Temporary Staff Attorney

NACBA; Indianapolis (IN); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 127,000; Full time

Job summary

United States District Court, Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division, seeks a temporary Staff Attorney for a 15-week term beginning December 21, 2026. The role focuses on prisoner civil rights matters, with duties spanning legal research, drafting, and case management for judges across the district.

Candidates should have a JD, strong writing and research skills, and experience in clerking or federal practice.

Qualifications

• Law school graduation in the top quarter preferred.
• Law review/journal experience required or preferred.
• Strong character, maturity, and professional ethics.
• Excellent research, writing, proofreading, and citation skills (Bluebook).
• Proficiency with legal research tools and word processing software.
• At least one year of practice, clerkship, or comparable high-quality legal work.

Responsibilities

• Perform legal research and draft entries for court submissions.
• Screen prisoner civil rights complaints and review motions.
• Assist judges in hearings, conferences, and trials.
• Manage prisoner litigation caseload and case documentation.
• Coordinate with court staff on case handling and information sharing.

Skills

Legal research

Legal writing

Case management

Bluebook formatting

Communication

Clerking experience

Education

Juris Doctor (JD) degree

Tools

Windows

MS Word

Westlaw

LexisNexis

Job description

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

Southern District of Indiana Indianapolis Division

Vacancy Announcement # 26-22

Position Title: Temporary Staff Attorney

Terms of Employment: Full-time, 15 weeks beginning on or about December 21, 2026

Classification Level: JSP 12 -14 (depending on qualifications and experience)

Salary Range: $90,341- $126,947

JSP Grade Level: JSP 12 $90,341 - Maximum starting salary for first-time federal employees with 1 full-time year experience plus Bar Membership

JSP 13 $107,428 – Salary for qualified applicant with 2 full-time years' legal experience plus Bar Membership

JSP 14 $126,947 – Salary for qualified current/former federal employees with 2 years' federal experience plus Bar Membership

Position Location: United States District Court, 46 East Ohio Street, Indianapolis, IN

Remote work will also be considered.

Application Deadline: 4:00 pm (Eastern), October 2, 2026, or until filled

Applications received after this deadline may be considered only if position remains unfilled.

POSITION OVERVIEW:

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana is accepting applications for a temporary Staff Attorney to assist the Court for a 15-week period beginning on December 21, 2026. Staff Attorneys work within the Staff Attorney Office, which assists the Court in managing its prisoner civil rights and habeas corpus docket. For this position, the Temporary Staff Attorney will be managing a prisoner civil rights caseload. The Temporary Staff Attorney is appointed by the Chief Judge, but performs duties and responsibilities for all District Judges, including legal research, substantial drafting of proposed entries; screening of prisoner civil rights complaints; reviewing motions to determine issues involved and bases for relief; assisting judicial officers in conducting hearings, conferences, and trials; providingcase management of prisoner litigation; and providing information to other court personnel regarding prisoner cases.

Given the limited duration of this position, the Court will give priority to candidates with working knowledge of prisoner and constitutional law or federal clerkship experience. Remote applicants with relevant experience are encouraged to apply.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Candidates must have the following minimum qualifications: (1) law school graduation in the top quarter of the graduating class (top 25% preferred); (2) law review/journal experience; (3) good character and maturity; (4) excellent skills in research, case management, writing, proofreading, communication, and source and cite checking (including use of proper Bluebook form); (5) proficiency in computer-assisted legal research, Windows, andMS Word; (6) minimum of one year's experience(five preferred)in the practice of law, in a judicial clerkship, or other comparable position demanding high quality legal writing and management of a heavy volume of cases; and (7) ability and willingness to work collegially with others.

The Court is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Applicants are subject to a complete FBI fingerprint check and background investigation. Employment will be provisional and contingent upon the satisfactory completion of the required background investigation. The Federal Financial Reform Act requires direct deposit of federal wages for court employees. The United States District Court is a smoke-free environment.All judicial employees are required to adhere to the Code of Conduct. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or eligible to work in the United States.