Senior Counsel for Appellate Matters

Department of Justice › Offices, Boards and Divisions (29 current openings)

Denver, Colorado Washington, District of Columbia

Full-time Security Clearance: Other

Application Deadline:

2026-09-16

Posted:

2026-08-19

About 4 weeks left

Apply on usajobs.gov

Salary: $164,956 – $197,200 per year (GS-15)

Salary context

Based on 305 annual-salary jobs in the same occupational series. This role pays above most similar positions.

Job Details

Position Overview

The Environmental Defense Section (EDS) is seeking an experienced Trial Attorney to serve as Senior Counsel for Appellate Matters. This role involves both litigating in federal courts of appeals and assisting in managing the petition for review practice. This practice area consists of challenges to rules and other final EPA actions under the major pollution control statutes (e.g., the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Toxic Substance Control Act, etc.) that are filed in the courts of appeals.

Duties

One position will be filled in either Washington DC or Denver.

Senior Counsel for Appellate Matters will coordinate with other Senior Counsel and the Assistant Section Chief in managing the Section's petition for review practice. Cases within this practice run the gamut from complex, multi-party challenges to high-profile national rules, to more limited challenges to regional, state, and facility-specific actions. Historically, more than fifty percent of the Section's petition for review cases have arisen under the Clean Air Act. While these petitions for review are filed in all federal courts of appeals, the majority are in the D.C. Circuit.

Senior Counsel directly oversee and mentor attorneys handling petition for review cases; review briefs and other court filings; prepare attorneys for oral argument; and provide legal, strategic, and other guidance. Senior Counsel also personally handle an active docket of petition for review matters, engaging in all aspects of litigation in courts of appeals and serving as team leaders on some of the Section's most significant petitions. Additionally, Senior Counsel provide advice and consultation to client agencies and DOJ leadership on significant environmental and administrative law issues and work closely with the Office of the Solicitor General on cases involving rehearing en banc and certiorari.

Qualifications & Requirements

Applicants must possess a J.D. (or equivalent), be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and be a U.S. citizen or national. Applicants must have a minimum of five years post-J.D. litigation experience that includes significant federal litigation experience or substantive familiarity with the Administrative Procedure Act and pollution control statutes within the Section's jurisdiction.

The ideal candidate will have significant federal appellate litigation experience including the defense of agency actions under the Administrative Procedure Act; superior writing and editing skills; a working knowledge of the Clean Air Act, other pollution control statutes, the Administrative Procedure Act, and other administrative law issues; familiarity with the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure; the ability to mentor and manage attorneys to produce high-quality work under tight time frames; the ability to work cooperatively and effectively with EPA and other client agencies, other DOJ components, and opposing counsel; and a commitment to the highest ethical and professional standards.

Experience leading attorneys in appellate litigation and experience with D.C. Circuit litigation are highly desirable.

The possible salary range for Washington D.C.:

GS-15 ($169,279 - $197,200)

The possible salary range for Denver, CO.:

GS-15 ($164,956 - $197,200)

YOUR RESUME MUST provide specific details as to how your experience meets the specialized experience as described in the vacancy announcement if you are using experience to meet all or part of the qualification requirements. Please ensure that your resume includes the month and year that you began and ended each position held or that position will not be credited toward meeting the experience requirement. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Failure to provide details will result in an ineligible rating.

Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.

Education

All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see www.ed.gov.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

All documentation must be in English or include an English translation. https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Conditions of Employment

You must be a U.S. citizen or national.
You must complete a background investigation to include pre-employment drug testing.
Selective Service Registration is required, as applicable.
You must maintain a bank account for direct deposit of salary.
J.D. degree required, must be an active member of the bar, any jurisdiction.
Financial Disclosure: If selected, you may be required to disclose financial information in accordance with DOJ and Federal ethics guidelines.

Evaluations

Veterans: There is no formal rating system for applying veteran preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veteran preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veteran preference must include that information in their resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions.

Although the "point" system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service-connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must submit a complete Application Package which includes the following:

Resume (not to exceed two pages) demonstrating relevant experience and month/year the experience was obtained
Cover letter with brief statement of interest
Writing sample
Copy of J.D. degree transcripts
DD 214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation, if applicable

Your resume MUST include full employment information such as periods of employment with month/year started and ended, title of position(s), part time hours worked, and description of duties. If you have Federal employment, you must include the grade of the position(s).

How to Apply

You must apply online through USAJOBS. Click on the APPLY Online button. Follow the prompts to answer a few questions and submit all required documents by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date to receive consideration.

Applicants must submit a current resume, cover letter with brief statement of interest, writing sample, law school transcript, and DD-214 (if applicable).

To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), 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://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/

Internet Sites: For more information about the Environment and Natural Resources Division, visit the web site at: http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd .

This and selected other legal position announcements can be found on the Internet at: https://www.justice.gov/legal-careers

Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications. The most highly qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview. We expect to make a selection within 80 days of the closing date of this announcement. You will be notified of the outcome.

Source: Data sourced from USAJOBS