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Anonymous User
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AUSA
Anyone have any insight to FPD or AUSA? If I do private criminal defense, are these jobs unobtainable for me?
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Anonymous User
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Re: AUSA
What kind insight are you looking for? For AUSA, having done defense work isn’t an issue, but you’d probably have to convince an office about why you want to move from the private sector to the public sector, as it’s usually the other way around. (Barring coming from biglaw, that is, which isn’t what I usually think of when I hear private criminal defense.) Whether you’d be competitive depends on a lot of things. More specific questions would help.
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objctnyrhnr
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Re: AUSA
If, by private criminal defense work, you mean that you defend OUIs in state district court or something like that, then yes AUSA will most likely be unobtainable UNLESS your credentials before doing that were fantastic (think one or more of fedclerk, t14 school, market biglaw).
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Anonymous User
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Re: AUSA
Thanks all. I'm in a small market and currently in our version of BL now (think Jackson/Tucson/Alb/El Paso). I just do general/commercial lit at the moment and some tax stuff (which I do not like), but have done a couple white collar issues (which have been very fun). I actually am fine with my current gig, but was randomly offered a position at a criminal defense firm in town that pays only slightly below what I currently make, with obviously the perks of doing way more trial work. I'd be handling mostly violent crimes.
My credentials are good, but not sterling? T1, LR, top third, but do have a number of publications. My market doesn't have a T1 school.
Goals are weird, want to either do gov work (AGA/FPD/AUSA), be clearing 200k a year as a solo or a partner, ultimate goal is to be a prof or judge.
My credentials are good, but not sterling? T1, LR, top third, but do have a number of publications. My market doesn't have a T1 school.
Goals are weird, want to either do gov work (AGA/FPD/AUSA), be clearing 200k a year as a solo or a partner, ultimate goal is to be a prof or judge.
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Anonymous User
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Re: AUSA
I think if you’re targeting your local market, your credentials are probably fine - they’re not really going to make you stand out and get you the job, but they don’t make you unhireable.
I think if you think you’d enjoy the defense firm more and you’d get more trial experience, it’s worth trying for the experience. It might not get you directly to government work but I think it would be a reasonable step to partner or solo. I just can’t comment on what kind of salary that would get you in that kind of town.
Also, I agree that DUI defense isn’t going to get you to a USAO, but violent crime is relatively transferable to AUSA gigs. I’ve seen people with homicide experience get hired, not because USAOs prosecute a ton of homicide but because it’s more complex/sophisticated experience. Also, since it sounds like you might be in a state with Indian country, there’s more violent crime prosecution in those districts since most offenses will be under federal jurisdiction (oh, unless it’s a PL 280 state, so maybe not).
It also sounds like you might be in a state that will require Spanish fluency for FPD (though you may have that, of course).
None of this is super likely to get you a tenure-track doctrinal prof job, which will be all about your publications, but you could probably adjunct or maybe work as a clinical prof once you have more practice experience. (Judge is just really hard to predict and very political, especially so if you have to actually get elected, a little less directly so if you get appointed but still very much about your connections. Plus side is that working for a number of years in a small market can get you really connected.)
I think if you think you’d enjoy the defense firm more and you’d get more trial experience, it’s worth trying for the experience. It might not get you directly to government work but I think it would be a reasonable step to partner or solo. I just can’t comment on what kind of salary that would get you in that kind of town.
Also, I agree that DUI defense isn’t going to get you to a USAO, but violent crime is relatively transferable to AUSA gigs. I’ve seen people with homicide experience get hired, not because USAOs prosecute a ton of homicide but because it’s more complex/sophisticated experience. Also, since it sounds like you might be in a state with Indian country, there’s more violent crime prosecution in those districts since most offenses will be under federal jurisdiction (oh, unless it’s a PL 280 state, so maybe not).
It also sounds like you might be in a state that will require Spanish fluency for FPD (though you may have that, of course).
None of this is super likely to get you a tenure-track doctrinal prof job, which will be all about your publications, but you could probably adjunct or maybe work as a clinical prof once you have more practice experience. (Judge is just really hard to predict and very political, especially so if you have to actually get elected, a little less directly so if you get appointed but still very much about your connections. Plus side is that working for a number of years in a small market can get you really connected.)
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andythefir
- Posts: 701
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Re: AUSA
FPD is low key one of the better jobs in law. GS pay and benefits, loan forgiveness, manageable workload. They generally like clerkships, but they also hire just really good defense attorneys, state PDs and private folks.
USAO is a completely different beast because the exit options are better. There’s a lot of advice on the site re how to catch on there.
Another thing is that it’s really hard to start your own commercial firm, but it’s really easy to start your own criminal defense firm. CJA + DUI=big cash flows if done well, and you can learn the criminal ropes doing criminal work for someone else.
USAO is a completely different beast because the exit options are better. There’s a lot of advice on the site re how to catch on there.
Another thing is that it’s really hard to start your own commercial firm, but it’s really easy to start your own criminal defense firm. CJA + DUI=big cash flows if done well, and you can learn the criminal ropes doing criminal work for someone else.
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Anonymous User
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Re: AUSA
I’m pretty sure FPD salaries are pegged to the AD payscale and track AUSA salaries. Office staff are on the JSP scale, but the attorneys aren’t. It might depend a little on how your defenders are funded. Still a good gig in a lot of places, especially if you have the people skills to handle the clients.
