ASSISTANT UNITED STATES ATTORNEY - EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS

About the Office: 

The United States Attorney’s Offices prosecute federal criminal offenses and represent the interest of the United States in civil cases.  The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas is located in Little Rock and covers 41 of the state’s 75 counties.  Hearing and trials are conducted in Little Rock, Jonesboro, and Helena-West Helena.  The office has 62 employees, with 18 Assistant United States Attorneys in the Criminal Division and 4 Assistant United States Attorneys in the Civil Division, as well as the United States Attorney, the First Assistant United States Attorney, Criminal Division Chief, Deputy Criminal Chief, Civil Division Chief, Appellate Chief, and 2 Senior Litigation Counsel. 

More on the district can be found at www.justice.gov/usao-edar

This position is located in Little Rock, which is both Arkansas’ capitol and largest city, with a population around 200,000.  Arkansas is known as “The Natural State” due to its natural scenic beauty, lakes, rivers, and abundant wildlife.    

To learn more about the area and what the State of Arkansas and Little Rock has to offer, please visit:  www.arkansas.com

Our office places a high value on diversity of experiences and perspectives and encourages applications from all qualified individuals from all ethnic and racial backgrounds, veterans, LGBT individuals, and persons with disabilities.

Job Description: 

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas (EDAR) has one or more permanent vacancies for trial attorneys in the Criminal Division located in Little Rock, Arkansas.  As a member of the Criminal Division, assignments may include the investigation and prosecution of violent offenses, drug trafficking, public corruption, terrorism, white collar, civil rights violations, immigration crimes, firearms offenses, and organized crime.

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

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

Qualifications: 

The Criminal AUSA position offers a unique and challenging experience for highly motivated team players with the desire to litigate extensively.  Applicants must demonstrate analytical ability, good judgement, organization skills, excellent writing, and communication and courtroom skills.  In addition, applicants must exhibit the ability to work in a supportive and professional manner with courthouse personnel, other attorneys, support staff, and client agencies.

Required qualifications:  Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, be an active member of the bar (any jurisdiction), and have at least 2 years post-J.D. legal or other relevant experience. 

Security requirements:  Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment 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.        

United States citizenship is required.

Salary: 

AUSA pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The range of basic pay is $64,009 to $167,423 which includes 15.95% locality pay.

Travel: 

Some travel will be required, both in state and out of state, for casework and/or training purposes

Application Process: 

Interested persons should send a cover letter addressed to First Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan D. Ross, resume with references, and a writing sample by 11:59 pm CST on July 24, 2020 to: 

USAARE.AttorneyApplicant@usdoj.gov 

If you are unable to send the package electronically, the mailing address is:    

Michael Robinson, Human Resources Specialist, United States Attorney’s Office – Eastern District of Arkansas, P.O. Box 1229, Little Rock, AR  72203

All mailed applications must be postmarked by July 24, 2020.

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.

Application Deadline: 

Friday, July 24, 2020

Relocation Expenses: 

Relocation expenses may only be authorized with explicit approval by the United States Attorney.

Number of Positions: 

One (1) or more permanent vacancies.

Updated July 9, 2020

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Department Policies

Equal Employment Opportunity:  The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer.  Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination because of color, race, religion, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability (physical or mental), age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected genetic information, pregnancy, status as a parent, or any other nonmerit-based 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. For more information, please review our full EEO Statement.

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.

Outreach and Recruitment for Qualified Applicants with Disabilities:  The Department encourages qualified applicants with disabilities, including individuals with targeted/severe disabilities to apply in response to posted vacancy announcements.  Qualified applicants with targeted/severe disabilities may be eligible for direct hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A (5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(u)) hiring authority.  Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact one of the Department’s Disability Points of Contact (DPOC) to express an interest in being considered for a position. See list of DPOCs.   

Suitability and Citizenship:  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. Congress generally prohibits agencies from employing non-citizens within the United States, except for a few narrow exceptions as set forth in the annual Appropriations Act (see, https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/non-citizens/). Pursuant to DOJ component policies, only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Trustee’s Offices, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, qualifying non-U.S. citizens meeting immigration and appropriations law criteria may apply for employment with other DOJ organizations. However, please be advised that the appointment of non-U.S. citizens is 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. All DOJ employees are subject to a residency requirement. Candidates must have lived in the United States for at least three of the past five years. The three-year period is cumulative, not necessarily consecutive. Federal or military employees, or dependents of federal or military employees serving overseas, are excepted from this requirement. This is a Department security requirement which is waived only for extreme circumstances and handled on a case-by-case basis.

Veterans:  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 include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions. 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, 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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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.

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