Attorney-Advisor

Job Announcement

Federal Emergency Management Agency, Office of Chief Counsel

Position Title: Attorney-Advisor

Duty Station: FEMA Region 6 (Santa Fe, New Mexico)

Grade: IC-13/14 (Equivalent to that of a GS-13/14)

OPENING DATE: Wednesday, September 25, 2024

CLOSING DATE: Wednesday, October 9, 2024, by 11:59 PM ET

POSITION TITLE AND LEGAL DIVISION:

Attorney-Advisor for the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office, FEMA Region 6, within FEMA’s Office of Chief Counsel (OCC) Regional & Field Operations Legal Division (RFOLD).

This is a new position pending approval. Candidates may be interviewed; however, the position cannot be filled until authorized.

SERIES, PAY PLAN, GRADE, SECURITY CLEARANCE, AND TRAVEL:

0905-Attorney-Advisor, IC-13/14. Salary is equivalent to that of a GS-13/14. This means that OCC may fill the position at either the IC-13 or IC-14 level. An individual hired at the IC-13 level may later be promoted to the IC-14 level. The position has a full performance level of IC-14.

This is a public trust position and does not require a security clearance.

This position may require travel, approximately 10-15% of the time, to branch offices or project sites within the state and the Regional Office in Denton, Texas. Travel will vary depending on project needs.

DUTY STATION LOCATION AND REMOTE WORK ELIGIBILITY:

The position has a duty station of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The position is not eligible for remote work. The position is eligible for telework pursuant to FEMA policy.

POSITION TYPE:

This is a Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee (CORE) position. This is a temporary appointment in the Excepted Service, not to exceed two (2) years, with the option to extend based on workload and funding availability.

POSITION SUMMARY AND IDEAL CANDIDATE:

RFOLD seeks qualified applicants for the Attorney-Advisor position for the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office, FEMA Region 6. The New Mexico Joint Recovery Office oversees long-term recovery operations in New Mexico, including the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Claims Office and major disaster recovery efforts. The Attorney-Advisor will advise New Mexico Joint Recovery Office leadership regarding legal issues arising from the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon fire, as well as any issues arising from consolidated business operations with the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Claims Office. The successful candidate will report directly to the Regional Counsel, FEMA Region 6.

The ideal candidate should possess specialized legal experience in emergency management, strong research, writing, and communication skills, and the ability to operate independently, with minimal guidance, in an uncertain and complex environment. The ideal candidate must effectively represent the agency’s interests before other federal agencies and senior officials from state, tribal, territorial, and local governments. The ideal candidate possesses strong moral character and excellent interpersonal skills.

DUTIES OF THE POSITION:

• Serving as the principal legal advisor to the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office director, management, and other members of the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office, regarding FEMA’s program responsibilities and various mission support issues.

• Independently analyzing and interpreting FEMA’s statutory authorities, including the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 USC § 5121-5207 and other relevant laws, regulations, policies, and Executive Orders.

• Providing solution-oriented, articulate, legally sufficient, and timely written and oral legal advice on a wide range of matters involving complex legal or factual questions.

• Independently advising and coordinating within OCC on legal issues related to disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation; flood insurance and floodplain management; procurement, contracts, grants, finance, and financial management; property, environmental and historic preservation; claims, freedom of information, privacy, ethics, training and education, and personnel matters and administrative procedures.

• Keeping the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office and FEMA Region 6 informed of new legal developments and the status of relevant cases and matters.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED/SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

Minimum Requirements include:

• U.S. Citizenship,
• Ability to successfully pass a background investigation (public trust),
• Ability to obtain and maintain a government travel card,
• Selective Service registration for males born after 12/31/59,
• A graduate of a law school accredited by the American Bar Association,
• Membership in good standing of the Bar of a State, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
• Agreement with Every Employee is an Emergency Manager requirement.

Minimum Experience:

You qualify for this position at the IC-13 level if you possess the following experience by the closing date of this announcement:

• Applicants must have at least two (2) years of full-time legal experience. Legal experience means experience in which the candidate’s job duties required the provision of legal advice or representation, and which required the candidate to be an active member in good standing of the bar of any state or territory, or the District of Columbia.

• Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience that is directly related to the line of work of this position, which has equipped the applicant with knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. The year of specialized experience must be at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the IC-12 level.

1. Attorneys at the IC-12 level are relatively junior attorneys that perform substantive work on basic to moderately complex assignments; possess high-quality writing skills, conduct original research, and demonstrate sound legal analysis; exhibit effective communication and interpersonal skills; contribute to decisions about legal strategy; and require supervision and work product to be reviewed by a supervisor or higher-grade attorney.

You qualify for this position at the IC-14 level if you possess the following experience by the closing date of this announcement:

• Applicants must have at least three (3) years of full-time legal experience. Legal experience means experience in which the candidate’s job duties required the provision of legal advice or representation, and which required the candidate to be an active member in good standing of the bar of any state or territory, or the District of Columbia.

• Applicants must have at least two (2) years of specialized experience that is directly related to the line of work of this position, which has equipped the applicant with knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. At least one of the two years of specialized experience must be at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to that of an attorney at the IC-13 level.

1. Attorneys at the IC-13 level are mid-level attorneys that perform substantive work on moderately complex, novel, or significant matters; have excellent writing skills, conduct demanding legal analysis, draft and review motions, subpoenas, complaints, memoranda, and comparable legal documents; possess superior communication and interpersonal skills; contribute to shaping legal and policy decisions; assume project-specific supervisory roles over legal interns, IC-11/12 attorneys, or non-attorney staff, as necessary; and require only moderate levels of supervision or review of written work product.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

• Independently analyzing and interpreting federal and state statutes, regulations, and policies; Executive Orders; and judicial and administrative decisions to provide informed legal advice.

• Providing sound legal advice in a fast-paced environment, managing multiple priorities, and ensuring compliance with relevant laws and regulations.

• Demonstrated experience providing risk-based legal advice to clients.

• Practical experience providing legal advice across multiple practice areas and demonstrated ability applying knowledge to navigate complex regulatory environments, provide sound legal counsel, and adapt to new and evolving legal challenges.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

The applicant must submit the following to be considered:

• Cover letter explaining the applicant’s interest in the position and how the applicant’s experience is relevant to the position
• Resume

Prior to tentative job offer, the applicant must also provide:

• Proof of bar admission
• Law school transcript from an accredited law school

OCC LEGAL AFFAIRS CADRE AND EMERGENCY MANAGER ASSIGNMENT:

The incumbent to this position will be required to train for and attain qualification as a disaster field attorney. In addition, every FEMA employee has regular and recurring emergency management responsibilities. All positions are subject to recall around the clock for emergency management operations, which may require irregular work hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the employee’s official position description. Travel requirements in support of emergency operations may be extensive in nature (weeks to months), with little advance notice, and may require employees to relocate to emergency sites with physically austere and operationally challenging conditions.

HOW TO APPLY:

Interested applicants should submit a resume and cover letter to Chuck McLeod via email at occ-rfold-regions@fema.dhs.gov by the closing date of this announcement. The subject line of the email should reference that you are applying for the Attorney-Advisor for the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office, FEMA Region 6 position.