USDA Office of the General Counsel, Mountain Region - Attorney-Advisors, Paralegal Specialists, and Legal Administrative Specialists

These internship opportunities are for Attorney-Advisors, Paralegal Specialists, and/or Legal Administrative Specialists with the USDA Office of the General Counsel (OGC) Natural Resources and Environment Division (NRED) in Washington, D.C. As a Division of OGC headquarters, NRED provides counsel to senior leadership and staff for USDA agencies, including the Forest Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Rural Development agencies. NRED attorneys work daily with a wide and ever-expanding body of conservation and natural resource authorities including the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, Wilderness Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, National Historic Preservation Act and many more. NRED attorneys support the Department of Justice in representing USDA interests in over 100 natural resources and environmental lawsuits involving contracts, land management plans, hazardous materials response, realty, water, wetlands issues, national monument designations, wilderness, and mineral, energy, and infrastructure permitting. Drafting of statutes and regulations involving many natural resource issues is a unique opportunity in the Division. Interested applicants may have an interest in natural resources or environmental law (e.g., administrative law, mining and mineral law, real property, tribal law, and/or water law), but such interest is not prerequisite. NRED Attorneys frequently work with counsel in State government, Tribal Nations, and other federal Departments and the Council on Environmental Quality. Our legal work is exciting, fast-paced, and often involves novel, complex legal issues at the forefront of natural resources and environmental law. Mentoring is emphasized in the Division, but attorneys, paralegals and Legal Administrative Specialists quickly assume full responsibility for their work.

NRED Attorneys provide legal services to senior leadership for USDA agencies, including the following tasks: provide legal advice, conduct research, analyze and interpret federal, state, and local laws, and draft written opinions, memoranda, and pleadings in support of USDA programs and litigation. Paralegal Specialists perform a variety of paralegal functions, which include legal research, evaluating cases, preparing cases for hearings, interpreting federal, state, and agency regulations, compiling reports, and drafting pleadings, memoranda, and legal correspondence. They help manage compliance with records and property management obligations and implement preservation procedures when OGC issues a litigation hold. They take a leading role in devising and/or updating regional administrative procedures and provide a variety of litigation support and administrative duties in support of assigned attorneys. Legal Administrative Specialists are responsible for handling assignments in support of attorney requests for assistance in a wide array of areas that may include real property acquisitions and exchanges, natural resources, mining, special use permits, contracts, administrative law, FOIA, and the Privacy Act. They assist with general litigation support, records management compliance, and are responsible for entering and retrieving/compiling data from OGC's case management system and other USDA/OGC databases.

Interested applicants should be able to commit to at least 120 days for the internship opportunities. Interested applicants should also express their interest by contacting the Program POC via email and providing a resume and cover letter at least 3 months in advance of the desired start date to facilitate a standard background investigation upon selection.