Division of Management and Administrative Legal Services

The Management and Administrative Legal Services (MALS) Division is a combined legal and administrative office within the Office of the Solicitor (SOL). MALS represents and advises the Department on a wide range of general law areas, while also serving as SOL's primary administrative arm.

On the legal side, MALS represents and advises the Department on a wide range of general law areas, typical of the subjects handled by federal "General Counsel" offices, including:

• Appropriations law;
• Delegations of authority;
• Employment law and labor relations;
• Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act;
• Information law;
• Intellectual property;
• Memoranda of understanding;
• Procurement law and government contracts;
• DOL's Suspension and Debarment program
• Third-party subpoenas; and
• Various governmentwide administrative mandates such as the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), Federal Records Act, Paperwork Reduction Act, e-Government Act, and obligations relating to e-discovery.

On the administrative side, MALS is responsible for the management and administrative services that SOL provides to its component divisions, and for liaison with the Department's central business offices. Among other things, MALS handles SOL's internal systems for:

• Budgeting and financial management;
• Human resources and labor relations;
• Information technology; and
• Litigation support.

MALS also provides general administrative and technical support for SOL, such as by maintaining videoconferencing and telecommunications systems, overseeing space utilization, and providing services pertaining to records management, and technology purchase and maintenance.

Additionally, the Office of Information Services within MALS serves as the Department's FOIA administrative office, which includes responsibility for guidance and training to FOIA offices throughout the Department.

Recent Accomplishments

• Provided extensive legal advice and drafting assistance in major rulemakings and guidance pertaining to the FOIA Improvement Act, the Nonprocurement Suspension and Debarment Common Rule, and the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (E.O. 13673).
• Successfully defended the Department in lawsuits pertaining to employment law, FOIA, and third party subpoenas, including before arbitrators, the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and-in conjunction with the Department of Justice-federal district and appellate courts.
• Successfully defended the Department against bid protests and other government contracts lawsuits, including before the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, Court of Federal Claims, and Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
• Counseled DOL leadership and coordinated with several federal agencies on a mission-critical procurement effort to ensure the continued operation of DOL's Financial Management System when faced with a failed and bankrupt contractor for that system.
• Advised on DOL's Information Technology (IT) Modernization efforts, including consulting on acquisition strategies and compliance with applicable information governance and security statutes and regulations, such as Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) and the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA).
• Regularly provide extensive legal advice and drafting assistance in connection with global updates to Departmental management and policy documents, and changes to the Department's organizational structure.
• Regularly coordinate SOL's compliance with OMB and other government-wide administrative requirements, such as by preparing SOL budget submissions, updating and maintaining SOL's continuity-of-government plan, and preparing SOL's Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act inventory.

What We Do

MALS attorneys handle:

• Litigation, including:
  • Discovery, motions practice, and evidentiary hearings before arbitrators and administrative tribunals such as the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA).
  • Prepare agency responses and records in defense of bid protests and appeals of contract claims before the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, and Court of Federal Claims
  • Assist the Department of Justice in representing DOL in trial and appellate federal court litigation implicating MALS's general law portfolio.
• Processing of internal administrative appeals filed by aggrieved Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requestors.
• Legal advice to Departmental clients on general law areas such as:
  • Appropriations law;
  • Delegations of authority;
  • Employment law and labor relations;
  • Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act;
  • Information law;
  • Intellectual property;
  • Memoranda of understanding;
  • Procurement law and government contracts;
  • DOL's Suspension and Debarment program
  • Third party subpoenas; and
  • Various government-wide administrative mandates such as the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), Federal Records Act, Paperwork Reduction Act, e-Government Act, and obligations relating to e-discovery.
• Regulation writing and review on issues relating to the above-referenced areas.
• Legislative activities, such as reviewing or assisting in the drafting of proposed legislation and Congressional testimony implicating the above-referenced areas.

Staff attorneys generally specialize in one of the Division's five counsel areas:

• Appropriations Law;
• Employment Law;
• FOIA and Information Law;
• FOIA Appeals, Paperwork Reduction Act, and Federal Records Act; and
• Procurement Law

with some attorneys performing work across these areas on a regular or ad hoc basis as necessitated by the cross-cutting nature of MALS's portfolio. There is limited travel.

MALS's non-attorney professionals handle SOL's internal systems for budgeting, financial management, human resources, information technology, and litigation support, as well as providing general administrative and technical support for SOL litigators and providing FOIA administrative services to the Department as a whole. With the exception of paralegals supporting attorney work, MALS's non-attorney staff members work within one of MALS's five specialized administrative units:

• Financial Management Office;
• Human Resources Office;
• Legal Technology Unit;
• Litigation Support Unit; and
• Office of Information Services.

There is limited travel.

DOL Agencies Supported

As a "general counsel" or "general law" legal office, the MALS Division provides legal services to the Secretary of Labor, high-level Departmental leadership, and the leadership and staff of all DOL agencies. In addition, the MALS Division serves as the primary legal counsel to a number of DOL agencies, specifically:

• Office of the Assistance Secretary for Administration & Management (OASAM)
• Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)
• Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
• Office of the Assistance Secretary for Policy (OASP)
• Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
• Office of the Secretary (OSEC)
• Office of the Solicitor (SOL)
• Ombudsman for the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program (EEOMBD)

Contact Information

200 Constitution Ave NW
Room N-2420
Washington, DC 20210

202-693-5405
202-693-5538 (fax)