attorney-Advisor you will serve as a legal subject matter expert and guidance to staff members of the Center and associated field units. You are responsible for evaluating claims by and against Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund and providing litigation support to the Department of Justice.

Being a CG civilian makes you a valuable member of the CG team. Typical work assignments at full performance include:

The NPFC was created to implement Title I of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), which addressed issues associated with preventing, responding to, and imposing liability for oil pollution. Title I of OPA established oil spill liability and compensation requirements, including the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (OSLTF) to provide funding for expeditious oil spill cleanups and reimbursement of uncompensated damages. Under the direction of the Chief of NPFC's Legal Division, this attorney will be responsible for handling highly complex and difficult types of legal work on behalf of the NPFC and must possess specialized expertise and broad experience in maritime and environmental law, federal litigation practice, debt collection law, fiscal law, oil and gas law, bankruptcy law, insurance law, administrative law, settlement negotiation, and public speaking. This attorney consults with and gives legal advice and guidance to Coast Guard officials on issues related to NPFC operations including the propriety of OSLTF expenditures and recovery of amounts owed to the OSLTF from responsible parties and guarantors. This attorney will recommend adjudicatory action on claims against the OSLTF in accordance with relevant statutes, regulations, and directives. This attorney will be required to prepare cases for litigation by the Department of Justice and defend against challenges to decisions by NPFC. This attorney also acts as Agency Counsel by supporting the Department of Justice when defending and prosecuting lawsuits arising from NPFC activities. The attorney may also be required to assist with preparing determinations adjudicating claims against the OSLTF and then assist with defending challenges to those determinations. The legal issues arising from damage claims can be diverse and involve significant amounts including claims for natural resource damages by federal and state trustees as well as Indian tribes.

Being a CG civilian makes you a valuable member of the CG team. Typical work assignments at full performance include:

Researching, analyzing and evaluating the facts and law involved in lawsuits arising from NPFC activities or from claims by or against the OSLTF. Applying expert knowledge of federal litigation practice, admiralty and maritime law, environmental law, debt collection law, oil and gas law, natural resource damage law, insurance law, fiscal law, contract law, bankruptcy law, administrative law, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)/Privacy Act (PA) law, ethical standards, and fiscal law.

Extracting and organizing facts from case files, analyzing the facts in relation to the applicable law and drafting appropriate litigation referrals and reports. May be required to assist Department of Justice attorneys in pre-trial preparation through identifying additional facts, gathering and organizing evidence and preparing briefings and conducting discovery.

Reviewing letters, memoranda, instructions, operating procedures, certificates and other documents for legal sufficiency and legal implications prior to issuance or publication.

Collaborating, as appropriate, with officials from Coast Guard Headquarters and other Government agencies, members of private industry and public interest groups, the general public, and their attorneys on legal aspects of NPFC's involvement with oil spill and hazardous substance pollution matters.

Providing legal representation for NPFC in dealing with Congress, the courts, and other federal, state and foreign government agencies, and provides legal counsel to NPFC regarding its relations with the general public and industry.