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Assistant United States Attorney

Department of Justice
Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys and the Office of the U.S. Attorneys
This job announcement has closed

Summary

If you are looking for an exciting and challenging career, this is the position for you!  With a diverse and talented workforce of over 100,000 men and women, Justice leads the Nation in ensuring the protection of all Americans while preserving their constitutional freedoms.  You can be part of a dedicated team helping to enforce Federal criminal and civil laws that protect life, liberty, and the property of citizens.

Our mission is to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States, provide Federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime, seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior, and to administer and enforce the Nation's laws to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans.  We strive to build a stronger office through recruitment efforts and maintain the high standards of the office by promoting professional development.  We seek to build a legacy of excellence. 

In all matters, it is our mission to represent the people of the United States in a manner that will instill confidence in the fairness and integrity of our office and the judicial system, and to conduct our work with the highest integrity. We strive to perform our mission in the most efficient and effective manner.

This position is located in San Diego, California.

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney's Offices, visit http://www.justice.gov/careers/careers.html.

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

This is an open continuous announcement to fill current and future vacancies.  The position is open until filled.  

All initial attorney positions to the Department of Justice are made on a 14-month (temporary) basis.

Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication.  This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing.  In addition, continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.

To view the entire announcement, including instructions on how to apply, click on tabs above.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
06/12/2017 to 09/30/2017
Salary
$66,447 to - $161,800 per year
Pay scale & grade
AD 21
Location
5 vacancies in the following location:
San Diego, CA
5 vacancies
Travel Required
Occasional travel - Both within and outside the district as necessary
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent - Excepted Service Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time - Full Time
Service
Promotion potential
29
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Announcement number
17-SDCA-1967469-AUSA01
Control number
471084500

This job is open to

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Duties

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The U.S. Attorney's Office is currently seeking experienced attorneys for one or more positions as an Assistant U.S. Attorney ("AUSA") in the Criminal Division.

The Criminal Division is organized into seven sections, which consist of the General Crimes Section, the Criminal Enterprises Section, the Major Frauds and Special Prosecutions Section, National Security and Cybercrimes Section, the Financial Litigation and Asset Forfeiture Units, the Reactive Crimes Section and the Appellate Section.

The Criminal Division handles illegal immigration cases and illegal drug cases along with a variety of other federal offenses such as major narcotics cases involving mexican drug trafficking and money laundering organizations, terrorism offenses, bank robberies, child pornography, postal theft, credit card fraud, murder for hire, counterfeiting, organized crime,  computer crimes, and other sophisticated white collar fraud offenses (such as defense procurement fraud, health care fraud and environmental fraud). 

The Southern District of California has two offices: San Diego and Imperial Valley.

Enclosed is a link to the Southern District of California's web page for more information about the office.

http://www.justice.gov/usao/district/sdca

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
  • Background investigation, credit and tax checks, and drug test required.
  • You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
  • J.D. degree and active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction) required.

Travel: Occasional; both within and outside the district as necessary.

 

Type of Position:  All initial attorney appointments to the Department of Justice are made on a 14 month (temporary) basis pending favorable adjudication of a background investigation.

 

Security Requirements:  Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication.  This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing.  In addition, continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.

 

Residency Requirements:  Assistant United States Attorneys generally must reside in the district to which he or she is appointed or within 25 miles thereof.  See 28 U.S.C. 545 for district-specific information.

 

Selective Service:  If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law.  See www.sss.gov.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. degree and must currently be an active member of a state bar in order

to be considered. Proof of an active bar membership is required. One full year of post graduate legal experience is required.

Preferred Qualifications: Applicants must demonstrate a quick analytical ability and the facility to accurately and precisely articulate the critical issues in a case. Applicants must demonstrate superior oral and writing skills, as well as strong research and interpersonal skills and good judgment. Applicants must possess excellent communication and courtroom skills and exhibit the ability to work in a supportive and professional manner with other attorneys, support staff, and client agencies. Applicants must also have demonstrated excellent computer literacy skills, to include experience with automated research on the Internet, electronic court filing, and electronic e-mail and word processing systems.

Hiring preference include strong academics, outstanding organizational skills, superior legal writing and research ability, demonstrated analytical ability, good judgement and courtroom skills and a commitment to professionalism, ethics, civility, and public service

AUSAs are given training by the U.S. Department of Justice and by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Appointment is subject to an FBI background investigation, including credit, arrest, and drug use inquiries.

United States citizenship is required.

You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Education

 

Additional information

This and other attorney vacancy announcements can be found at:  http://www.justice.gov/careers/legal/attvacancies.html 

 

Department Policies: The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination based on color, race, religion, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability (physical or mental), age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, status as a parent, membership or non-membership in an employee organization, on the basis of personal favoritism, or any non merit factor. The Department of Justice welcomes and encourages applications from persons with physical and mental disabilities. The Department is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department of Justice. This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

 

It is the policy of the Department to achieve a drug-free workplace and persons selected for employment will be required to pass a drug test which screens for illegal drug use prior to final appointment. Employment is also contingent upon the completion and satisfactory adjudication of a background investigation. Only U.S. Citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office of Immigration Review and the United States Attorneys’ Offices. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, non-U.S. Citizens may apply for employment with other organizations, but should be advised that appointments of non-U.S. Citizens are extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department's mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. Applicants who hold dual citizenship in the U.S. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis. 

***

The Department of Justice cannot control further dissemination and/or posting of information contained in this vacancy announcement. Such posting and/or dissemination is not an endorsement by the Department of the organization or group disseminating and/or posting the information.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Evaluation Method: Once your complete application package is received, it will be reviewed to ensure you meet all job requirements. An attorney interview panel will then review all qualified applicants and make recommendations for invitation to interview. You will be notified if selected for an interview.

The Occupational Questionnaire will take you approximately 20 minutes to complete. To preview the Occupational Questionnaire, click the following link View Assessment Questions

 

Veterans' Preference: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must indicate their preference in response to the appropriate question in their assessment questionnaire (it is also recommended that information is included in their cover letter or resume) and they must submit supporting documentation (e.g., DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) which verifies their eligibility for preference. Although the "point" system is not used, per se, applicants eligible to claim 10-point preference must submit Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and submit the supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed (visit the OPM website, http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf15.pdf for a copy of SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preferences and the required supporting document(s). Applicants should note that SF 15 requires supporting documentation associated with service-connected disabilities or receipt of nonservice-connected disability pensions to be dated 1991 or later except in the case of service members submitting official statements or retirement orders from a branch of the Armed Forces showing that his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).

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