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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
Office of the United States Attorney, Southern District of California
This job announcement has closed

Summary


This is a term appointment not-to-exceed 03/31/2028. This position may be extended or made permanent without further competition.


This is an open continuous announcement that will remain open until filled or July 7, 2025. This is a job opportunity announcement that will be used to fill multiple vacancies. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applicants will be 6/5/25. Qualified applicants will be referred to selecting official at 2-week intervals.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
05/20/2025 to 07/07/2025
Salary
$84,461 to - $195,100 per year
Pay scale & grade
AD 21
Location
Many vacancies in the following location:
San Diego, CA
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Term - 03/31/2028
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
29
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
25-SDCA-12737124-AUSA07
Control number
837201100

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

All United States Citizens and Nationals

Duties

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Overview of the United States Attorney's Office - Southern District of California

The Southern District of California (SDCA) is one of the largest U.S. Attorney's offices in the country with one of the largest caseloads. This office prosecutes federal crimes and defends the interests of the United States government in civil cases. SDCA encompasses San Diego and Imperial Counties and includes a branch office in Imperial, California.

Duties of Civil Assistant United States Attorneys

The U.S. Attorney's office is seeking one or more qualified candidates to join the office as Assistant U.S. Attorneys in the Civil Division. Civil Division Assistant U.S. Attorneys represent the United States, federal agencies, and federal employees in a wide variety of civil cases. Defensive practice areas include immigration as well as personal injury and wrongful death, constitutional torts, and medical malpractice. Affirmative practice areas include the investigation and prosecution of civil actions under statutes such as the False Claims Act and Controlled Substances Act with a focus on immigration. Our Civil Division represents the United States, its agencies, officers, and employees in civil actions in the Southern District of California and at the Ninth Circuit.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

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.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a United States Citizen or National.
  • Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
  • You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
  • J.D. degree and active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction) required.
  • Type of Position: This is a term position not-to-exceed 03/31/2028. This position may be extended or made permanent without further competition.

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 (1) full year of postgraduate legal experience is required.

Preferred Qualifications: Applicants must demonstrate a quick analytical ability and an aptitude for accurately articulating 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. AUSAs receive 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. You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

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

Education

Applicants must possess a J.D. degree (or equivalent), must currently be an active bar member of a state bar in good standing (any U.S. jurisdiction) and have a least 1 year post-J.D. (or equivalent) legal or other relevant experience in order to be considered. Proof of an active bar membership is required.

Additional information

Salary Information: Assistant United States Attorney's pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The range of basic pay is $84,461 to $195,100 per annum which includes a 33.72% locality pay.

Other Benefits: The Department of Justice offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation; sick leave; holidays; telework; life insurance; health benefits; and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System. The Benefits link provides an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal Employees.

Relocation Expenses: Eligible relocation costs of up to $15,000 may be authorized for permanent DOJ transfers only.

* * *
This and other vacancy announcements can be found under Attorney Vacancies and Volunteer Legal Internships. 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.

Travel: Occasional Travel both within and outside the District as necessary.

Type of Position: This is a term appointment not-to-exceed 3/31/28. This position may be extended or made permanent without further competition.

Applicants should familiarize themselves and comply with the relevant rules of professional conduct regarding any possible conflicts of interest in connection with their applications. In particular, please notify this Office if you currently represent clients or adjudicate matters in which this Office is involved and/or you have a family member who is representing clients or adjudicating matters in which this Office is involved so that we can evaluate any potential conflict of interest or disqualification issue that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.

Political Appointees (Current and Former): Political Appointees (Current or Former): The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

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.

EEO Statement: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.

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.

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 retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that they were transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).

Reasonable Accommodations: 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.

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