DOJ or USAO? Forum

[bceagles182]

I've been offered two positions this summer (1L).

1. DOJ Criminal Division, Fraud Section
2. US Attorney's Office for EDNY, Civil Division

Which is better for biglaw?

[treeey86]

both look good. USAO is better though. Big firms do civil litigation. USAO does civil litigation. Easier sale for you to market USAO civil litigation experience to a big firm

[Sup Kid]

both look good. USAO is better though. Big firms do civil litigation. USAO does civil litigation. Easier sale for you to market USAO civil litigation experience to a big firm

+1. However, neither will make a big difference during OCI -- it's all about your grades.

[Renzo]

I hear a lot of really good things about that particular USAO. I'd go there. But it won't matter as far as OCI.

[nealric]

I was an intern at the DOJ in law school if you have any specific questions.

Either is fine for biglaw.

[Anonymous User]

I interned in EDNY Criminal my 1L year and it was a phenominal office. I can't say enough good things about it. You can't go wrong with either one though. EDNY is as well respected as USAOs get; many of the AUSAs worked for big firms, and many partners at big NYC firms were EDNY AUSAs. DOJ Fraud is a very highly regarded white-collar crime prosecution force. Most of what you'll do as a junior associate in biglaw is white-collar gov't regulation stuff, and DOJ Fraud will look great on a resume.

Bottom line, if you're more interested in criminal or government investigations, go to DOJ. If you have no interest in criminal, go to the USAO. Keep in mind though that a lot of what USAOs do on the civil side is very different than the civil work big firms do. It's a lot of defending gov't employees (postal truck crashes, med malpractice at the VA hospital, etc) with a bit of affirmative litigation. DOJ Fraud is probably more on point of what goes on in biglaw, not that that matters too much.

[Sup Kid]

Bottom line, if you're more interested in criminal or government investigations, go to DOJ. If you have no interest in criminal, go to the USAO. Keep in mind though that a lot of what USAOs do on the civil side is very different than the civil work big firms do. It's a lot of defending gov't employees (postal truck crashes, med malpractice at the VA hospital, etc) with a bit of affirmative litigation. DOJ Fraud is probably more on point of what goes on in biglaw, not that that matters too much.

While much of this is accurate, as an intern on the civil side of an USAO, you will be doing motions to dismiss, motions for summary judgment, and different oppositions to filings by the other side. Generally speaking, the substantive legal issue in the case never even gets dealt with, since many lawsuits are dismissed early on. As a result, while the legal issues may be different than at a Biglaw firm, the experience in just drafting motions and learning what it takes to even reach discovery is a valuable experience that correlates well.

[vanwinkle]

I've been offered two positions this summer (1L).

1. DOJ Criminal Division, Fraud Section
2. US Attorney's Office for EDNY, Civil Division

Which is better for biglaw?

EDNY Civil is better for BigLaw, but you're pretty much splitting hairs at this point. Either would be great. School and grades matter more anyway, so it's not like you're making a truly life-altering decision.

Also, it's not like employers know what you turned down. They won't be asking, "Why did you go criminal when you had an offer from a civil division office?" Instead they just see DOJ, which is a plus in general, and then ask why you went there, what you gained from it, etc. As long as you have answers to those questions, it's not like it really matters.

[YourCaptain]

You cannot go wrong here, either is fine.