Lead Attorney-Advisor (Real Property)

About the Position: Serve as a subject matter expert on most difficult real estate acquisitions, real estate, and environmental matters.

Duties

• Render legal advice on the most difficult matters involving real estate acquisitions and compliance, including direct purchase, leases, easements, or donation of real property.

• Research, analyze and provide legal advice during various stages of the real estate acquisition process.

• Ensure that the organizations strategic plan, mission, vision and values are communicated to the team and integrated into the team’s strategies, goals, objectives, work plans and work products and services

• Lead a team of other attorneys to accomplish the mission, ensuring team workload is accomplished in accordance with established priorities and within accepted timeframes.

• Train or arrange for training of team members in methods and techniques of team building and working in teams to accomplish tasks or projects.

• Interpret and apply case law, statutes, regulations and policies pertaining to land acquisition, easement acquisition, construction-related issues, and operation of projects and activities.

• Review Negotiators Report, Offer to Sell, and other documents prepared by Realty Specialists.

• Identify and draft legal instruments, such as releases, disclaimers, and subordination documents or reviews documents prepared by paralegals.

Salary

• $135,522 - $176,183/year

Conditions of Employment

• Appointment may be subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
• This position requires you to submit a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter.
• Temporary Duty (TDY) or business travel up to 10% of the time.

Qualifications

***Please carefully read the "Required Documents" section to ensure you submit a FULL application. If you fail to submit all of the required documents your application may not receive further consideration for the position.***

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described below. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: The following minimum qualification requirements must be met before applicants are eligible for further consideration as prescribed in DoDI 1442.02 and AR 690-300.

Bar Membership: Applicants must currently be a member in good standing (as defined by the pertinent bar) of the bar of a State, territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Education: Assignments require the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) and active membership in the bar of the highest court of a State, U.S. commonwealth, U.S. territory, or the District of Columbia.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below:

Experience: Three or more years of professional legal experience. Examples of this experience are: advising on the most difficult matters involving real estate acquisitions, including direct purchase, leases, easements, or donation of real property; interpreting and applying case law, statutes, regulations and policies pertaining to land acquisition, easement acquisition, construction-related issues, and operation of projects and activities; Federal acquisitions of a variety of property interests, environmental and federal real estate acquisition rules and regulations, and various State laws within the applicable area of responsibility; review of Condemnation Assemblies, Declarations of Taking (DTs) and coordination with assigned U.S. Attorney(s); prepare Pre-Acquisition and Post-Acquisition Title Opinions in accordance with DOJ Title Standards; articulates and communicates to the team their respective assignment(s), project(s), program issues under review, and deadlines and timeframes for completion; prepares, reviews and clears all necessary documents for acquisitions and/or relocations that involve unique/novel questions of law, difficult legal or factual issues, large sums of money, and/or very capable opposing legal talent or delicacy. (NOTE: The qualifying authority may make exceptions to the GS grade-level, or equivalent, standards as prescribed in DoDI 1442.02 for applicants possessing special experience or qualifications of a legal or non-legal nature that will be of material value in performing the duties of the position to which the civilian attorney is appointed. Such experience may have been gained either before or after admission to the bar.)

Fitness to Practice Law: An applicant must currently be fit to practice law. If your fitness to practice law, or your conduct has ever been challenged you must submit a sworn statement giving the facts and circumstances, together with any explanations you consider appropriate. The sworn statement should be notarized and dated within 3 months of the date of your application. (If you are currently employed as an attorney with The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, this requirement does not apply to you).

Time in Grade Requirement: If employed as an Attorney by the Federal government, you must have completed 1 year at the next lower level within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement or previously served at the same or higher grade as the position being filled.

Education FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Other Information Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration. You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship. This position requires a 2 year trial period during which the agency evaluates your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In making this determination, the agency may consider your performance and conduct; agency needs and interests; whether your continued employment supports organizational or Government goals; and whether it promotes the efficiency of the Federal service. Continued employment requires written certification that it advances the public interest. Direct Deposit of Pay is required. This position requires you to submit a Public Financial Disclosure Report (OGE 278) or a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter. Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees. If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet. This is a(n) Professional Services Career Field position Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement. Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement. When you perform a Civilian Permanent Change of Station (PCS) with the government, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers the majority of your entitlements to be taxable. Visit https://www.dfas.mil/civilianemployees/civrelo/Civilian-Moving-Expenses-Tax-Deduction/ for more information. Permanent Change of Station (PCS) allowances may be authorized, subject to the provisions of the Joint Travel Regulations and an agency determination that a PCS move is in the Government Interest. Advanced-in-Hire, Enhanced Leave Accrual, or Recruitment/Relocation incentive MAY be authorized if determined to be in the best interest of the government. ***Please carefully read the "Required Documents" section to ensure you submit a FULL application. If you fail to submit all of the required documents your application may not receive further consideration for the position.*** Required Documents

The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist for Public Announcements.

As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.

1. Your resume:

• Your resume must be two pages or less and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.
• For each relevant work experience, make sure you include the employer's name, job title, start and end dates (include month and year), for qualifications purposes, the number of hours worked per week, and a brief description that show you can perform the tasks at the required level listed in the job announcement. If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as incomplete, and you may not receive consideration for this position.
• Use plain language. Avoid using acronyms and terms that are not easily understood. The hiring agency will not make assumptions about what's in your resume.
• If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations, and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
• For additional information, to include formatting tips, see: What to include in your resume.

***IN ADDITION, the following documents must be provided based on your applicant status (i.e. current USACE Attorney or NOT a current USACE Attorney)***

2. If you are a current U.S. Army Corps of Engineers attorney and are applying through this announcement, you MUST submit the following documents online:

• Cover Letter/Statement of Interest
• Most recent Performance Appraisal
• Your latest non-award Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50);
• Time-in-grade documentation: If you are applying for a higher grade and your SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you meet the one year time-in-grade requirement so you will need to provide an SF-50 which clearly demonstrates you meet the time-in-grade requirements (examples of appropriate SF-50s include Promotions, Within-grade Grade/Range Increases, and SF-50s with an effective date more than one year old).
• A writing sample NOTE: WRITING SAMPLES SHALL NOT EXCEED 10 PAGES

3. If you are NOT a current U.S. Army Corps of Engineers attorney, you MUST submit the following documents online:

• Cover Letter/Statement of Interest
• Copy of law school transcripts (official copies required if selected and before placement);
• Certificate showing that you are a member in good standing with the bar, dated no more than 3 months before the opening date of this announcement (a copy is sufficient for the application, but a certified copy may be necessary upon selection)
• A sworn statement, certifying that your fitness to practice law or your conduct as an attorney has never been challenged in any jurisdiction. This statement should be notarized, and dated no more than 3 months before the opening date of this announcement.
• IF YOUR FITNESS TO PRACTICE LAW OR YOUR CONDUCT AS AN ATTORNEY HAS BEEN CHALLENGED IN ANY JURISDICTION, you must provide a notarized statement concerning the facts and circumstances, and any other explanation that you deem appropriate;
• Three letters of reference from members of the bar dated within 12 months of the opening date of this announcement;
• A writing sample NOTE: WRITING SAMPLES SHALL NOT EXCEED 10 PAGES

NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 10/12/2026 to receive consideration.

• To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13066923).
• Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. As a reminder, your resume must be two pages or less and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. For additional information, refer to the 'Required Documents' section.
• You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
• After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
• You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. Your resume selected in USAJOBS will be included, but you must re-select other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application may be incomplete.
• It is your responsibility to verify that your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan.
• Additional information on how to complete the online application process and submit your online application may be found on the USA Staffing Applicant Resource Center.

To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://www.usajobs.gov/applicant/profile/dashboard/), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/application/status.