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About the U.S. Attorney's Office

 

The United States Attorneys serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. There are 93 United States Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

United States Attorneys are appointed by, and serve at the discretion of, the President of the United States, with advice and consent of the United States Senate. One United States Attorney is assigned to each of the judicial districts, with the exception of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, where a single United States Attorney serves in both districts. Each United States Attorney is the chief federal law enforcement officer of the United States within his or her particular jurisdiction. United States Attorneys conduct most of the trial work in which the United States Attorney is a party. The United States Attorneys have three statutory responsibilities under Title 28, Section 507 of the United States Code:

  • The prosecution of criminal cases brought by the Federal government;
  • The prosecution and defense of civil cases in which the United States is a party; and
  • The collection of debts owed the Federal government which are administratively uncollectible.

The Western District of New York includes the counties of Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chem, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates.Although the distribution of caseload varies between districts, each has every category of cases and handles a mixture of simple and complex litigation. Each United States Attorney exercises wide discretion in the use of his/her resources to further the priorities of the local jurisdictions and needs of their communities.

The Office of the United States Attorney, Western District of New York, prosecutes all violations of the Federal Criminal Law occurring within the seventeen (17) counties of the District (Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates). The office also represents every Federal agency in civil cases and matters.

The district has a main office in Buffalo and a branch office in Rochester.

 

Office Hours

Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except on the following Federal holidays:

New Year's Day January 1
Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Third Monday in January
Presidents' Day Third Monday in February
Memorial Day Last Monday in May
Juneteenth June 19
Independence Day July 4
Labor Day First Monday in September
Columbus Day Second Monday in October
Veterans' Day November 11
Thanksgiving Day Fourth Thursday in November
Christmas Day December 25

When New Year's Day, Independence Day, Veterans' Day or Christmas Day fall on a Saturday, the holiday is observed on the preceding Friday. When these holidays fall on a Sunday, the holiday is observed on the following Monday.

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Updated December 9, 2022