Legal Careers
Criminal Assistant United States Attorney
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Montana is considered a medium-sized district and has offices located in Billings, Butte, Great Falls, Helena and Missoula. The Criminal Division prosecutes a wide range of federal cases involving immigration, terrorism, domestic and international narcotics distribution, illegal firearm possession, violent crime, child exploitation/child pornography, human trafficking, organized crime, complex securities and fraud cases, health care fraud, and public corruption. Those matters include the prosecution of violent crimes and other cases on most of Montana’s Native American Reservations, including homicide, sexual and non-sexual assault, burglary, drug distribution, and fraud. The Civil Division prosecutes and defends affirmative and defensive cases filed in the District of Montana, at both the trial and appellate level, involving matters such as health care, civil rights, the environment, false claims, immigration, tort and discrimination claims against the sovereign, the internet, telecommunications, energy policies, and the First Amendment. AUSAs are assigned to a unit within either the criminal or civil divisions.
The office seeks to hire an Assistant U.S. Attorney who will be assigned to the Criminal Division in the Billings branch office and an Assistant U.S. Attorney who will be assigned to the Criminal Division in the Great Falls branch office. Depending upon the qualifications of the successful candidates, the casework for the positions will vary and may cover a wide range of matters.
The casework for the Billings position will focus on investigating and prosecuting drug trafficking; crimes related to immigration matters such as gang-related crimes involving aliens, child trafficking and smuggling involving aliens, unlawful voting, firearms trafficking and smuggling involving aliens, and fraud committed by aliens; and similar areas of responsibility as determined by the needs of the district.
The casework for the Great Falls position will focus on investigating and prosecuting violent crime, drug distribution, and fraud committed in Indian Country and on reservations. The successful candidate may be assigned to act as a liaison between a reservation and the United States Attorney’s Office. Additional casework may involve criminal immigration, illegal firearm possession, organized crime, human trafficking, child exploitation/child pornography, and other areas of responsibility as determined by the needs of the district.
The qualified applicants would be expected to (a) assist federal law enforcement agents in structuring and implementing criminal investigative plans and strategies; (b) actively participate in grand jury proceedings, including the presentation of witnesses before the grand jury; (c) litigate cases of moderate to high complexity from start to finish with limited supervision; (d) write and argue appeals; (e) handle additional point of contact assignments based on the office’s needs; and (f) handle ancillary coordinator assignments within the office as assigned. Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress. Some travel may be required.
Applicants must possess a J.D. degree (or equivalent) and be an active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction) by their entry on duty date. Proof of an active bar membership and copy of Diploma are highly encouraged.
United States citizenship is required.
You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
You must provide a complete Application Package which includes:
- Required – Your responses to the Online Occupational Questionnaire (this is completed automatically during the apply online process).
- Required – Your resume cannot exceed two pages - you will be deemed ineligible and receive no further consideration if your resume exceeds two pages - see USAJOBS for formatting requirements. Include relevant experience and dates of employment (include month/year), date J.D. was awarded (include month/year), and date of Bar Admission.
- Encouraged – Writing Sample
- Encouraged – Copy of JD Diploma or Transcripts
- Encouraged – Proof of Active Bar Membership
- Highly Recommend – A cover letter expressing your interest in the position as well as your interest in relocating to Montana, if not currently a resident.
- Required, if applicable – To get Veteran’s Preference, you must indicate you preference in response to the appropriate question in your assessment questionnaire and you must submit the appropriate supporting documentation. See the “Howyou will be Evaluated” section for details regarding what is appropriate Veterans’ Preference documentation. It is alsorecommended that you include a veterans’ preference information in you cover letter or resume.
Candidates should submit their applications through USAJOBS at:
Job Announcement Number
2026-MT-13030332-AUSA
Control Number
879481200
Applicants without access to e-mail may mail their application materials to the following address:
United States Attorney's Office
Attn: Lindsey Piotrowski
901 Front Street, Suite 1100
Helena, MT 59626
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 conflicts of interest or disqualification issues that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.
AUSA pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The range ofannual pay is $76,748 to $200,743, which includes 17.06% locality pay.
Department Policies
The Department remains steadfast in its commitment to equal employment opportunity (EEO) and treating employees with fairness, dignity and compassion. We must ensure that no applicant for employment or employee of our Department is denied equal opportunity because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex – including pregnancy – or because of age, physical or mental disability, protected genetic information, parental status, marital status, political affiliation, or any other non-merit based factor and that all have the freedom to compete on a fair and level playing field. To learn more, please view the Department’s full Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.
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.
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.
Unless otherwise required by law, the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits employees of the U.S. Department of Justice or a federal contractor acting on its behalf from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history record, either in writing or orally, before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint within 30 days of the date of the alleged non-compliance directly to the hiring office using the contact information listed in the announcement.
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://help.usajobs.gov/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.
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).
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.