Apply To Office Of Chief Counsel

For Entry-level Opportunities

If you are in law school, about to graduate, or are newly graduated, you may be eligible to apply to the Chief Counsel Honors Program, Summer Legal Program, or Volunteer Legal Externship Program (Extern Program).

Interviews are regularly conducted on campus primarily in the fall at law schools throughout the country. Even if you participate in either an on-campus interview (OCI) or a job fair, you must submit an application using the main federal job portal www.USAJOBS.GOV. Or, you can select the link “Attorney and Non-Attorney Jobs” under the sub-header “ADDITIONAL INFORMATION” in our main page to find all open Chief Counsel jobs. Normally, we post job announcements for both the Honors Program and Summer Legal Program by no later than early/mid-August each year. Please look for us at your law school OCIs, job fairs and apply online via www.USAJOBS.GOV. Please note: Applicants to the Volunteer Legal Externship Program do not need to complete a www.USAJOBS.GOV application. Please refer to the Volunteer Legal Externship Program link above for more information.
Application packages are accepted primarily in the fall for Honors positions and summer legal positions. Externship applications are accepted throughout the year.

When Honors Program and Summer Legal Program positions become available, they can be viewed here.

A complete application package is composed of:

resume (please include GPA and class rank, if available)
law school transcript (unofficial copy is fine)
a 5 to 10 page writing sample

If you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit the following:

Copy of your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge.
Ten-point preference eligibles must also submit an application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, SF-15, along with required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. An SF-15 may be found at http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/SF15.pdf (1,239KB PDF*).
Memo from your current military personnel office (if you are claiming preference but are currently in the military). This memo must include years of service, projected terminal leave date, campaign and expeditionary medals (including Purple Heart, if applicable) and statement about the character of service (honorable).

For more information on veterans' preference, click this link: https://www.fedshirevets.gov/veteran-employees/veterans-preference/#content

If you have any questions about the application process, please e-mail us: attyapplications@irscounsel.treas.gov

For Experienced Professionals

If you are an attorney you may be eligible to apply to vacancy announcements geared towards attorneys with one or more years of legal experience.

Various announcements will be open at any given time, and you may apply for a specific announcement or to our continuous vacancy announcements. Please be aware that a continuous vacancy announcement will be used to fill positions as they become available, so applicants may not hear back regarding their application until after the final closing date of the announcement. Additional announcements for specific positions are posted throughout the year.

As positions for experienced attorneys become available, they can be viewed here.

Pre-Employment Conditions

All appointments are subject to favorable completion of security and character investigations, as well as a tax check. New appointees must pay all travel and transportation expenses to their first post of duty. Such expenses may qualify for a deduction from gross income for purposes of federal income taxation.

Applicants with Disabilities

The Office of Chief Counsel, IRS provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify us. Decisions on granting reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

The Office of Chief Counsel, IRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Selection for positions will be based solely on merit without regard to race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, political affiliation, disability, sexual orientation, marital status or other differences.