Legal Research and Writing Attorney

Open Date: Sep 11, 2026
Close Date: Sep 18, 2026
Position Type: Full-Time Permanent
Job Vacancy #: PDS-2026-37
Location: 633 3rd Street, NW Washington, DC 20001

About The Job

PDS Overview:

PDS Overview: The Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia (PDS) is a federally funded, independent organization governed by an eleven-member board of trustees. PDS provides legal representation to individuals facing a loss of freedom in the District of Columbia’s criminal, delinquency, and mental health systems. PDS’s approximately 230 employees, comprising attorneys, social workers, professional counselors, mitigation specialists, investigative specialists, administrative, and technical staff, collaborate to advance the PDS mission. PDS’ main office is located at 633 3rd Street, NW, Washington, D.C. District of Columbia residency is not a requirement for employment.

Employment at the Public Defender Service (PDS) is neither federal nor District of Columbia government employment, and all employees are at-will.

Division Overview:

The Trial Division of the Public Defender Service zealously represents adults in criminal proceedings in the District of Columbia Superior Court (Superior Court) and children in delinquency matters. Attorneys are assigned to specific levels of cases based on experience and performance. As a result of intensive supervision and ongoing training, attorneys generally progress over the course of several years from litigating juvenile delinquency matters to litigating the most serious adult offenses. Trial Division staff attorneys also provide representation in a wide range of other legal matters through PDS’s Duty Day Program and the Superior Court’s Drug Court Program.

Position Description:

The Legal Research & Writing Attorney serves as a litigation support attorney within the Trial Division and is responsible for conducting legal research, analyzing criminal law and procedural issues, and drafting and editing legal pleadings, motions, memoranda, and related litigation documents.

The attorney assists trial attorneys with legal issues arising in motion practice, evidentiary hearings, trials, and appeals. The position requires the ability to produce high-quality written work under significant time constraints, exercise sound legal judgment, and work both independently and collaboratively as part of a defense team.

Major Duties:

Major duties include:

• Researching legal issues arising in criminal, delinquency, evidentiary, constitutional, and procedural matters in support of Trial Division cases;
• Drafting and editing legal pleadings, motions, memoranda, and related advocacy documents for evidentiary hearings, trials, and appeals;
• Assisting trial attorneys with legal issues arising in motion practice, evidentiary hearings, trials, and related litigation;
• Conducting in-depth legal research using online legal databases, law libraries, and other legal resources;
• Analyzing and interpreting statutes, regulations, case law, court rules, legal articles, and related authorities relevant to assigned matters;
• Staying abreast of new case law and legal developments affecting criminal defense practice in the District of Columbia;
• Updating and maintaining the division’s motions bank and related legal reference materials;
• Drafting sentencing arguments and memoranda on each form of trauma experienced by our clients, sourced with empirical studies, research data, and other scholarly journals and articles to support compelling mitigation narratives at sentencing;
• Creating and maintaining a sentencing bank organized by subject area and containing empirical research and other sentencing tools to assist lawyers in preparing and submitting robust sentencing mitigation for clients;
• Preparing Rule 35 motions and other post-conviction pleadings seeking sentence reductions for clients;
• Participating in Trial Practice Groups and other case preparation meetings for upcoming matters;
• Attending court hearings and trials as part of the defense team, as assigned; and
• Performing other duties as assigned that support Trial Division litigation and client representation.

Required Qualifications:

J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school; excellent research and writing skills; proven proficiency in utilizing legal research databases such as Westlaw and LexisNexis; exceptional analytical and critical thinking skills; ability to produce high-quality written work, often under significant time constraints; strong organizational and time-management abilities; membership in the D.C. Bar.

Preferred Qualifications:

Familiarity with D.C. Superior Court Rules, D.C. substantive criminal law and procedure. Prior criminal defense experience through law school clinics, internships, or other legal positions. Prior judicial clerkship and/or appellate experience.

Application Evaluation:

Applicants will be evaluated based on the quality of their application submissions, information provided by references that relates to the specific qualifications for the position, prior relevant experience, information obtained through the interview process, and their demonstrated commitment to public defense work and working with indigent populations.

Number of vacancies:

1

Compensation:

Starting salary range $117,962 - $125,827 DOE

Full performance gradel level: 15

Benefits:

PDS is funded by federal appropriations, and employees are entitled to participate in federal benefits plans, federal retirement systems, and the workers' compensation program. Transferring federal employees will receive recognition of creditable federal service for leave accrual and retirement purposes (if applicable).

Benefits include:

• Federal Employees Retirement Systems (retirement annuity)
• Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401K program)
• Federal Employees Health Benefits (health insurance)
• Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (life insurance)
• Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program
• Flexible Spending Accounts (for health care and dependent care)
• Long Term Care
• Public Transportation Subsidy (funding contingent)
• Employee Assistance Program
• Federal Occupational Health (access to health clinic and services)

How to Apply:

Applicants must submit : 

(1) a cover letter; 
(2) a resume that includes a list of three references (name, address, telephone number, and a statement of how each reference is able to evaluate your skills); 
(3) two legal writing samples, preferably a brief or other advocacy piece; and 
(4) an unofficial law school transcript or list of courses and grades 

Please email your application materials as a consolidated PDF to [email protected]. To ensure your application receives proper consideration, the subject line of your application email must include the job announcement number and the position title (i.e., PDS-2026-37: Legal Research & Writing Attorney). All application materials become property of PDS and will not be returned. PDS will not accept applications by postal mail, fax, or personal delivery.

For applicants with disabilities, this organization provides reasonable accommodations which will be decided on a case-by-case basis. To request a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or interview process, please contact Megan Simmons, Human Resources Specialist at [email protected]


Disclaimer

The Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia (PDS) is a federally funded, independent organization; governed by an eleven-member Board of Trustees, PDS provides legal representation to individuals facing a loss of freedom in the local criminal, delinquency, and mental health systems in the District of Columbia. PDS’s approximately 275 attorneys, social workers, investigative specialists, administrative, and technical staff collaborate with each other to advance the PDS mission. PDS’s main office is located at 633 3rd Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. District of Columbia residency is not a requirement for employment. PDS is funded by federal appropriations, and all employees are entitled to participate in the federal health and life insurance plans, the federal retirement plans (FERS, FERS-RAE, FERS-FRAE, CSRS, CSRS-Offset), and the Thrift Savings Plan. Transferring employees will receive recognition of creditable federal service for leave accrual and retirement purposes. Employment at PDS is neither federal nor District of Columbia government employment, and all employees are at-will.

PDS is an E-Verify participating agency. Please see the Right to Work Poster and the E-Verify Participation Poster for more information.

 

PDS is an Equal Opportunity Employer and E-Verify Participant.