The Civil Rights Division (Division) of the Department of Justice, created by the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all Americans, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society. The Division enforces federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), disability, religion, familial status, national origin, and citizenship status.
The Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER), enforces the
anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1324b. Regulations for this law are found at 28 C.F.R. Part 44.
This federal law prohibits: 1) citizenship status discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee, 2) national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee, 3) unfair documentary practices during the employment eligibility verification process (generally,, Form I-9 and E-Verify), and 4) retaliation or intimidation.
The Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) is seeking one or more experienced attorneys for the position of Trial Attorney. The attorney(s) selected for this position will be dedicated to the Section's work enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
IER Trial Attorneys handle an active docket of investigations and litigation focused on enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Enforcement responsibilities include:
- Developing and conducting investigations involving potential violations of this law, including reviewing incoming charges and referrals from agencies, identifying and interviewing witnesses, and collecting documentary evidence;
- Conducting legal and factual research and analysis;
- Preparing written memoranda recommending further investigation and/or enforcement;
- Litigating cases, including preparing and responding to discovery requests, conducting document review, reviewing and analyzing data, working with expert witnesses, preparing witnesses for and conducting depositions, and drafting court filings;
- Representing IER at argument and trial before an administrative law judge;
- Representing the Justice Department in district court for subpoena enforcement litigation; and
- Preparing for and participating in settlement negotiations and mediation on behalf of the Department, including drafting settlement proposals.
In addition, Trial Attorneys may conduct policy work, including
working with other federal agencies on areas of overlapping interest;
drafting legislation, regulations, and agency guidance; and reviewing
and preparing comments on draft legislation, regulations, and agency
guidance. Trial attorneys will also conduct outreach, including
participating in outreach presentations and providing technical
assistance in response to inquiries from public and private
stakeholders.
The complexity of the matters assigned and the level of supervision
required vary depending upon a Trial Attorney's years of specialized
experience.
Required Qualifications:
Applicants must possess a J.D. from an American Bar Association
accredited law school, be an active member of the bar in good standing
(any jurisdiction), and possess the minimum years of post-professional
law degree experience commensurate to the grade level of eligibility, as
shown below. Applicants also must have strong, demonstrated
qualifications in the following areas: academic achievement; substantive
knowledge and expertise in the laws, rules, and regulations applicable
to the work of the section or substantially similar laws, rules, and
regulations; written and oral communication skills; the ability to
analyze complex issues; skill and experience working collaboratively and
productively with others; organizational skills; professional judgment;
initiative; and the ability to excel in a fast-paced, demanding
environment. In addition, applicants must have outstanding professional
references.
Preferred Qualifications:
The following demonstrated qualifications are preferred but not
required: substantive knowledge and expertise in immigration and/or
employment law including (1) experience investigating allegations of
employment discrimination, including interviewing witnesses, reviewing
documents and reviewing applicable case law to assess the merits of a
case; (2) experience litigating employment discrimination cases,
including handling discovery, litigation strategy, motions practice and
trial preparation; (3) experience negotiating settlements in employment
discrimination cases; (4) experience serving as the lead attorney in
federal court employment discrimination cases; (5) experience litigating
pattern or practice and/or testing cases; (6) experience with
immigration law and/or immigration policy; (7) experience developing
and/or commenting on draft legislation, regulations, and agency
guidance; and (8) experience giving presentations to a variety of
audiences. Judicial clerkships (especially in federal court), law
review, moot court, clinical experience, and skill and experience
working cooperatively and productively with a range of people, such as
charging parties, witnesses, respondents, disadvantaged or
disenfranchised groups, opposing counsel, judicial or administrative
officials, advocacy groups, law enforcement personnel, and the staff of
other federal or state governmental agencies, are also preferred.
Possessing the minimum post law degree legal experience does not guarantee the applicant will be selected at that grade level.
- GS-13 - minimum 1.5 years post-JD legal experience
- GS-14 - minimum 2.5 years post-JD legal experience
- GS-15 - minimum 4 years post-JD legal experience
The complete Application Package must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time Zone) on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package, which includes:
1. Cover Letter
2. Résumé
3. A complete Occupational Questionnaire
4. Writing sample of no more than ten pages (a brief or comparable analytic legal exposition that is your work product)
5. Veterans' Preference Documentation, if applicable
6. Sch A documentation, if applicable
To apply for this position, see page at https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/599635900
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.
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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 color, race, religion, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, disability (physical or mental), age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected genetic information, pregnancy, status as a parent, or any other nonmerit-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.
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 his or her retirement was due to a permanent service-connected disability or that he/she was transferred to the permanent disability retired list (the statement or retirement orders must indicate that the disability is 10% or more).
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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.
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