Legal Careers
Law Student Volunteer, Civil Division Torts-Aviation, Space & Admiralty Litigation Section (Fall 2026)
Washington, DC 20005 - United States
The Aviation, Space & Admiralty Litigation Section of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division handles aviation, space, and maritime accident cases and claims on behalf of the United States. The Section represents clients including the Federal Aviation Administration, Army Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard, Navy, Maritime Administration, Transportation Security Administration, NASA, NSA, and the Departments of Defense, Transportation, Homeland Security, and Commerce.
Our office’s aviation practice primarily defends the United States in wrongful death, serious personal injury, and extensive property damage actions stemming from aircraft accident cases. These cases involve federal activities such as:
- Air traffic control
- Military aviation operations
- Weather dissemination
- Charting of obstacles
- Operation of navigational aids
- Certification of aircraft, airports, and air personnel
Since its establishment, the Section has litigated all commercial airline accident cases involving the United States, including the DC Midair Collision over the Potomac River. The Section also guides litigation resulting from space launch or space vehicle incidents and handled claims related to the Space Shuttle Columbia and Challenger disasters.
In its admiralty practice, the Section represents the government’s roles as ship-owner, regulator, and protector of the nation’s waterways and maritime resources. Main areas include:
- Collisions involving U.S. vessels and warships
- Groundings while using government-produced charts
- Challenges to vessel boardings for national security and drug interdiction
- Maritime-based pollution incidents, including oil spills
Affirmative actions seek compensation for loss of government cargo, damages to locks, dams, and natural resources, and costs from maritime pollution cleanups. The Section led the liability trial following the DEEPWATER HORIZON explosion and has recently been involved in litigation stemming from the M/V DALI’s allision with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Law student volunteers in T-ASA work closely with Civil Division attorneys on assignments that mirror the Section’s day-to-day litigation practice. Typical responsibilities may include:
- Conducting legal research and drafting legal memoranda
- Drafting pleadings, discovery requests and responses, motions, mediation statements, and pre- and post-trial filings
- Observing depositions, meetings with witnesses and experts, court hearings, and mediations, as schedules and security requirements permit
Interns are treated as integral members of litigation teams and receive assignments that contribute directly to active matters.
All work must be conducted on-site in the Washington, DC office. Remote work is not permitted.
Eligibility Requirements
- U.S. citizenship or U.S. national status is required.
- Must be a current second- or third year law student at time of internship
- Completion of at least one year of law school by the start date of the internship
- Must be enrolled at least half-time in an accredited law program and in good academic standing
- Successful completion of a background investigation
- Must be able to commit to a minimum of 15 hours per week for at least 10 weeks
Preferred Qualifications
- Excellent academic credentials and strong legal research and writing skills
- Sound judgment and professionalism
- Demonstrated interest in aviation, space, maritime, or complex federal tort litigation
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills
- Experience or background in technical, engineering, or scientific subject matter is helpful, but not required
Class-Year Limitation
- First-year law students (1Ls) are not eligible for the Fall 2026 term.
- Law school graduates and LL.M. candidates are ineligible for this volunteer position.
Submit the following documents in a single PDF titled LastName_FirstName_Fall 2026 to jessica.l.mcclellan@usdoj.gov with the subject line “T-ASA Fall 2026 Internship Application”:
- Cover letter describing your interest in T-ASA and relevant experience
- Resume (not to exceed two pages)
- Law school transcript (official or unofficial) showing current enrollment and, when available recent grades
- Legal writing sample
- Names and contact information for two references
Additional Information
- All application materials must be received by the application deadline
- Please do not apply unless you are able to commit for the full internship period
- Selected candidates must complete required security forms and successfully undergo a suitability/fitness review before entering on duty
Position is unpaid. Interns may receive academic credit or funding through external programs such as Federal Work Study, if applicable. Transit subsidy available for in-person commuting.
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.