Spring Law Interns (Student Volunteer)

Department of Justice

Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys and the Office of the U.S. Attorneys

U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Texas

Summary

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorneys' Offices, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

Positions will be located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX offices.

The number of available positions varies per office.

This and other vacancy announcements can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ under employment- legal careers.

This job is open to

Students

Current students enrolled in an accredited high school, college or graduate institution.

Clarification from the agency

All Enrolled Students who are United States Citizens/Nationals pursuing a Juris Doctor Degree and have completed either their first or second year of law school.

Duties

The Northern District of Texas is offering internship opportunities in its Dallas and Fort Worth offices for the 2027 Spring Law Interns (Student Volunteer) program for current students pursuing a Juris Doctor Degree and have completed either their first or second year of law school. Selected candidates will be assigned work from the criminal, appellate and civil divisions. Our goal is to introduce law students to the federal system and litigation involving the United States. We strive to assist students in developing their legal research and writing skills.

Students will perform legal research and writing; draft various pleadings, motions, briefs, and other documents; and assist with witness preparation, depositions, and hearings or trials. Students will also be provided with several opportunities to meet members of the judiciary, representatives of various federal agencies, and to participate in substantive programs to familiarize them with the federal legal system.

The Criminal Division may give students an opportunity to work on a wide variety of practice areas, including narcotics, public corruption, healthcare fraud, cybercrimes, terrorism, and other federal crimes. Within the Civil Division, students may work in a wide variety of defensive and affirmative litigation, including employment discrimination, medical malpractice, general torts, constitutional torts, immigration, prisoner litigation, commercial, financial, and civil fraud.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

You must be a United States Citizen or National.
Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation
You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
You must meet half-time student enrollment requirements.
You must submit a transcript or proof of enrollment with your application.
You must be at least 16 years of age or older.
You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

To be eligible for this internship ALL of the following requirements must be met:

Student Status: Definition of a student - applicant must be enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an accredited high school, technical or vocational school, two-year or four-year college or university, graduate/professional school, or certificate program equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study (go to http://www.ed.gov/accreditation to verify accreditation status) pursuant to 5 CFR 362. You must be considered in good academic standings by the school. Individuals must be taking at least a half-time academic, vocational, or technical course load leading to a degree, diploma, or certificate. "Half-time" is defined by the school in which the student is enrolled.
Grade Point Average: You must have at least a 2.5 GPA.
Citizenship: Student Interns must be United States citizens or owe permanent allegiance to the United States. (Currently, natives of American Samoa, Swains Island and certain inhabitants of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are the only groups that owe permanent allegiance to the United States.) Background Investigation: You must successfully complete a background investigation to determine your suitability for Federal employment.
Volunteer Agreement: All interns are required to sign the Participant Agreement.
Qualification requirements as outlined below.
Background Investigation: You must successfully complete a background investigation to determine your suitability for Federal employment.

There is a required background check because of the sensitive nature of the work performed by our office. The U.S. Attorney's office is a Drug Free workplace and a drug test will be conducted during the background investigation. Students will only be allowed to work remotely if the office is working remotely. Otherwise, students are expected to be present in the office.

Additional information

Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized.

Selectees for this position are ineligible for life insurance, retirement (including the Thrift Savings Plan), long term care insurance, and within grade increases.

Veterans' Preference: If you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming by checking the appropriate box in the assessment questionnaire to indicate your preference and submit the documentation as specified in the "Required Documents" section of this vacancy announcement.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See http://www.sss.gov.

Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Outreach and Recruitment for Qualified Applicants with Disabilities: The Department encourages qualified applicants with disabilities, including individuals with targeted/severe disabilities to apply in response to posted vacancy announcements. Qualified applicants with targeted/severe disabilities may be eligible for direct hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A (5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(u)) hiring authority.
Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact one of the Department's Disability Points of Contact (DPOC) to express an interest in being considered for a position. See list of DPOCs.

EEO Statement/Policy: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. More information can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/jmd/media/1425556/dl?inline.

Political Appointees (Current or Former): The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

The Occupational Questionnaire will take you approximately 10 minutes to complete.

A Writing Sample should be included in your application package.

Required Documents

You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes:

Required: Your responses to the Occupational Questionnaire (Online or 1203-FX).
Required: Your cover letter
Required: Your resume
Required: Current Unofficial transcript or proof of current enrollment, e.g., recent letter from the registrar's office.
Required: Writing sample
Required, if applicable: Veterans' Preference documentation. (See also required Veterans' Preference Documentation below.) Please note, if you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming by checking the appropriate box in the assessment questionnaire to indicate your preference and submit the required documentation as specified below.

Required Veterans' Preference Documentation:-In order to verify your Veterans' Preference entitlement, you must submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty); or if you are a current Active Duty member you must submit a certification on appropriate military branch letterhead that indicates: 1) your service dates, 2) expected discharge or release date from active duty with a release/discharge date no later than 120 days from the closing date of this announcement, and 3) the character of service (e.g., Honorable); or other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that shows your military service was performed under honorable conditions.

In addition, if you are a disabled veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, or widow/widower if a veteran, the spouse of a disabled veteran or the parent of a disabled or deceased veteran, you must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference," dated October 2013 and the required documentation identified on the reverse side of the SF-15 to support your preference claim.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 11/09/2026 to receive consideration.
1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
2. Click the Submit My Answers button to submit your application package. (It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.)
3. To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, http://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.

To preview the Assessment Questionnaire, please click the following link:https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13074491

You are encouraged to apply online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application. If you are unable to apply online, contact Felisa Martin at 214-659-8758 or Felisa.Martin2@usdoj.gov as soon as possible to arrange an alternative application process.

Agency contact information

Felisa Martin

Phone: 214-659-8758
Email: Felisa.Martin2@usdoj.gov

Address: Northern District of Texas
1100 Commerce Street
Third Floor
Dallas, TX 75242
US

Next steps

Once your completed application package is received, a review of your application will be made to ensure you meet the program requirements. Eligible candidates will be referred to the selecting officials for further consideration and possible interview. We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed. After making a tentative offer, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation to include a credit check, and a drug test by urinalysis.

Please be advised that background investigations can take up to 8 weeks to process. If selected, your security paperwork must be turned into the Northern District of Texas on or before the deadline provided by the Human Resources Specialist to ensure sufficient time for processing. Final offers are contingent upon receipt of a favorable background check.

This announcement is open from Monday, September 28, 2026 to Monday, November 9, 2026

Spring Law Interns (Student Volunteer) Job