Assistant United States Attorney (Criminal Division-Immigration)

U.S. Department of Justice • Full-time • United States • $77.14k - $197.10k / year • 1m ago

Hiring Organization
USAO Eastern District of California
Hiring Office
Criminal Division (Immigration), Sacramento and Fresno Offices
Attorney Appointment Type
Attorney Permanent
Job ID
26-CAE-12987560-AUSA

Location:
Sacramento and Fresno Offices
CA - United States

Application Deadline:
Wednesday, September 30, 2026
About the Office

The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California is headquartered in Sacramento. The District includes the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada Mountains and encompasses most of the land mass of California-from the Coastal Mountain Range to the Nevada border, and from Bakersfield in the south to the Oregon border. The Fresno office serves the counties of Calaveras, Tuolumne, Stanislaus, Mariposa, Merced, Fresno, Kings, Tulare, and Inyo. The Bakersfield office serves Kern County and the surrounding areas within the southern part of the Eastern District of California.

Sacramento is located in the heart of California. Sacramento is home to professional ballet and opera theatre companies, providing a wide range of cultural activities and events. Professional sports are represented by the Sacramento Kings, the Sacramento River Cats, and the Sacramento Republic FC. Bound by two rivers and in close proximity to several lakes, water recreation tops the list for outdoor activities such as salmon fishing, river rafting, and boating. Sacramento is located 90 miles northeast of San Francisco and approximately 90 miles west of Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Nevada mountain range, providing numerous recreational opportunities for skiing and boating enthusiasts.

Fresno is one of the fastest growing cities in California, due in part to its central location to major tourist areas in California. Fresno is located in the middle of the fertile San Joaquin Valley, also known as the Central Valley, which is a major supplier of food and agricultural products for the United States and the world. This area also includes national treasures such as Yosemite National Park and Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks.

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

Additional information on the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California can be found at https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca.

Job Description

The United States Attorney is seeking an attorney to serve as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division with assignment to the Immigration Unit. The Assistant U.S. Attorney will represent the United States, its agencies, and employees in immigration-related litigation, including defending habeas corpus, mandamus, and Administrative Procedure Act challenges, and prosecuting affirmative immigration enforcement actions in federal district court. Potential to transition to other criminal or civil practice areas as workload and office needs allow.

Your application will be considered for the location(s) that you indicate in your preferences.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Qualifications

Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree and be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction).

United States citizenship is required.

Preferred Qualifications:
Ideal qualifications include at least three to five years of experience litigating cases with substantial responsibility for all aspects of discovery, trial, and appeals. Applicants must demonstrate a quick analytical ability and the facility to accurately and precisely articulate the critical issues in a case. Applicants must demonstrate superior oral and writing skills as well as strong research and interpersonal skills, and good judgment. Applicants must possess excellent communication and courtroom skills and exhibit the ability to work in a supportive and professional manner with other attorneys, paralegals, support staff and client agencies. Applicants must have a demonstrated capacity to function in a highly demanding environment.

Applicants will be expected to do their own legal research and writing and will be substantially self-sufficient in preparing day-to-day correspondence and pleadings. Applicants must also demonstrate excellent computer literacy skills to include experience with automated research on the Internet, electronic court filing, and electronic e-mail and word processing systems.

The ideal candidate will have some experience working with multi-agency task forces; will have experience and familiarity with federal grand jury practice; will have experience with the use of a multitude of investigatory techniques, including electronic surveillance, tracking devices, search warrants, telephone toll record analysis and asset seizure and forfeiture; and will demonstrate the ability to handle complex cases from the initial investigative stage through trial.

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

Application Process

Applications must be submitted online through the USAJobs portal at the following link: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/873729600 .

Further application requirements and information can be found on the vacancy announcement link indicated above.

This is an open continuous announcement that will remain open until filled or September 30, 2026. This is a job opportunity announcement that will be used to fill multiple vacancies in the Sacramento and Fresno offices. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applicants will be 06/26/2026. Qualified applicants will be referred to selecting official at 1-week intervals from then.

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 conflicts of interest or disqualification issues that may need to be addressed under those circumstances.

Salary

Assistant United States Attorney's pay is administratively determined based, in part, on the number of years of professional attorney experience. The recruiting range of basic pay for AD-21 through AD-29 is as follows:

Sacramento: $85,075 to $197,100 which includes 29.76% locality pay.
Fresno: $77,135.00 to $180,986.00 which includes 17.65% locality pay.