The Federal Public Defender for the Eastern District of California is hiring an Administrative Officer, a full-time permanent high-level position that reports directly to the Federal Defender and plays a critical role in the office’s mission of providing top-tier legal services to its clients. The Administrative Officer manages the administration and operations in support of both office locations (Sacramento and Fresno), 75+ staff and interns, and our mission of providing diligent, zealous, holistic criminal defense representation by playing a central leadership role in advancing that mission.
The Administrative Officer is a one-of-a-kind position. We are looking for a leader who can work cooperatively and act independently, manage finite resources effectively, and understand the relationship between our office and the federal court system. The Administrative Officer directly supervises at least eight staff members with administrative, financial, or information technology responsibilities, while also helping supervise office-wide operations and serving as a key executive advisor to the Federal Defender.
Responsibilities: The Administrative Officer acts as the principal advisor to the Federal Defender on all aspects of office administration and management, ensures compliance with national and local policies, and must learn the requirements of the Guide to Judiciary Policy, the Defender Organization Classification System, the Office’s Internal Controls Manual, applicable state and federal statutes, GSA rules and regulations, and directives from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Defender Services Office, GSA, and other agencies as needed.
Our Administrative Officer does the following regarding:
General administration, management, and supervision:
• Directly assists with day-to-day operations, process improvement, policy development, and short- and long-term strategic planning.
• Supervises and directs administrative, financial, human resources (in conjunction with our Personnel Administrator), and IT functions.
• Works to recognize issues and improve office management, efficiency, and effectiveness.
• Develops and maintains internal controls to ensure adequate separation of duties exists for financial, procurement, property management, and human resource functions.
Budget and financial management:
• Manages financial operations, develops spending plans, and oversees accounting
functions, including the disbursement of appropriate funds.
• Formulates the annual budget, develops caseload projections, analyzes staffing needs and resource allocation, and prepares hiring plans.
• Prepares monthly variance reports, status of funds reports, and workload reports for review and approval by the Federal Defender.
Human resources and personnel management:
• Advises on hiring, staffing, position classification and compensation, employee performance and evaluation, dispute resolution, benefits administration, and personnel policies.
• Develops strategies to recruit and retain a diverse workforce.
• Collaborates on planning and implementing staff training and development.
• Collaborates on a comprehensive onboarding program for all new employees and interns and facilitates offboarding and exit interviews.
• Conducts performance evaluations for administrative staff.
Procurement of government goods and services:
• Determines the need for, and directs procurement of, supplies, equipment, furnishings, and professional services in compliance with judiciary procurement policy.
• Trains and supervises employees responsible for various procurement duties.
Property management:
Collaborates with case management, custodial, disposal, and procurement administrators to manage records storage systems and accountable property inventories.
The Administrative Officer also helps ensure employees are adequately trained to perform their assigned duties. The position requires occasional travel between the Sacramento and Fresno offices and occasional out-of-district travel for attendance at administrative, case management, and/or financial conferences.
The Federal Defender seeks an Administrative Officer who is a trusted and reliable individual with a heart for public service, good judgment, and an appreciation for the importance of diversity and teamwork. The Administrative Officer must be able to work individually and collaboratively and perform their responsibilities with a strong sense of ethics and integrity. They understand and value well-run administration; budget and financial management; human resources; information technology, space, and facilities management; and procurement, property, and records management.
Preferred Qualifications:
Supervision experience
Budget and financial management experience
Knowledge of federal government policies
The successful Administrative Officer is a self-starter and innovative thinker who identifies issues and works to resolve them. If they don’t know the answer to a question, they pursue self-education and seek assistance until they do. They are organized and able to handle multiple tasks. They are dedicated to serving clients by supporting the whole office. They respect their colleagues and show appreciation for their roles. Above all, they maintain high standards for treating clients and colleagues with empathy and understanding.
Requirements: The successful candidate should have at least:
Work experience:
• three years’ general experience and
• six years’ specialized experience in public administration, office management, or a related field; and
Education:
• graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college/university in a field of academic study (such as criminal justice, criminology, psychology, sociology, human relations, or public administration) which evidences their capacity to understand and apply the legal requirements and human relation skills of this position;
• an accounting degree or master’s degree in business administration from an accredited college would be preferred.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents seeking U.S. citizenship. As an employment condition, candidates must be fingerprinted and complete a background check. A prior criminal conviction is not necessarily disqualifying. Partial telework is available for this position but full-time telework is not.
Please submit in a single Adobe pdf file a letter of interest, detailed résumé, three work references, and a completed Application for Judicial Branch Employment form (AO78) http://www.cae-fpd.org/AO_78.pdf to the following email:
[email protected]
Position announced on January 27, 2026 and is open until filled. Priority is given to applications received by February 27, 2026. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.
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