Federal

Assistant United States Attorney (Civil)

๐Ÿ“ Raleigh, North Carolina AD-21 $77,037 - $171,487/yr
Posted: May 1, 2026 Deadline: May 11, 2026 (Closes in 10 days days left)

About This Position

The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina is seeking a talented and motivated attorney to join its Civil Division as an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA). This is an excellent opportunity to handle sophisticated federal civil litigation on behalf of the United States across a broad and varied docket.

This position is located in Raleigh North Carolina As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications: Applicants must possess a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree, be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and be a U.S. citizen who meets federal employment eligibility requirements. Candidates must be able to obtain and maintain the appropriate security clearance and successfully complete a background investigation . At least 1-year of post-J.D. legal experience is required, with demonstrated proficiency in legal research, analysis, and writing.

Applicants must exhibit strong oral advocacy and communication skills, sound legal judgment, and the ability to manage multiple litigation matters simultaneously in a fast-paced environment. The ability to work both independently and collaboratively with attorneys, support staff, federal agencies, and law enforcement partners is essential. Preferred Qualifications: Preferred candidates will have substantial experience in civil litigation and federal court practice, including familiarity with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Federal Rules of Evidence, and a record of handling cases from initial filing through discovery, dispositive motions, and trial or appeal.

Background in areas such as tort litigation, employment law, constitutional law, administrative law, or affirmative civil enforcement will be viewed favorably, as will experience working with or advising federal agencies. Judicial clerkship experience and a strong appellate or motion-practice writing record are also valued, along with proficiency with e-discovery tools and litigation technology. Candidates who demonstrate initiative, professionalism, and a demonstrated commitment to public service will be particularly competitive.

United States citizenship is required.

You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Major Duties

The Civil Division AUSA will handle all phases of civil litigation, including case intake and investigation, coordination with federal agencies, legal research, and drafting of memoranda, pleadings, and motions. The selected attorney will manage written discovery, take and defend depositions, and represent the United States in federal court proceedings before the Eastern District of North Carolina and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, including hearings, trials, and appeals, as well as settlement negotiations. The Civil Division handles a broad range of defensive and affirmative matters, including: False Claims Act litigation arising from health care and procurement fraud; civil rights enforcement; constitutional and other legal challenges to executive agency actions; habeas corpus; financial litigation, bankruptcy, and asset forfeiture; immigration matters; and the defense of employment discrimination and tort claims against the United States.

Civil AUSAs may also be assigned to cases involving the involuntary civil commitment of sexually dangerous persons under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act. Attorneys assigned to asset forfeiture matters may devote a substantial portion of their workload to pursuing civil and criminal seizure and forfeiture of property acquired through or used in criminal activity, and will serve as a resource to Criminal Division AUSAs on financial investigations and forfeiture issues. Security Requirements: Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication.

This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. In addition, continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation Residency Requirements: Assistant United States Attorneys generally must reside in the district to which he or she is appointed or within 25 miles thereof. See 28 U.S.C. 545 for district-specific information.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See www.sss.gov

Education

Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree

How You Will Be Evaluated

Evaluation Method: Once your complete application package is received, it will be reviewed to ensure you meet all job requirements. An attorney interview panel will then review all qualified applicants and make recommendations for invitation to interview.

You will be notified if selected for an interview. The Occupational Questionnaire will take you approximately 20 minutes to complete. Veterans' Preference: 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 indicate their preference in response to the appropriate question in their assessment questionnaire (it is also recommended that information is included in their cover letter or resume) and they must submit supporting documentation (e.g., DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) which verifies their eligibility for preference. 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, http://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 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). 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.

Additional Information

Salary Information: Assistant United States Attorney's pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The range of basic pay is $94,170.00 to $197,100.00 which includes 22.24% locality pay. Other Benefits: The Department of Justice offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation; sick leave; holidays; telework; life insurance; health benefits; and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System.

The Benefits link provides an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal Employees. Relocation Expenses: Relocation expenses will not be authorized. * * * 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. Travel: Occasional travel is required Applicants should familiarize themselves and comply with the relevant rules of professional conduct regarding any possible conflicts of interest in connection with their applications. In particular, please notify this Office if you currently represent clients or adjudicate matters in which this Office is involved and/or you have a family member who is representing clients or adjudicating matters in which this Office is involved so that we can evaluate any potential conflict of interest or disqualification issue that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.

Type of Position: Political Appointees (Current and Former): Political Appointees (Current or Former): The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

Security Requirements: Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory preemployment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. In addition, continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.

EEO Statement/Policy: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. More information can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/jmd/media/1425556/dl?inline.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 05/11/2026 to receive consideration.

  1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account.

Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.

2.

Click the Submit My Answers button to submit your application package. (It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation are submitted prior to the closing date.) 3. To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application.

Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement.

You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete. You are encouraged to apply online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

However, should you not be able to apply online, please contact Eastern District of North Carolina at 919-856-4585 or email at [email protected], prior to the closing date of this announcement to request an alternate method of applying. The Point of Contact for this vacancy announcement is Eastern District of North Carolina who can be reached at 919-856-4585 or [email protected]

Required Documents

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 cannot exceed two pages - you will be deemed ineligible and receive no further consideration if your resume exceeds two pages - see USAJOBS for formatting requirements. Include relevant employment history as outlined below for each job: Official position title (if Federal, include series/grade), Employer name and contact information, Start and end dates (for full consideration you must include month, day, and year), Indicate full-time or number of hours worked per week if part-time, and A list of duties performed and accomplishments. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. - 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.

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. ยง 213.3102(u)) hiring authority. Individuals with targeted/severe 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 who have lived outside the United States for two or more of the past five years will likely have difficulty being approved for appointments by the Department Security Staff. The two-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. Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office by providing a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment: Position title; Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee); Agency; and Beginning and ending dates of appointment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the salary for the Assistant United States Attorney (Civil) position at Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys and the Office of the U.S. Attorneys?
The salary range for this position is $77,037 - $171,487/yr. This is a AD-21 position on the General Schedule pay scale. Actual pay may vary based on locality adjustments.
Where is the Assistant United States Attorney (Civil) job located?
This position is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. This is an on-site position.
What qualifications do I need?
Required Qualifications: Applicants must possess a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree, be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), and be a U.S. citizen who meets federal employment eligibility requirements. Candidates must be able to obtain and maintain the appropriate security clearance and successfully complete a backgrou...
How do I apply for this position?
Apply through USAJobs.gov by clicking the 'Apply on USAJobs' button. You'll need a USAJobs account, a federal-style resume, and supporting documents. The deadline is May 11, 2026.
Is a security clearance required?
No security clearance is required for this position.
What does AD-21 mean?
AD-21 refers to the General Schedule grade level. Higher grades require more experience and offer higher pay. Visit our GS Pay Scale page for full salary tables by grade and locality.
What benefits do federal employees receive?
Federal employees receive comprehensive benefits including health insurance (FEHB), retirement through FERS, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) with government matching, paid annual and sick leave, paid parental leave, life insurance, and student loan repayment programs.