Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys

The United States Attorney's Office offers uncompensated Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA) positions for attorneys who are willing to accept temporary positions that, while unpaid, offer a valuable opportunity to gain exposure to the office while also obtaining litigation and potentially in court experience in trials and evidentiary hearings. SAUSAs are assigned to work with Assistant U.S. Attorneys on a variety of criminal or civil matters. SAUSAs research legal issues, draft pleadings and briefs, provide support at hearings and trials, and attend different court proceedings. These positions require a minimum commitment of six months. They are temporary, not-to-exceed one year. These positions may be extended without further competition.

Note: Employees of the Department of Justice, including uncompensated Special Assistant United States Attorneys, may not engage in the compensated practice of law outside the office. Attorneys are not eligible to serve as Special Assistant United States Attorneys if they have had an employment offer deferred by a law firm and received a payment for the period of their deferral with the expectation of future employment with the law firm, or if they will receive any payment from a law firm during their unpaid employment with the Department of Justice. In addition, contractors, including employees of contractors who do business with the Department of Justice, and who also are attorneys, are not eligible to serve as uncompensated Special Assistant United States Attorneys. Announcements for uncompensated SAUSA positions will be posted here, and all current uncompensated SAUSA opportunities for offices nationwide are posted on www.justice.gov/careers/legal