Assistant Federal Public Defender (Trial Unit)

We are looking for an Assistant Federal Public Defender for our Trial Unit in Charlotte, North Carolina. Ten years of attorney experience with significant criminal defense expertise is required; prior federal case experience is preferred.

About the role

The Assistant Federal Public Defender will represent clients charged with federal criminal offenses and clients involved in other matters covered under the Criminal Justice Act. The position requires travel for investigation, litigation, and training, and may involve foreign travel. The attorney will have a full caseload as a member of an interdisciplinary trial team.

Responsibilities

• Build relationships with clients
• Analyze large case files to identify legal claims
• Direct and participate in investigation
• Work with experts
• Develop litigation strategies
• Motions practice and pleadings
• Conduct evidentiary hearings
• Jury trials
• Robust sentencing advocacy and mitigation development

The position will require frequent travel and some work outside of business hours, including weekends and holidays.

Requirements

• Ten years of attorney experience with significant criminal defense expertise
• Prior federal case experience preferred
• United States citizenship or authorization to work in the United States
• Successful completion of a background check
• Based in the Charlotte office full-time, less a reasonable telework schedule
• Travel by personal vehicle may be required

Benefits

• Paid vacation
• Paid sick time
• Paid holidays
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Retirement plan
• Participation in the Thrift Savings Plan (401k)
• Telework and flex scheduling available after successful completion of probationary period

Pay

Starting salary range: $120,716 to $184,093 per annum, commensurate with experience and qualifications. Salary is payable only by Electronic Funds Transfer (direct deposit).

About Us

Our office is based in Charlotte, a compact and thriving city in the Carolina Piedmont. Charlotte offers expansive parks and greenways, premier theatre and concert venues, outstanding restaurants, professional sports, and an innovative public school system. It’s also within easy reach of the Carolina coast and the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains.

Our mission is to provide excellence and the quest for justice for the indigent accused, focusing on our clients’ needs with innovation, passion, and through dynamic advocacy. Our vision is client-centered: Advocacy requires engaging with every aspect of our clients’ lives. We defend our clients with purpose, compassion, and courage; identifying inequities that deny them of freedoms, drive their prosecutions, and inflate their sentences. We work to reform the criminal legal system that is too often blind to these realities. We partner with those who serve our community to help secure a future for our clients and their families, and strive to provide aid to and set an example for present and future generations of our professions.

We recognize that we cannot serve the distinct needs of our clients without assembling a diverse team of dedicated professionals who work and advocate collaboratively on their behalf. We welcome applicants of any race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, disability, age, and status. We are committed to ensuring an inclusive and equitable workplace.