Assistant Federal Public Defender (Trial Unit)

National Legal Aid & Defender Association; Charlotte (NC); Hybrid; USD 78,000 - 184,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid vacation

Paid holidays

Retirement plan (Thrift Savings Plan /

401(k)

Job summary

The Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina in Charlotte seeks an Assistant Federal Public Defender for our Trial Unit. The attorney will handle all stages of federal criminal proceedings, represent clients under the Criminal Justice Act, and may travel for investigation and training.

The position requires a full caseload as part of an interdisciplinary trial team, with duties from client liaison to evidentiary hearings and sentencing advocacy.

Qualifications

• Core duties include building relationships with clients and developing litigation strategies.
• Experience with investigations, motions practice, and evidentiary hearings is preferred.
• Willingness to travel domestically and possibly abroad; flexibility with hours.

Responsibilities

• Represent clients in all stages of federal criminal proceedings.
• Lead and participate in investigation, motion practice, hearings and trials.
• Collaborate with a trial team and external experts as needed.
• Provide robust sentencing advocacy and mitigation development.

Job description

Position Description

The Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina is looking for an Assistant Federal Public Defender for our Trial Unit in Charlotte, North Carolina. We are committed to excellence and the quest for justice of the indigent accused, focusing on our clients’ needs with innovation, passion, and through dynamic advocacy.

Job Description: The scope of our work includes all stages of federal criminal proceedings. The Assistant Federal Public Defender will represent clients charged with federal criminal offenses and clients involved in other matters covered under the Criminal Justice Act. The position requires travel for investigation, litigation, and training, and may involve foreign travel. The attorney will have a full caseload as a member of an interdisciplinary trial team. Core duties include building relationships with clients; analyzing large case files to identify legal claims; directing and participating in investigation; working with experts; developing litigation strategies; motions practice and pleadings; conducting evidentiary hearings; jury trials; and robust sentencing advocacy and mitigation development. The position will require frequent travel and some work outside of business hours, including weekends and holidays.

Salary and Benefits: Starting salary will be commensurate with the experience and qualifications of the applicant. The current starting salary range for this position is $78,459 to $184,093 per annum. This is an excepted position with federal employment benefits that include paid vacation, paid sick time, paid holidays, health insurance, life insurance, retirement plan and participation in the Thrift Savings Plan (401k). Salary is payable only by Electronic Funds Transfer (direct deposit). Telework and flex scheduling, consistent with court obligations and position duties, are available to all employees after successful completion of probationary period.

Conditions of Employment: The employee will be located in the Charlotte office full-time, less a reasonable telework schedule. All application information is subject to verification. Applicants must be United States citizens, or persons authorized to work in the United States. Appointment to the position is provisional pending the successful completion of a background check. A prior criminal conviction is not necessarily disqualifying. Employees are members of the judicial branch and considered “at will” employees. Travel by a personal vehicle may be required.

Closing date

Applications received by September 14, 2026, will receive priority consideration. The position will remain open until filled.

About Us

Our office is based in Charlotte, a compact and thriving city in the Carolina Piedmont. Charlotte offers expansive parks and greenways, premier theatre and concert venues, outstanding restaurants, professional sports, and an innovative public school system. It’s also within easy reach of the Carolina coast and the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains.

Our vision is client-centered: Advocacy requires engaging with every aspect of our clients’ lives. We will defend our clients with purpose, compassion, and courage; identifying inequities that deny them of freedoms, drive their prosecutions, and inflate their sentences. We will work to reform the criminal legal system that is too often blind to these realities. We will partner with those who serve our community to help secure a future for our clients and their families. And we will strive to provide aid to and set an example for the present and future generations of our professions.

We recognize that we cannot serve the distinct needs of our clients without assembling a diverse team of dedicated professionals who work and advocate collaboratively on their behalf. We welcome applicants of any race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, disability, age, and status. We are committed to ensuring an inclusive and equitable workplace.