Justice Management Division
Serving Justice - Securing Results
There are statutory prohibitions on a former government employee that generally prevent her from “switching
sides” after leaving the government. The following are the main restrictions:
Lifetime Ban - An employee is prohibited from representing anyone else before the government on a particular matter
involving specific parties in which she participated personally and substantially.
Two-Year Ban - An employee is prohibited for two years from representing another person on a particular matter involving
specific parties which was pending under her responsibility during her last year of government service.
One-Year Ban - A senior employee includes Executive Level officials and any individual who is paid at a rate of basic pay equal to or greater than 86.5% of the rate for Level II of the Executive Schedule, which is $148,953 as of January, 2008. Therefore, SES officials whose pay is at least $148,953 and Senior Level or other employees whose basic pay is at least $148,953 are senior employees, and are covered by this additional one year restriction.
Certain components of the Department of Justice are considered separate
for purposes of the one-year ban. An employee who works in a designated
separate component is barred only from appearing before her own component.
An employee not from a separate component is barred only from parts of
the Department not designated as separate. An employee paid according
to the Executive Schedule does not benefit from the separation of components.
She is barred from representing before the whole Department. 5
C. F.R. § 2641
18
U.S.C. § 207 and 5
C.F.R. § 2637
There are restrictions on an employee receiving compensation, even after she leaves, based on anyone's representations
before the Federal government that took place while she was still a government employee.
18
U.S.C. § 203
Also available is a chart summarizing the
post-employment restrictions, a summary
of the post employment provisions prepared by the Office of Government
Ethics and a summary of the seeking employment
and post employment provisions prepared by the Departmental Ethics
Office.
Last Updated:
September 11, 2008
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