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ASSISTANT UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Southern District of Georgia
Vacancy Announcement Number 08-AUSASDGA-04

About the Office: The Southern District of Georgia is a medium-sized district which includes 43 counties and consists of a headquarters office in Savannah and a staffed branch office in Augusta, as well as four unstaffed branch offices in Brunswick, Statesboro, Dublin and Waycross. The United States Attorney’s Office prosecutes federal crimes, represents the federal government’s interests in civil cases, and represents the government in criminal and civil appeals. More information about the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia is available at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/gas/.

Responsibilities and Opportunity Offered: The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia has an opening in the Appellate Section of its Criminal Division for an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) to handle appellate, post-conviction, and legal advice matters. The AUSA will draft briefs and argue appeals in the Eleventh Circuit; participate in moot courts before oral arguments; handle post-conviction matters and attendant evidentiary hearings in district court; and advise managers, supervisors, and line AUSAs on legal issues as they arise. The AUSA will serve along with the office's Appellate Chief, our liaison on legal and appellate issues with the Office of the Solicitor General, the Appellate Section of the Criminal Division and other Main Justice components; other U.S. Attorney's Offices; the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals; and other entities. The position offers a challenging and rewarding experience for a highly motivated and talented appellate lawyer: an opportunity to work on the legal issues involved in some of the most significant, complex and visible criminal cases being prosecuted today.

Qualifications: Required qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. degree from a law school approved by the American Bar Association, be an active member of the bar (any jurisdiction), and have at least two (2) years post-J.D. experience. It is recommended that the applicant hired become a member of the bar of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

Preferred qualifications: Experience in appellate practice, or criminal trial practice involving significant, high-quality legal research and writing, is preferred. Such experience in the federal court context is strongly preferred, but not required. This position requires the successful applicant to quickly take responsibility for representing the United States in criminal appeals and post-conviction matters involving a variety of criminal offenses often involving complex and/or novel issues and voluminous records. Other hiring preferences include superior legal writing and research ability, a prior federal judicial clerkship, outstanding organizational skills, strong academics, and a commitment to professionalism, ethics, civility, and public service. The successful candidate should have excellent oral and written advocacy skills and the ability and willingness to teach others those skills. The AUSA will perform his or her own legal research, drafting, and oral arguments and must be proficient in all respects.

Applications must be received no later than September 8, 2008. The hiring process is ongoing and will remain open until the position is filled.

Travel: Occasional travel, both within and outside the District, may be required.

Salary Information: Assistant United States Attorneys' pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The annual starting salary range for this position is from $48,300 to $80,000, which includes a locality pay supplement.

Location: The position is located in Savannah, Georgia.

Relocation Expenses: Relocation expenses will not be authorized.

Application Process and Deadline Date: Please send a resume, writing sample, and a cover letter to:

Edmund A. Booth, Jr
United States Attorney
Southern District of Georgia

by e-mail to: USAGAS.Resumes@usdoj.gov. No telephone calls please. Applications will remain active and on file for consideration for six months. If you are not selected during the six month period in which your application is active, you must reapply.

Internet Sites: This and other attorney vacancy announcements can be found at: http://www.usdoj.gov/oarm/attvacancies.html

Department Policies: Equal Employment Opportunity and Security Clearance Policies.

Assistant United States Attorneys generally must reside in the district to which he or she is appointed. See 28 U.S.C. § 545 for district-specific information.

The U.S. Department of Justice is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Except where otherwise provided by law, there will be no discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, color, race, religion, national origin, politics, marital status, disability, age, status as a parent, membership or nonmembership in an employee organization, or personal favoritism. 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. 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.

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. Only U.S. citizens are eligible for employment with the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the United States Attorneys’ Offices. Unless otherwise indicated in a particular job advertisement, non-U.S. citizens may apply for employment with other organizations, but should be advised that appointments of non-U.S. citizens are 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 are encouraged to include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214 or other substantiating documents) to their submissions.