Assistant United States Attorney

USAO Middle District of Pennsylvania
Attorney
235 N. Washington Avenue
Scranton, PA 18503
United States
23-PAM-12001061-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 one (1) Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) position in the electronic Litigation Unit. This AUSA will be responsible for building and overseeing the office's electronic litigation (eLitigation) operations.  Achieving and maintaining eLitigation proficiency among attorneys and staff is a top priority of the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney's Office. The responsibilities of this AUSA position will include advising and/or consulting with civil and criminal case teams, management, and others, such as the Court, Federal Public Defender, law enforcement and client agencies, on substantive eLitigation and discovery issues, ensuring discovery processes are defensible, developing the office's eLitigation policies and protocols, including procedures for processing, reviewing, producing, and managing electronic discovery, coordinating litigation support work, and providing training on litigation technology software tools and applications. This is not a trial AUSA position, although it may involve briefing the court on eLitigation issues and providing support for trial teams on the matter. The selected candidate is an attorney advisor, who will be fully dedicated to coordinating the office's eLitigation program.

This AUSA will be assigned to the eLitigation Unit, which serves the Criminal and Civil divisions. The AUSA will have a primary emphasis in providing and managing eLitigation support services for all litigating divisions. This may include supervising litigation support specialists, supervising and coordinating the processing of discovery in criminal and civil cases, development of eLitigation and discovery processes and procedures, providing technical and IT advice and support to litigation teams, and representing the United States in various criminal and civil matters.

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 one year of post-J.D. experience.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Preferred applicants will have experience with complex civil or criminal litigation and with using litigation technology applications, (e.g., Relativity, Everlaw, Eclipse, Nuix, etc.), to acquire, organize, analyze, and present electronic discovery and evidence. Successful candidates should have a strong academic background, possess superior oral and written communication skills, possess strong interpersonal skills, and have demonstrated the capacity to work effectively with a team, manage multiple projects simultaneously, and function with minimal guidance in a highly demanding environment. Successful candidates should also possess the knowledge and ability to use computers and computer applications in performing day-to-day work requirements.

Applicants must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

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: 

This is an open-continuous announcement which will be used to fill one (1) immediate position.  First round consideration will be given to applications received by July 7, 2023, 11:59 p.m. EST.  Thereafter, review of applications received from this announcement will be conducted periodically to fill additional positions as they become available within the district.

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.

Agency Point of Contact: Ms. Christine Osborne, Human Resources Officer, U.S. Attorney' Office, Middle District of Pennsylvania, (570)207-4809 or Christine.osborne@usdoj.gov

 

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, June 7, 2024
Relocation Expenses: 
Relocation expenses will not be authorized.
Number of Positions: 
This is an open-continuous announcement which will be used to fill one (1) immediate position. Additional positions may be filled from this announcement.
Updated June 8, 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.