General Attorney; Appellate

Position: General Attorney (Appellate)
Summary

Join the dedicated appellate practitioners of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) Immigration and Law Practice Division (ILPD) across the country and assist in shaping immigration law to protect our homeland.

Applicants should indicate their location(s) preference in their cover letter.

General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages.

Summary

Join the dedicated appellate practitioners of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) Immigration and Law Practice Division (ILPD) across the country and assist in shaping immigration law to protect our homeland.

Applicants should indicate their location(s) preference in their cover letter.

General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages.

Overview

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Accepting applications

Open & closing dates

02/03/2026 to 02/17/2026

Salary $63,795 to - $136,102 per year

This salary range reflects the GS base rate only. The link to the locality pay tables is located in the announcement.

Pay scale & grade GS 11 - 14

Locations

Few vacancies in the following locations:

Los Angeles, CA

Denver, CO

Fort Lauderdale, FL

Baltimore, MD

Remote job No Telework eligible No Travel Required Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position. Relocation expenses reimbursed No Appointment type Permanent Work schedule Full-time Service Excepted

Promotion potential

14

Job family (Series)

* 0905 Attorney

Supervisory status No Security clearance Secret Drug test Yes Position sensitivity and risk Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk

Trust determination process

* National security

Financial disclosure No Bargaining unit status No

Announcement number OPLA-ILPD--JP Control number

This job is open to

Help

The public

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

Clarification from the agency

You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.

Duties

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OPLA is the largest legal program in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), employing attorneys nationwide. OPLA provides a full range of legal services to all ICE programs and offices and serves as the exclusive representative of DHS in removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). Selected attorneys will primarily serve as DHS's appellate counsel before EOIR's Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), in administrative removal cases brought by DHS agents and officers, including those against criminal aliens, terrorists, and human rights abusers.

ILPD attorneys provide immigration law subject-matter expertise and appellate advocacy before the BIA, including the preparation of briefs, motions, and other pleadings. ILPD attorneys will:

* Zealously litigated on behalf of DHS, including advocating to maintain custody of dangerous aliens pending completion of removal proceedings, ensuring the proper application of criminal and other grounds of removal from the United States, and presenting arguments to defeat meritless claims for relief from removal and certain forms of protection (asylum, statutory withholding of removal, and the regulations implementing U.S. obligations under Article 3 of the Convention Against Torture).

* Represent ICE's interests in federal court litigation on novel or complex immigration law issues, regularly contribute to document review in federal civil discovery, and provide legal advice and support to other ICE components and litigation support to the United States Attorney's Offices in immigration or customs matters, as necessary.

* Work with other OPLA Headquarters divisions and OPLA field locations, DHS Office of the General Counsel Headquarters (OGC HQ), certain DOJ components, including the Office of Immigration Litigation (OIL), and other ICE and DHS personnel on a wide range of substantive issues related to immigration law.

OPLA will ensure that applicants with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations when appropriate. If reasonable accommodation is required for any part of the application process, please contact the OPLA representative listed on this announcement.

Require…