Legal Careers
Assistant United States Attorney (Indian Country)
Marquette, MI 49855 - United States
The United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan is a collegial office that prosecutes federal offenses, defends the interests of the United States and affirmatively pursues claims on behalf of the government, representing the United States in all criminal, civil, and appellate litigation in the Western District of Michigan. Our mission is to 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 the citizens in our District.
The main office is located in Grand Rapids. The district has approximately 41 AUSAs in the Grand Rapids office and 3 AUSAs in the Marquette branch office, in the Upper Peninsula. On the southern shore of Lake Superior, Marquette is a vibrant town of about 20,700 people. Home to Northern Michigan University, Marquette has been named the Best Small Town for Adventure and one of the top ten Best Small Town Cultural Scenes in the country. Court proceedings take place in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing and Marquette. The district includes 11 federally recognized Indian tribes, which together comprise the largest Native American population in a district east of the Mississippi River.
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.
The U.S. Attorney's Office is currently seeking applications from experienced litigators to fill an AUSA position handling criminal cases in its Marquette Office. The AUSA will work with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute a variety of federal offenses, including crimes occurring on property owned by, or held in trust for, Native American Tribes, white-collar fraud, crimes involving firearms and explosives, and drug-trafficking offenses. Depending on the experience of the successful applicant, there may be an initial period of training in the Grand Rapids office prior to assignment to Marquette.
Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.
For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney's Offices, visit http://www.justice.gov/careers/careers.html
As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.
All initial attorney positions to the Department of Justice are made on a 14-month (temporary) basis.
Required Qualifications:
Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree, be an active member of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and have at least 1 year post-J.D. legal or other relevant experience.
United States citizenship is required.
Preferred Qualifications:
Applicants should be able to demonstrate the following qualities:
- Ability to work well with client agencies and the public.
- Intelligence and aptitude, measured by professional experience/growth potential, academic record, the writing sample and any interview performance.
- Commitment to excellence, strong work ethic and drive, as may be demonstrated through successful team work, leadership, obstacles overcome and personal, academic and professional achievement.
- Sound judgment and good character.
- Balance, both professionally and personally, in terms of interests and abilities.
- Desire to work as a Criminal Division AUSA in the Marquette office in the Western District of Michigan.
- Prior experience handling victim-centered cases, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, and human-trafficking cases, and/or prior experience working with a tribal-justice system.
- Willingness to occasionally travel to the federal courthouses in Grand Rapids, Lansing, and Kalamazoo for hearings and trials.
- Have demonstrated the capacity to function, with minimal guidance, in a highly demanding environment.
- Ideal candidate will have 3 years of litigation experience, but applicants with less experience will be considered.
You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
Apply Online here: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/808544600
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 showing relevant experience and dates of employment (include day/month/year). (cover letter optional).
- Required - Your response to the Candidate Questionnaire located here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmi/media/1365881/dl?inline
- Required - Writing sample.
- 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.
The Point of Contact for this vacancy announcement is Western District of Michigan who can be reached at 6164562404 or britni.michael@usdoj.gov
$72,553 to $170,235 which includes 16.82% locality pay
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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.
Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs: 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.
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.