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Deputy Principal Legal Advisor for Legal Operations
Immigration and Customs Enforcement · Posted 1 days ago
Hybrid Washington, DC $152K – $228K Apply by Aug 10, 2026 Attorney ENTJINTJINTPISTJ OperationsEducation
Apply for this job → About the Role
The incumbent of this position is one of the senior executive assistants to the Principal Legal Advisor for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on immigration and customs related legal activities, providing mission-critical legal services, counsel, and training to support ICE initiatives and programs vital to protecting U.S. national security, public safety, and the integrity of the immigration system.
What You'll Do
- →The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) protects the homeland by diligently litigating cases while adhering to the highest standards of professional conduct, providing timely and accurate legal advice, and optimizing resources to advance the missions of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and ICE.
- →OPLA is part of the Office of the General Counsel within DHS.
- →The General Counsel, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, serves as the Department's chief legal officer and principal legal advisor to the Secretary of Homeland Security.
- →As such, the General Counsel is responsible for all of the Department's legal determinations and for overseeing all of its attorneys.
- →OPLA serves as the principal legal representative for DHS/ICE in various forums, including representing DHS before the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) under 6 U.S.C. § 252(c).
- →OPLA provides legal advice to ICE officers and agents in Enforcement and Removal Operations and Homeland Security Investigations, and offers litigation support to U.S.
- →Attorney's Offices and the DOJ Office of Immigration Litigation on federal court matters related to ICE operations.
- →OPLA handles complex, high-profile immigration and customs enforcement issues that require creative legal solutions to balance national security and individual liberties.
- →Additionally, OPLA represents DHS in Merit Systems Protection Board, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Federal Labor Relations Authority hearings; provides ethics counsel; and manages commercial and administrative law matters.
- →Headquartered in Washington, D.C., OPLA has nine regions nationwide, each led by a regional counsel, and maintains 143 office locations.
- →District Courts and U.S.
- →Circuit Courts of Appeals by ICE attorneys.
- →Providing guidance and support in connection with matters that may include highly controversial or sensitive issues, or previously undecided questions where adverse decisions could negatively affect ICE operations; overseeing the provision of crucial litigation support and advice to the DOJ U.S.
- →Attorneys' Offices and OIL in the prosecution and defense of cases before the U.S.
Requirements
- ✓You must possess a professional law degree (e.g., J.D., LL.B.) acquired through graduation from an accredited School of Law and be a member in good standing of the Bar of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States.
- ✓You must submit documentation supporting that you meet this qualification when applying to this job opportunity announcement.
- ✓Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S.
- ✓Department of Education for it to be credited towards qualifications; applicant's resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions.
- ✓Applicants can verify accreditation at the following website: http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.
- ✓If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency (a U.S. private organization's interpretation that such education has been deemed at least equivalent to conventional U.S. education programs) with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education.
- ✓For more information regarding evaluation of foreign education for federal employment, please visit the U.S.
- ✓Department of Education webpage.
Personality Fit
Job ID: 71817628-314e-4d4e-b0ac-5505bd504abf
Posted via USAJobs