National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of General Counsel

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of General Counsel
Name	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of General Counsel
Formed	1970s
Jurisdiction	United States
Headquarters	Silver Spring, Maryland
Chief1 name	(General Counsel)
Parent agency	National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Contents

History

Established as NOAA coalesced from predecessor agencies including the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey and the United States Weather Bureau, the Office of General Counsel developed through administrative reorganizations during the Nixon administration and under subsequent executive orders. During the Clean Water Act implementation era and the expansion of marine fisheries management in the 1970s and 1980s, the office provided counsel on rulemaking tied to the exclusive economic zone and the High Seas Fishing Compliance Act. Notable historical junctures include legal work during Hurricane Katrina, litigation involving the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and advisory roles related to the Arctic Council's multilateral engagement following Arctic ice retreat trends identified by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessments.

The office is organized into subject-matter divisions reflecting NOAA components: administrative law, fisheries law, marine conservation, maritime navigation, and environmental litigation, each analogous to legal units in agencies such as the United States Postal Service Office of General Counsel and the Department of Justice. Leadership is headed by a Senate-confirmed General Counsel or a presidential appointee coordinated with the Secretary of Commerce and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. Senior attorneys often have backgrounds at institutions like the Georgetown University Law Center, the Harvard Law School, the New York University School of Law, and experience in tribunals such as the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

The office issues legal opinions, drafts regulations, and represents NOAA in administrative adjudications and federal courts, addressing statutes including the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act, and provisions of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. It advises on rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act and on treaty implementation for agreements like the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The office negotiates interagency memoranda with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for disaster response, supports enforcement actions coordinated with the National Ocean Service and Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA), and provides counsel regarding procurement governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulation and litigation involving the United States Court of International Trade.

The office has been counsel in significant cases addressing fishery allocations litigated before the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, contested rulemakings reviewed by the Supreme Court of the United States, and disputes over marine sanctuary designations brought to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Precedents include interpretations of the Magnuson–Stevens Act and the scope of agency discretion under the Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. doctrine, as well as litigation implicating the Takings Clause and federal preemption principles exemplified in cases involving the Louisiana Coastal Zone and offshore energy leasing overseen by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. The office’s briefs and litigation strategy have influenced administrative law doctrine and marine resource jurisprudence cited by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and international arbitral tribunals.

NOAA’s General Counsel coordinates with the Department of State on treaties and bilateral arrangements with partners such as Canada, Mexico, and members of the European Union, and engages with multilateral bodies including the North Atlantic Fisheries Organization and the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. Interagency collaboration extends to National Ocean Policy implementation with the Council on Environmental Quality and marine spatial planning coordinated with the Department of Defense for naval operations. The office supports U.S. positions in negotiations at the International Maritime Organization and provides legal analyses for transboundary dispute resolution through mechanisms like the International Court of Justice and regional fisheries management organizations.

The office administers training for NOAA attorneys and staff on ethics governed by the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch and compliance programs informed by statutes such as the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act of 1974. It provides continuing legal education with academic partners like the American Bar Association and professional exchanges with the National Association of Attorneys General, and maintains internal guidance for regulatory compliance tied to the Paperwork Reduction Act and Regulatory Flexibility Act. The office also oversees conflict-of-interest screening, procurement integrity counseling, and oversight of compliance with international obligations such as reporting to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and participation in scientific-data sharing consistent with National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health policies.