The Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is currently seeking applications for an Attorney Advisor position in its Ethics Division.
Who May Apply: This vacancy announcement is open to all US Citizens and may be used to fill multiple positions.
Duty Station: Washington, DC; Bethesda, MD; Rockville, MD
Pay Scale & Grade: GS-11/12/13/14
Salary Range: $85,447- $187,093
Open Period: April 24, 2026 - until filled (applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis).
Job Summary:
The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is the legal team for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), providing quality representation and legal advice on a wide range of highly visible national issues. OGC supports developing and implementing the Department’s programs by providing the highest quality legal services to the Secretary of HHS and the Department’s various agencies and divisions. OGC is comprised of three principal subcomponents: The Immediate Office, Headquarters Divisions, and Regional Offices. Each Headquarters Division is led by an Associate General Counsel.
This position is for a General Attorney in OGC’s Ethics Division. The OGC Ethics Division runs one of the largest and most complex federal sector ethics programs. If you are passionate about public integrity and federal ethics laws, have an eye for very detailed work, and want to join a collegial, diligent, and dedicated legal team, this may be the job for you. The OGC Ethics Division is responsible for the management and operation of the HHS federal sector ethics program. Attorneys in the Ethics Division provide legal advice and services to HHS employees on matters relating to federal criminal conflicts of interest statutes, federal and HHS standards of ethical conduct regulations, financial disclosure requirements for federal employees, procurement integrity provisions, and federal anti-lobbying and political activity restrictions.
For additional information about OGC’s mission, please visit our website at: http://www.hhs.gov/ogc/index.html.
Duties:
The incumbent will serve in an advisory attorney position (GS 11/12/13/14) in OGC’s Ethics Division. Applicants may be selected for Ethics Advice Counsel positions at HHS Headquarters (Washington, DC), NIH (Bethesda, MD), or FDA (Rockville, MD), or for a Program Counsel position at HHS Headquarters. Alternate duty station locations are subject to agency needs and availability.
Ethics Advice Counsel
The incumbent will provide legal advice and counsel on federal criminal conflicts of interest statutes, standards of ethical conduct regulations, financial disclosure requirements, procurement integrity provisions, lobbying rules, and political activity restrictions.
Ethics Division attorneys work closely with senior HHS officials and other HHS OGC attorneys to provide high-quality written and oral legal advice and counseling to prospective, current, and former employees and to program ethics counsellors on various topics related to federal ethics requirements in a fast-paced environment. This often involves engaging in complex and difficult legal research assignments involving new and emerging authorities, unusual legal problems, and/or highly sensitive information.
The incumbent also will provide guidance to prevent and/or determine possible violations of law, rule or regulation and to recommend appropriate corrective action to address ethics violations. The duties also may include serving as liaison with the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) and participating in the referral of cases to OIG when necessary to address ethics violations.
On occasion, the incumbent may work on press or Congressional inquiries related to the ethics program. The incumbent also may participate in ethics program oversight reviews for the Department’s component ethics programs, including report writing and follow-up with Departmental ethics officials. During a Presidential transition, the incumbent may be expected to participate in ethics pre-clearance reviews, including reviewing financial disclosure reports and portfolios to identify and resolve potential conflicts of interest.
Attorney advisors have generalist ethics responsibilities and provide focused services to a portfolio of principal HHS agencies.
Manage the Ethics Division’s work associated with the Federal Advisory Committees including but not limited to working with Ethics Counsel, program ethics staff, and committee management officials on financial disclosure report filing and review, conflict of interest waiver drafting and review, and committee training.
Program Counsel
The incumbent will support our ethics education and training efforts and will work in a wide variety of mission areas providing ethics support to senior leadership, managers, and employees, regarding ethics education, review of public and confidential financial disclosure reports, implementing and overseeing program compliance throughout the Department, and other ethics-related duties as assigned. Applicants must have excellent oral and written communication skills in order to present and produce comprehensive ethics training briefs, detailed ethics program review reports of the Department’s component ethics programs, and other ethics related memoranda and opinions. Additionally, the selectee will develop and implement innovative ways to utilize state-of-the-art technologies in the creation of informative and engaging ethics training presentations and videos.
Qualifications Required:
Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the position qualifications listed on this announcement. Salary will be commensurate with education and experience.
At the GS-11: You must possess a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or LL.B from an accredited ABA law school and possess active bar status in good standing.
At the GS-12: You must possess a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or LL.B from an accredited ABA law school, active bar status in good standing, and one year of professional legal experience post bar admission equivalent to the GS-11 level.
At the GS-13: You must possess a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or LL.B from an accredited ABA law school, active bar status in good standing, and two years of professional legal experience post bar admission with one year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 level.
At the GS-14: You must possess a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) or LL.B from an accredited ABA law school, active bar status in good standing, and three years of professional legal experience post bar admission with one year of experience equivalent to the GS-13 level.
Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the position qualifications listed on this announcement. Salary will be commensurate with education and experience.
The following are required qualifications:
Conditions of Employment:
- You must possess a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) from an accredited ABA law school.
- Proof that bar status is active, in good standing and eligible to practice in the highest court of a State, U. S. commonwealth, U. S. territory, or the District of Columbia. Candidates must have superior legal writing and research ability; outstanding oral, analytical, and interpersonal skills and be adept at working directly with clients and staff members.
- Candidates should have outstanding organizational and time management skills and a demonstrated commitment to professionalism, ethics, civility, and public service.
- Must maintain active bar membership in good standing and the eligibility to practice law in the highest court of a state, territory, Commonwealth, or the District of Columbia throughout employment in the Office of the General Counsel.
- Upon final job offer from HHS OHR, the successful candidate must submit official law school transcripts.
- Security and Background Requirements: If not previously completed, a background security investigation will be required for all appointees. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements may be grounds for appropriate personnel action. In addition, if hired, a background security reinvestigation or supplemental investigation may be required at a later time. Applicants are also advised that all information concerning qualifications is subject to investigation. False representation may be grounds for non-consideration, non-selection and/or appropriate disciplinary action.
- E-Verify: If you are selected for this position, the documentation that you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form I-9 will be verified through the DHS "E-Verify" System. Federal law requires DHS to use the E-Verify System to verify employment eligibility of all new hires and as a condition of continued employment obligates the new hire to take affirmative steps to resolve any discrepancies identified by the system. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is an E-Verify Participant.
- Direct Deposit: All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
- All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
- Financial disclosure statement may be required.
- Two-year trial period may be required.
- Travel, transportation, and relocation expenses will not be paid.
- This position is not in a bargaining unit.
- Multiple selections may be made from this announcement.
In accordance with Executive Order 12564 of September 14, 1986, The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is A Drug-Free Federal Workplace. The Federal government, as the largest employer in the Nation, can and should show the way towards achieving drug-free workplaces through programs designed to offer drug users a helping hand, and at the same time demonstrating to drug users and potential drug users that drugs will not be tolerated in the Federal workplace. The use of illegal drugs, on or off duty, by Federal employees is inconsistent not only with the law-abiding behavior expected of all citizens, but also with the special trust placed in such employees as servants of the public. Applicants tentatively selected for this position may be required to submit to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment and be subject to reasonable suspicion and post-accident drug testing upon hiring. If required to submit to urinalysis, the appointment to the position will be contingent upon a negative applicant drug test result. In order to demonstrate commitment to the HHS goal of a drug-free workplace and to set an example for other Federal employees, employees not in a testing designated position may volunteer for unannounced random testing by notifying their Drug-free Federal Workplace Program Point of Contact upon hiring.
Security Requirements: Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. In addition, continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
Instructions to Apply:
Please submit the following documents to OGCEthicsVacancy@hhs.gov to receive full consideration:
- Short cover letter addressed to the OGC Ethics Division Hiring Team explaining your interest in the HHS ethics program.
- Resume (must include education, including name of undergraduate and law school, degree received, and date graduated); date admitted to bar and jurisdiction; a general description of all past employment relevant to the practice of law, including dates of employment and supervisor name(s) and telephone number(s) – you may add a notation asking to be notified prior to Ethics Division contacting the listed supervisor.
- One legal writing sample (no more than 10 pages):
- A brief, motion, memo or other document that persuasively argues a position and/or demonstrates strong legal analysis and reasoning is preferred; and
- The sample should represent your own work to the extent possible.
- A copy of unofficial law school transcripts for candidates that have graduated from law school within the past five years.
- Proof of active bar status in good standing and eligibility to practice law in the highest court of a State, U. S. commonwealth, U. S. territory, or the District of Columbia.
- Names and contact information for at least three professional references, with preferably at least one reference who is a current or was a former supervisor.