Many Assistant U.S. Attorney positions located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Positions may be filled in the Criminal, Civil, and Appellate Divisions. 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.
Duties
AUSAs have the opportunity to represent the interests of the United States of America in the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. In performing this important public service, AUSAS exercise significant responsibility over their own cases in a very busy district. 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. The Criminal Division prosecutes a wide range of federal cases including drug trafficking, fraud, public corruption, child exploitation, immigration, and violent crimes. The Civil Division litigates a variety of federal cases involving affirmative fraud, defensive litigation, and bankruptcy. Appellate Division AUSAS draft the government's brief and present oral arguments before the First Circuit. Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress. 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.
Salary
Qualifications
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. The ideal candidate will possess superior oral and written communication skills in the English language, high ethical standards and strong interpersonal skills and have demonstrated the capacity to function, with minimal guidance, in a highly demanding environment. The USAO seeks highly qualified applicants with litigation experience, strong writing skills, excellent credentials, and a demonstrated commitment to public service. All AUSAs are given training by the U.S. Department of Justice and internally by the USAO Training Program. United States citizenship is required. Preferred Qualifications: Strong communication skills in English, including reading, writing and speaking English is imperative. Ability to read, write, and speak Spanish is preferred. Candidates must be computer literate. Strong academic credentials, superior legal research and writing skills, quick analytical ability to accurately and precisely articulate critical case related issues, courtroom experience, good interpersonal skills, the ability to work in a supportive and professional team environment with client agencies, support staff and other attorneys, and a demonstrated commitment to public service. You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
Education
Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree
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: Cover Letter - 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. § 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.
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 04/29/2026 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 District of Puerto Rico at 787-282-1829 or email at Patricia.M.Torres@usdoj.gov, prior to the closing date of this announcement to request an alternate method of applying. The Point of Contact for this vacancy announcement is District of Puerto Rico who can be reached at 787-282-1829 or Patricia.M.Torres@usdoj.gov
