Trial Attorney

Trial Attorney

Department: Department of Justice

Location(s): Washington, District of Columbia

Salary Range: $120579 - $195200 Per Year

Job Summary: The Torts Branch is seeking multiple trial attorneys for its Aviation, Space & Admiralty Litigation Section. The trial attorneys are responsible for all aspects of representing the United States in actions brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act and a variety of admiralty and maritime laws. Specific duties include preparation of pleadings, pretrial discovery, researching, writing and arguing motions, alternative dispute resolution, and trial and appellate work.

Major Duties:

• The Aviation, Space & Admiralty Litigation Section of the Torts Branch handles aviation, space, and maritime cases and claims. Client agencies include the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, all military services including the Navy and the Coast Guard, the Maritime Administration, NASA, NSA, and the Departments of State, Interior, Transportation, and Commerce. In its aviation practice, the Section defends the United States in wrongful death, serious personal injury, and extensive property damage actions arising from aircraft accidents. Federal activities giving rise to these lawsuits include air traffic control, military aviation operations, weather dissemination, charting of obstacles, operation of navigational aids, and certification of aircraft, airports, and air personnel. Since its establishment, the Section has litigated all commercial airline accident cases involving the United States, including the current litigation arising out of this year's D.C. midair tragedy. The Section is also responsible for litigation arising from space launch or space vehicle incidents; the Section handled litigation and claims arising from the Space Shuttle Columbia and Challenger disasters, for example. In its admiralty practice, the Section represents the United States in the government's role as ship-owner, regulator, and protector of the nation's waterways and maritime resources. Its admiralty litigation concerns collisions involving U.S. vessels and warships, grounding of vessels while using U.S. government-produced charts, challenges to the boarding of vessels on the high seas during national security and drug interdiction activities, and maritime-based pollution incidents, including oil spills. Affirmative admiralty actions seek compensation for damage to maritime infrastructure, damage to natural resources, and the costs associated with maritime pollution cleanups. This is not a remote location position. You will be required to work in person five days a week.

Qualifications: Applicants must possess a J.D. Degree (or equivalent), be an active member in good standing of the bar (any U.S. jurisdiction), be a U.S. citizen, and possess at least 1 year post J.D. (or equivalent) legal or other relevant experience. The minimum years of post-law degree experience commensurate with the grade level of eligibility is shown below. Possessing the minimum post law degree legal experience does not guarantee the applicant will be selected at that grade level. To qualify at the GS-13 grade level, applicants must have minimum 1.5 years post-JD legal experience. To qualify at the GS-14 grade level, applicants must have minimum 2.5 years post-JD legal experience. To qualify at the GS-15 grade level, applicants must have minimum 4 years post-JD legal experience. Preferred qualifications: Applicants should have excellent writing, negotiation, and interpersonal skills, exhibit good judgment, and have an interest in trial and appellate work. Aviation, space and/or admiralty litigation experience is strongly preferred as well as complex litigation skills, including experience with expert witnesses and e-discovery. Trial Period Statement As a condition of employment for accepting this position in accordance with section 11.5 of Executive Order 14284, you will be required to serve a 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

How to Apply: To apply for this position, you must complete the online application questionnaire and submit your supporting documentation. Your complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/19/2026 to receive consideration. 1. Click "Apply Online" to get started. 2. If you're not logged in to your USAJOBS account, you will need to login. If you don't have an account, please create one. 3. You will be prompted to select one of your stored (or uploaded) resumes, and any supporting documents you have uploaded to USAJOBS. If you have not uploaded these documents, you can do so later before submitting your application. 4. After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, you will be asked to submit your demographic information (if you have provided this in your profile). Submission is optional and anonymous. 5. You'll be asked to confirm your choices and certify the accuracy of your information before you're able to continue to the Application Manager system. Until you see the blue border and DOJ logo, you are still on USAJOBS. You'll see a folder animation just before you leave USAJOBS. 6. Once you reach DOJ's Application Manager system, you'll be asked to verify the information you transmitted from USAJOBS. You will then respond to the application assessment questionnaires and indicate your eligibility options. 7. After responding to the questionnaires, you will have the opportunity to attach the documents you brought over from USAJOBS *OR* upload documents directly from your computer or device. 8. If you opt to upload a document directly, click the "Upload" button and select the document on your device, then wait for the upload to finish. Repeat as needed. Documents must be less than 3 MB each and should be in a compatible file format. 9. Once all your documents are uploaded, you must assign the uploads to the appropriate document category. You may attach more than one document to each category. Click the drop-down menu for a document category, and select one of the available options in the menu. The document will be listed under this category. You can click the drop-down again to add other documents, as needed. You can have up to 15 document assignments. 10. Once you've uploaded and assigned all your documents to an appropriate document type, you can proceed to the final verification step, and click Submit. 11. If you have correctly submitted your application, you will receive an automated e-mail notification within 30-60 minutes. Be sure to review the announcement fully to make sure that your application contains everything that is required. If you need help with the application process, please see the USAJOBS Help Site (for everything on the USAJOBS-side), or the Application Manager Help Site (for everything on the DOJ-side). Regrettably, the Department of Justice cannot assist you with USAJOBS account issues. If you contact us for assistance and the problem is related to your USAJOBS account, we will have to direct you to USAJOBS to remedy the issue.

Application Deadline: 2026-01-19