Legal Careers
Assistant United States Attorney - Civil
Buffalo, NY 14202 - United States
If you are looking for an exciting and challenging career, this is the position for you! With a diverse and talented workforce of over 100,000 men and women, Justice leads the Nation in ensuring the protection of all Americans while preserving their constitutional freedoms. You can be part of a dedicated team helping to enforce Federal criminal and civil laws that protect life, liberty, and the property of citizens.
Our mission is to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States, provide Federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime, seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior, and to administer and enforce the Nation's laws to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans. We strive to build a stronger office through recruitment efforts and maintain the high standards of the office by promoting professional development. We seek to build a legacy of excellence.
In all matters, our aim is to represent the people of the United States in a manner that will instill confidence in the fairness and integrity of our office and the judicial system and to conduct our work with the highest integrity.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York encompasses 17 counties: Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans, Wyoming, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Allegany, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Wayne, Yates, Steuben, Schuyler, and Chemung. With Offices in Buffalo and Rochester, the United States Attorney is the principal Federal Law Enforcement Officer in the District and prosecutes all violations of the Federal Criminal Law. The Office also represents every Federal agency in civil cases and matters.
For specific information pertaining to this District, please visit: https://www.iustice.gov/usao-wdny
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.
Employment with the U.S. Attorney's Office offers a unique and challenging experience for the highly motivated attorney. The Civil Division defends the interests of the United States in civil litigation, pursues affirmative civil enforcement in a variety of fraud matters, and collects debts owed to the United States.
United States Attorneys in the Civil Division are responsible for representing the Federal Government and its agencies and employees in civil litigation. They commence civil cases on behalf of the United States in such areas as asset forfeiture, civil rights, health care and government programs fraud, financial litigation, and bankruptcy. AUSAs defend civil actions brought against the Federal Government in areas such as tort, employment discrimination, immigration, and Bivens actions. They are active at both the trial and appellate levels, taking depositions, preparing and answering interrogatories, negotiating for settlement, engaging in motion practice, trying cases, and writing and arguing appeals.
The District is currently seeking one (1) attorney to serve as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Civil Division.
Based on staffing needs, additional appointments may be made from this announcement.
The vacancy could be filled in either the Buffalo and/or Rochester, NY office.
The District seeks attorneys who have outstanding legal ability, high moral character, mature judgment, and demonstrated excellence in civil trials. Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree, be an active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and have at least two (2) years post-J.D. legal or other relevant experience.
Preferred qualifications
The ideal candidate will have (1) legal practice experience related to civil litigation; (2) quick analytical ability and the facility to accurately and precisely articulate the critical issues involved with a case; (3) superior oral and writing skills, as well as strong research and interpersonal skills;(4) ability to work in a supportive and professional manner with the court, other attorneys, support staff and client agencies; (5) capacity to function with minimal guidance in a highly demanding environment; and (6) excellent computer literacy skills to include experience with automated research, electronic court filing, electronic e-mail and word processing systems.
To apply for this position, you must complete the online occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified below.
Applications may be submitted online through the following link:
Required Documentation
- Required - Your responses to the Online Occupational Questionnaire (This is completed automatically during the apply online process).
- Required - Your resume showing relevant experience and dates of employment (include day/month/year). (cover letter optional).
- Required, if applicable - To get Veterans' Preference, you must indicate your preference in response to the appropriate question in your assessment questionnaire and you must submit the appropriate supporting documentation. See the "How you will be Evaluated" section for details regarding what is appropriate Veterans' Preference documentation. It is also recommended that you include veterans' preference information in your cover letter or resume.
- Required - A writing sample NTE 20 pages.
- Required - Proof of active bar membership (any U.S. jurisdiction)
If unable to apply online, the announcement provides instructions in the "How to Apply" tab.
Assistant United States Attorneys' pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The range of basic pay is $62,107.00 to $145,725.00 plus authorized locality pay.
* * *
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.