ASSISTANT UNITED STATES ATTORNEY - RIVERSIDE BRANCH - USAO CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
About the Office:
The United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California (USAO) is responsible for representing the federal government in virtually all litigation involving the United States in the Central District of California. This includes criminal prosecutions for violations of federal law, civil lawsuits by and against the government, and actions to collect judgments and restitution on behalf of victims and taxpayers. With an authorized strength of approximately 280 Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs), the USAO is the second largest in the country. The USAO is divided into four litigating Divisions (Criminal, National Security, Civil, and Tax). The USAO's main offices are in Los Angeles. The USAO's Criminal Division has branch offices in Santa Ana and Riverside.
Job Description:
This office is interviewing for one AUSA in the Riverside Branch Office, Criminal Division. AUSAs in the Criminal Division advise federal law enforcement agents on criminal investigations, present criminal cases to the grand jury, and try criminal cases before the United States District Court. AUSAs new to the Criminal Division, including those hired for the Riverside and Santa Ana branch offices, are initially assigned to the General Crimes Section in Los Angeles, where they receive training in the handling of federal criminal investigations and prosecutions. Upon completion of their tenure in the General Crimes Section, AUSAs hired for the branch offices are assigned there, and AUSAs remaining in Los Angeles are assigned to one of the Criminal Division’s senior sections.
Qualifications:
Required qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, be an active member of the bar (any jurisdiction), and have at least 3 years post-J.D. experience. If not already an active member of the California bar, any applicant hired will be required to take (prior to their entry on duty date) and subsequently pass the California bar exam. AUSAs must become active members of the California bar and maintain California bar membership.
Preferred qualifications: Hiring for AUSA positions within the USAO is highly competitive. The USAO seeks a diverse complement of lawyers with a wide range of exceptional skills and experience, unified by keen intelligence and sincere commitment to public interest. Litigation experience, superior academic record, excellent writing skills, impeccable character, demonstrated interest in public service, courtroom presence, and the ability to work with and relate to a wide variety of people are all taken into account. Most attorneys hired have several years of experience, although highly qualified recent graduates with some experience in practice or as a judicial clerk are also considered. Ties to the Central District of California will be considered.
All initial attorney appointments to the Department of Justice are made on a 14 month (temporary) basis pending favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
Salary:
AUSA pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number years of professional attorney experience. The range of pay is $93,562 to $170,700 including locality pay authorized.
Travel:
Travel may be required between 1-5 nights per month or more depending on the needs of any particular case assignment, both within and outside the district.
Application Process:
Attorneys seeking a position as an AUSA should complete TWO documents:
The application in native .pdf form (click here to reach application): APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT AS AN ASSISTANT UNITED STATES ATTORNEY CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA; and
(2) A second .pdf containing, in the following order, a cover letter to the attention of First Assistant United States Attorney Tracy Wilkison, resume, law school transcript, and brief writing sample which demonstrates an ability to write persuasively.
The two PDFs should be e-mailed to USACAC.AUSAHiring@usdoj.gov (link sends e-mail). Please be sure to indicate that you are applying for the Riverside Branch Office and include all jurisdictions in which admitted to practice law.
NOTE: The application must be submitted in a particular way in order to be uploaded successfully into our system. Specifically, it must remain in native .pdf format with the form fields intact to upload. If it cannot be uploaded, we will ask you to submit again. To submit the application correctly:
Use a full version of Adobe Acrobat to fill out the application. Do not use simply the Viewer software.
After you open the application, first download or “save as” the blank application to your computer/ desktop. Then, open it fresh into Adobe. You can then enter the data and save the application as a .pdf
You do not need to manually or digitally sign the application; your name will fill in
Do not save any attachments to the application .pdf
Do not print to .pdf, or print, sign and scan the document to .pdf
This position is open until filled, but applications will be considered on a rolling basis until December 31, 2020. No telephone calls please.
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:
Thursday, December 31, 2020
Relocation Expenses:
Relocation expenses will not be authorized.
Number of Positions:
Hiring is for one AUSA in the Riverside Branch Office, Criminal Division. As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement. Persons with pending applications with the USAO need not reapply.
Updated July 7, 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.