I
Job Announcement
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Office of Chief Counsel
Position Title: Two Attorney-Advisor Positions
Duty Station: FEMA Region 4 (Lake Mary, Florida)
Grade: IC-13/14 (Equivalent to that of a GS-13/14)
OPENING DATE:
Tuesday, August 27, 2024
CLOSING DATE:
Tuesday, September 10, 2024, by 11:59 PM ET
POSITION TITLE AND LEGAL DIVISION:
Two Attorney-Advisor positions for the Florida Integrated Recovery Office, FEMA Region 4, 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 positions 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 positions have a full performance level of IC-14.
This is a public trust position and does not require a security clearance.
These positions require travel, approximately 10-15% of the time, to the Florida Processing Center in
Ft. Myers, Florida, other branch offices, and the Regional Office in Atlanta, Georgia. Travel will vary
depending on project needs.
DUTY STATION LOCATION AND REMOTE WORK ELIGIBILITY:
The positions have a duty station of Lake Mary, Florida. These positions are not eligible for remote
work. These positions are eligible for telework pursuant to FEMA policy.
POSITION TYPE:
These are Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee (CORE) positions. These are temporary
appointments 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 two Attorney-Advisor positions for the Florida Integrated
Recovery Office, FEMA Region 4. The Florida Integrated Recovery Office oversees FEMA’s recovery
programs for Hurricane Ian and other open Florida events. Successful candidates will report directly to
the Supervisory Attorney-Advisor for the Florida Integrated Recovery Office.
Ideal candidates will possess strong research, writing, and communication skills, and the ability to
operate independently, with minimal guidance, in an uncertain and complex environment. Ideal
candidates must effectively represent the agency’s interests before other federal agencies and senior
officials from state, tribal, territorial, and local governments. Ideal candidates will possess strong moral
character and excellent interpersonal skills.
Ideal candidates should have specialized legal experience in emergency management, including
expertise in the Stafford Act, FEMA response and recovery programs, and the delivery of federal
disaster assistance.
Experience advising on complex public assistance projects, individual assistance programs, and hazard
mitigation issues is preferred.
DUTIES OF THE POSITION:
• Supporting the Supervisory Attorney-Advisor in advising the Florida Integrated Recovery Office
director, management, and other members of the Florida Integrated 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 Florida Integrated Recovery Office and FEMA Region 4 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.
o 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.
o 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.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY:
OCC is a diverse workplace, promotes equal opportunity, and welcomes all qualified applicants
without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual
orientation), parental status, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family
medical history), political affiliation, military service, or other non-merit-based factors.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION:
Please contact the Hiring Manager listed below if you require a reasonable accommodation for the
application process as soon as possible.
HOW TO APPLY:
Interested applicants should submit a resume and cover letter to Chuck McLeod via email at occ-
should reference that you are applying for the Attorney-Advisor for the Florida Integrated Recovery
Office, FEMA Region 4 position.
