Assistant United States Attorney

USAO Middle District of Pennsylvania
Attorney
235 N. Washington Avenue, William Nealon Federal Building
Scranton, PA 18503
United States
23-PAM-11977353-AUSA
About the Office: 

The United States Attorney's Office prosecutes federal criminal offenses, seeks recovery of government funds fraudulently obtained, litigates affirmative civil fraud and enforcement actions, and defends the U.S. Government's interest in civil cases. The United States Attorney's Office, Middle District of Pennsylvania has staff in three offices: Harrisburg, Scranton, and Williamsport, and maintains an unstaffed office in Wilkes-Barre. 



More information about the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania is available at http://www.justice.gov/usao/districts/pam.html

As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.

Job Description: 

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania is accepting applications to fill three (3) Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) positions in the Criminal Division.  AUSAs in the Criminal Division have the opportunity to represent the interests of the United States in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in a wide variety of complex cases involving drug trafficking, money laundering, firearms and other violent offenses, cyber-crimes, public corruption, terrorism, financial fraud, crimes against children, human trafficking, and environmental crimes, among others.

Qualifications: 

United States citizenship is required. Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, be an active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction) and have at least three years of post-J.D. experience.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Preferred applicants will possess substantial experience in handling a variety of complex criminal litigation including but not limited to major economic crimes, public corruption, drug trafficking, violent crimes, child exploitation cases, and grand jury practices. The preferred applicant will have substantial experience prosecuting these types of cases and handling all phases of prosecution including pre-trial litigation, trials, sentencing, post-sentencing proceedings and appeals.  Preferred applicants will also demonstrate superior oral and written communications skills, possess the ability to work as part of a team, with an emphasis on working well with client agencies.  Applicants should have strong character and interpersonal skills and demonstrate the capacity to function with minimal guidance in a highly demanding environment.   

Applicants will conduct their own legal research and writing and will be substantially self-sufficient in preparing day-to-day correspondence and pleadings. Applicants must also demonstrate excellent computer literacy skills to include experience with automated research on the Internet, electronic court filing, and electronic e-mail and word processing systems.

Salary: 
The range of annual pay is $69,107 to $183,400 which includes a 16.50% to 18.59% locality pay supplement based on the duty station of the position.
Travel: 
Travel will be required, primarily within the Middle District of Pennsylvania (33-county area) with occasional trips to other districts, as well as to the National Advocacy Center in Columbia, South Carolina for training and conferences.
Application Process: 

Applications must be submitted through the USAJobs on-line application system at www.usajobs.gov. Mailed applications will not be accepted.  Applicants should also complete the Middle District of Pennsylvania’s supplemental questionnaire, and attach it to their application, submitted through the USAJobs on-line system, along with a cover letter and resume. The supplemental questionnaire may be accessed on the Middle District of Pennsylvania’s web-site at https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdpa/jobs

Resumes should include complete dates (beginning month and year and ending month and year) for all periods of employment. Please submit only one application.

 

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: 
Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Relocation Expenses: 
Relocation expenses will not be authorized.
Number of Positions: 
Three - This is an open continuous announcement which will be used to fill three immediate positions. First round consideration will be given to applications received by June 12, 2023, 11:59 p.m. EST.
Updated May 22, 2023

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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 race, color, religion, national origin, sex - including gender identity, sexual orientation, or pregnancy status - or because of age (over 40), physical or mental disability, protected genetic information, parental status, marital status, political affiliation, or any other non-merit 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 their 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).

USAO Residency Requirement:  Assistant United States Attorneys must reside in the district to which appointed or within 25 miles thereof.  See 28 U.S.C. 545 for district specific information.

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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.