Defend Freedom.
Join the Fight.
Federal attorneys serve and defend the American Constitution throughout the federal government. Your legal skills will directly impact American citizens and shape the government that serves them—prosecuting criminals, shaping regulatory policy, conquering corruption, enforcing civil rights, securing the nation, and beyond. Now more than ever, your country needs you.
Your Time is Now.
If your experience is in litigation, regulatory compliance, civil rights, constitutional law, tech law, or policy analysis and you want to help build the future of America, join us today. We're waiting for you.
Litigate What Matters Most
Prosecute fraud, lock-up criminals, defend civil rights, and support executive branch priorities. Federal attorneys live at the forefront of the most critical issues of our time.
Many Paths to Impact
Federal attorneys serve at the front lines of the American legal system: litigating, advising, investigating, and more. No matter your skillset, there's a role here for you.
Competitive Pay
Federal attorney salaries and benefit structures are competitive, with compensation matched to your experience and expertise.
Value Proposition
Make a real impact, get valuable frontline experience in trials, depositions, and hearings, and build a career that works for your life.
Let us Find You: Join the Network
Join our Attorney Talent Network so federal recruiters can find you proactively. You’ll also receive open jobs and hiring event invitations directly to your email.
To join the network, click the link and follow the prompts to create a USAJOBS account. Then, upload and share your resume.
Current Law Student or Recent Grad?
There are opportunities for you too. Explore the Department of Justice's Programs for Law Students and Recent Graduates. Discover hands-on legal experience, meaningful public service, and a clear pathway to a federal attorney career. See the FAQ section for additional examples of federal legal internship programs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about applying to a federal job.
Many attorney jobs within the federal government offer pay competitive with the private sector. However, federal agencies follow government-regulated pay systems and policies to set their salaries. Most agencies use the General Schedule (GS) pay system, but some agencies use special pay rates or agency-specific pay systems. Typically, there is a minimum and maximum salary for every job—federal agencies determine a salary based on their pay setting rules (the pay grade or other pay schedule) and your work experience compared to the qualifications listed in the job posting. Pay may also vary by geographic location.
Each job posting you see on USAJOBS will display a starting salary or a salary range. When you filter by salary, we'll show you all of the jobs that have a starting salary within that range. You may see multiple GS grades and pay types in your results.
You can find most Department of Justice (DoJ) jobs on this page! You can also visit USAJOBS - DoJ - Attorney. DoJ maintains their own career site where they share information for job seekers who are law students, early career attorneys, and experienced attorneys. Learn more by visiting https://www.justice.gov/legal-careers
Yes. Some agencies have career attorney positions located in federal offices based in cities nationwide, where you can still work on executive branch priorities. For example, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is hiring trial attorneys nationwide who will prosecute employment civil rights violations, including litigating in federal court against private sector employers (businesses, private universities, non-profits, etc.). The agency has 53 offices across the country, including in most major and many medium cities.
No, federal attorney positions are not political appointments. Candidates are hired as federal employees based on merit and serve in non-partisan roles in a variety of legal functions.
The application process includes applying to a job and including your resume and other required documents. You can search for jobs on USAJOBS without an account, but you must have an account with a profile and uploaded resume in order to apply to jobs. You'll be asked to create your account on USAJOBS using Login.gov to safeguard your profile and application information. Creating your profile is easy and only includes five steps. Click apply on the job posting and follow the applications steps. After you submit your application, the hiring agency may ask you to complete a hiring assessment. USAJOBS Help Center - Understanding the federal application process
Your resume must be two or fewer pages, and you must demonstrate you meet work experience or education requirements listed in the job posting. To meet education requirements, include your education background on your resume with dates. Include your official transcripts in your application package. To meet work experience requirements, include your work duties, tools and technologies used and quantifiable results achieved with start and end dates (month/year) and the average number of hours worked per week. Your work experience must address the qualification requirements stated in the job posting. USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job?
You can make your resume searchable on USAJOBS, which allows federal recruiters to find your resume and view your profile. Let us find you! Login or create an account on USAJOBS. Navigate to Resumes and Documents. Upload or build a resume, and click "Make Searchable" next to your resume. USAJOBS Help Center - Help recruiters find you by making your resume and profile searchable
As a federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with the hiring agency as you go through the hiring process:
• Health insurance
• Dental and vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Long term care insurance
• Flexible spending accounts
• Paid parental leave (up to 12 weeks)
• Annual and sick leave
• Training and development programs
• Retirement savings programs
USAJOBS Help Center - Working in Government
Federal legal internships are designed for current law students (1Ls, 2Ls, and sometimes 3Ls) seeking summer or academic-year experience. Many summer internships open between July and September for the following summer and may close quickly. Begin monitoring opportunities early in your 1L year.
Examples of federal legal internship programs include:
Department of Justice (DOJ) - Summer Law Intern Program (SLIP): A competitive paid internship for law students.
U.S. Attorneys' Offices - U.S. Attorneys' Students Page
Volunteer Legal Internships - General Portal | Volunteer Legal Internship Openings
Department of Labor (DOL) – Solicitor's Office - SOL Internship and Externship Opportunities: Accepts law students for research and writing projects related to labor law.
Department of State - U.S. Department of State Student Internship Program: Current students seeking summer or semester internships within the legal office.
Department of the Treasury - Law Student Internships: A volunteer summer program in Washington, D.C., focusing on banking, enforcement, and international tax law.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Office of General Counsel (OGC) Externships: Primarily for 2L or 3L students seeking academic credit.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) - Law Student Internships: Provides hands-on civil rights enforcement experience for law students in D.C. and regional offices.
Federal Reserve Board - Legal Division Summer Internships
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - Bureau of Competition Legal Internships: Provides hands-on antitrust enforcement experience for law students in D.C. and regional offices.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) - SEC Scholars Program
The programs listed above represent only a sample. Search career pages of other agencies that interest you.