Assistant United States Attorney (Criminal)

USAO Northern District of Florida
Tallahassee, FL
Attorney
Tallahassee, FL 32301
United States
15-FLN-1365576-AUSA
About the Office: 

The United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, is a medium-sized district which includes 23 counties and consists of a headquarters office in Tallahassee, and three staffed branch offices located in Pensacola, Gainesville, and Panama City. The United States Attorney's Office prosecutes federal crimes, represents the federal government's interests in civil cases, and represents the government in criminal and civil appeals. More information about the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is available at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fln/.

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 District is seeking to hire an Assistant United States Attorney to serve in the Criminal Division. The applicant selected will represent the United States in criminal matters and enjoy a rewarding experience working on legal issues involving some of the most significant, complex, and visible criminal cases being litigated by the Department of Justice.

Qualifications: 

Required qualifications: The U.S. Attorney's Office seeks highly qualified applicants with strong advocacy and trial skills, complemented by excellent academic and professional credentials, to serve as Assistant United States Attorneys. Applicants must be a U.S. Citizen, possess a J.D. degree, be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and have at least 3 years post-J.D. legal or other relevant experience. In addition, applicants must be computer-literate and proficient in the areas of automated research on the Internet, electronic e-mail, and word processing. Courtroom experience in complex criminal cases in federal or state courts is required.

Preferred qualifications: Hiring preferences include superior legal writing and research ability, outstanding organizational skills, strong academic credentials, and a commitment to ethics, civility, and public service. The successful candidate should have excellent oral and written advocacy skills. The attorney will perform his or her own legal research, drafting, and presentation of cases, and must be proficient in all respects. The ideal candidate will possess a strong commitment to professionalism, superior oral and written communication skills, strong interpersonal skills, good analytical ability, sound judgment, and excellent courtroom skills to function with minimal guidance in a highly demanding environment. The ideal candidate will also exhibit the ability to work in a supportive and professional manner with other attorneys, support staff, and client agencies. A working knowledge of the Federal Rules of Evidence and Criminal Procedure is required.

Salary: 
Assistant United States Attorneys' pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number years of professional attorney experience. The range of basic pay is $51,916 to $153,176 which includes locality pay.
Travel: 
Occasional travel, both within and outside the District, may be required.
Application Process: 

Applications may be submitted online through the following link: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/398938300. The deadline to apply is April 13, 2015. If unable to apply online, the announcement provides instructions on faxing your documents in the “How to Apply” tab.

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: 
Monday, April 13, 2015
Relocation Expenses: 
Relocation expenses will not be paid.
Number of Positions: 
1 More than one selection may be made to fill existing vacancies.
Updated April 7, 2016

*         *         *

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.

*         *         *

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.