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Supervisory Trial Attorney

U.S. Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor

(Washington DC / Hybrid)

Open date: April 15, 2026

Closing date: April 29, 2026

Pay scale & grade: GS 15

Salary: $169,279 - $197,200 per year

1 vacancy in Washington, D.C.

Telework eligible? Yes, as determined by agency policy

Summary

This position is located in the Office of the Solicitor's Division of Plan Benefits Security (PBSD), Counsel for Litigation area which plays a critical role in ensuring adequate representation of the Secretary of Labor in ERISA litigation involving complex financial transactions and novel pension and welfare plan issues and providing adequate supervision and training of PBSD trial attorneys working on those cases.

Duties

The Counsel for Litigation (Counsel) plays a critical role in ensuring adequate representation of the Secretary of Labor (Secretary) in ERISA litigation involving complex financial transactions and novel pension and welfare plan issues and providing adequate supervision and training of PBSD trial attorneys working on those cases.

Counsel conducts and oversees complex ERISA enforcement cases at every stage of litigation, including managing the work of intra- and inter-office litigation teams to achieve favorable results, at times in areas where there is no legal precedent and where Counsel must develop novel legal theories and litigation strategies and proactively recommend and implement courses of action.

Counsel may also be called upon to supervise appellate and amicus litigation in the Division.

Counsel supervises attorneys in ERISA cases brought against the Secretary, both when PBSD directly defends the Secretary and when PBSD provides support to DOJ's defense of the Secretary. As needed, Counsel may be assigned to supervise the preparation of, review, and edit any written product of PBSD attorneys.

Counsel supervises attorneys providing pre-referral assistance to the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) in investigations.

Counsel provides advice and makes recommendations to EBSA and to the Associate Solicitor, Deputy Associate Solicitor, and others throughout the Solicitor's Office on substantive and procedural legal issues and on policy and management issues that affect all work in the area of Counsel's responsibility, taking into consideration developments in the law and the enforcement objectives of the Department.

Counsel supervises a staff of attorneys and paralegals under the general direction of the Associate Solicitor and Deputy Associate Solicitor. Counsel assigns work to trial attorneys and support staff as needed in litigation, reviews and edits work products, and gives regular feedback on performance. To the extent possible, Counsel identifies and considers the professional development needs of the attorneys and staff in making assignments. Counsel prepares subordinates' performance appraisals in accordance with Department and Office of the Solicitor policies.

Counsel attends and participates in trials and hearings as appropriate, conducts settlement negotiations and mediation, and apprises and consults with senior EBSA officials, the Associate Solicitor, and Deputy Associate Solicitor on the status of litigation and settlement negotiations.

Counsel is also responsible for assisting the Associate Solicitor and Deputy Associate Solicitor of PBSD in the management of the Division and accepting and accomplishing special projects and assignments from both. Counsel performs administrative tasks assigned by the Associate Solicitor or the Deputy Associate Solicitor as necessary for the proper functioning of PBSD and for meeting its various reporting and recordkeeping duties. Counsel also assists in the recruitment and retention of a qualified workforce and participates in DOL committees and initiatives addressing topics impacting the work of the Division and EBSA. Counsel works independently under the general supervision of the Associate Solicitor and Deputy Associate Solicitor of PBSD.

Qualifications

To qualify for an attorney position, applicants must possess a professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.); be a member in good standing of the bar of a court of general jurisdiction of a state, territory or possession of the U.S.; and have acquired the amount of experience indicated below for each grade level.

Qualifying specialized experience for GS-15 includes:

• four (4) years of progressively responsible legal experience of a professional nature which demonstrates the ability to perform the work at this level. At least one year of qualifying experience, at this level, must be specialized experience as defined below.

Specialized experience is defined as senior legal experience that has equipped the applicant with the necessary skills and abilities to perform the major duties of this position. NOTE: A LL.M. may be substituted for a maximum of one year of experience.

How to Apply

The text above consists of excerpts of a job posting currently online at USAJOBS.gov, which is operated by the federal government. Much of the information that has been omitted is critically important to a candidate, such as the complete application instructions, qualification requirements, and required documents, so an interested candidate should see the full text of the USAJOBS.gov job posting for the remaining necessary information, by using the Apply Now button below.

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