Attorney Advisor, Preparedness and Continuity

PLEASE READ THE APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS AND QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS CAREFULLY. INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS, INCLUDING THOSE WITHOUT A COVER LETTER, WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

Federal Emergency Management Agency, Office of Chief Counsel

Position Title: Attorney Advisor, Preparedness and Continuity

Duty Station: Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center (Bluemont, VA)

Grade: GS-15 | Job Series 0905

OPENING DATE: October 14, 2026

CLOSING DATE: October 27, 2026, 11:59 PM EDT

POSITION TITLE AND LEGAL DIVISION:

Attorney Advisor, Preparedness and Continuity, FEMA Office of Chief Counsel (OCC), Resilience Legal Division.

SERIES, PAY PLAN, GRADE, SECURITY CLEARANCE, AND TRAVEL:

This position is in the job series 0905-Attorney-Advisor, GS-15. This position has a full performance level of GS-15. This position requires a TS/SCI security clearance. Occasional travel may be required. Travel may include local travel to FEMA headquarters in Washington on a monthly basis or more frequently.

DUTY STATION LOCATION AND REMOTE WORK ELIGIBILITY:

The position has a duty station at the Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center in Bluemont, VA. This position is not eligible for remote work, as defined by FEMA policy. This position is eligible for limited telework only pursuant to FEMA policy.

POSITION TYPE:

This is a Permanent Full Time (PFT) Non-Supervisory Attorney position. This position is being announced under FEMA’s General Schedule (GS) program. This is an Excepted Service position and will be filled at the GS-15 level.

POSITION SUMMARY AND IDEAL CANDIDATE:

The Resilience Legal Division (RLD) is seeking an attorney to fill an Attorney Advisor position within RLD’s Preparedness and Continuity branch. Accordingly, the ideal candidate must be able to quickly process a high volume of information and able to:

• Think quickly to respond to a sudden change of information.
• Show initiative and self-reliance to increase the effectiveness of the team; and
• Keep an open mind and show willingness to learn new methods and techniques.

DUTIES OF THE POSITION:

RLD seeks qualified applicants for the position of Attorney Advisor within the Preparedness and Continuity Branch. The successful candidate will serve under the immediate supervision of the DACC, Preparedness and Continuity, and will be part of a two-person team that will be primarily responsible for supporting FEMA’s continuity mission. The successful candidate will be responsible for providing legal advice to the Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center.

Candidates must also have strong research, writing, and communication skills; the ability to work independently; excellent team building skills, and the ability to represent the agency at a high level both internally and externally. The position requires the individual selected to obtain a TS/SCI security clearance.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED/SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

Applicants must meet the qualifications requirements for the grade level to which they are applying by the closing date of this announcement.

Minimum Requirements include:

• U.S. Citizenship,
• Ability to successfully pass a background investigation (TS/SCI),
• 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, and
• Agreement with Every Employee is an Emergency Manager requirement.

Minimum Experience: For the purposes of this announcement 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.

You qualify for this position at the GS-15 level if you possess the requisite specialized experience and other qualifications:

• Applicants must have at least five (5) years of 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 four (4) 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 two of the four years of specialized experience must be at a level of difficulty and responsibility to that of an attorney at the GS-14 level.

Specialized experience for this position includes:

• Independently analyzing and interpreting federal and state statutes, regulations, and policies; Executive Orders; and judicial and administrative decisions while rendering advice.
• Working in one or more of the following areas: national security, continuity, and emergency preparedness law; administrative law; personnel law; fiscal law; procurement; and grants management.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

At time of application, the applicant must submit a:

• Resume (no more than 2 pages),
• Short writing sample, and
• Cover letter.

Prior to tentative job offer, the applicant must also provide:

• Proof of current bar admission
• Law school transcript from an American Bar Association accredited law school

OCC LEGAL AFFAIRS CADRE AND EMERGENCY MANAGER ASSIGNMENT:

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.

HOW TO APPLY:

Interested applicants should submit a resume and cover letter to Amanda Hemmerich at RLD-Applications@fema.dhs.gov by the closing date of this announcement. The subject line of the email should refer to the title of this position. Please let us know in your email or cover letter where you saw this announcement.