The Federal Public Defender for the District of Oregon is accepting applications from experienced criminal defense attorneys to join our Portland Office as an Assistant Federal Public Defender to advocate for indigent defendants facing criminal charges in federal court.
Duties:
• Represent indigent individuals charged with violating federal criminal statutes by handling all stages of federal criminal trial matters in the district court.
• Frequently appear in court before both magistrate judges and district court judges. Court appearances include: initial appearances, pretrial release hearings, motion hearings, trials, sentencings, appeals, and probation violation proceedings.
• Advocate for clients from diverse backgrounds, including those with histories of trauma, mental health, and substance abuse issues.
• Work in teams with investigators, paralegals, legal assistants, social workers, and contracted experts.
• Support clients with holistic problem‐solving during pretrial, trial, and sentencing proceedings, as well as with reentry into the community.
• Write persuasive briefs to achieve client goals and work for improvement in the law.
• Maintain frequent client contact in person, by phone, and in writing.
The Federal Public Defender’s Office is committed to improving diversity in the legal profession. The nature of our work leads us to recruit colleagues who demonstrate experience with, knowledge of, and sensitivity to the needs of culturally diverse and systemically oppressed populations.
Required Qualifications:
• Applicants must have the knowledge, skills, and ability needed to immediately defend indigent individuals in criminal cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon .
• Applicants must be a graduate of an accredited law school and an active member in good standing of the bar in any state, territory or possession.
• Applicants must have at least 5 years of state or federal criminal practice, have recent, substantial criminal felony trial‐level experience; strong written and oral advocacy skills; and a proven commitment to indigent criminal defense.
• Strong technological, organizational, and interpersonal skills are required.
• A demonstrated commitment to and comfort working with diverse communities and with clients from a range of backgrounds is required.
Preferred Qualifications:
• Federal court experience, immigration law experience, and Spanish‐language skills are all preferred qualifications.
How to Apply:
Interested applicants should e‐mail a resume, a letter of interest, a writing sample, and three references in a .pdf document to the attention of:
Travis Southworth‐Neumeyer, Personnel Administrator
[email protected]
Subject: AFPD – Portland
Applications will be reviewed as they are received. One or more AFPD positions may be filled from this and from other active AFPD announcements for our office, subject to budget approval. Competitive candidates will be invited to interview either in person or via Skype. All responses will remain confidential. Only candidates in consideration for this position will e contacted.
We encourage applications from individuals with diverse perspectives, especially people historically
underrepresented in the practice of law.