Description
United States Bankruptcy Court
Western District of Washington
1717 Pacific Avenue
Tacoma, WA 98402
Vacancy Announcement #25-01
Position: Career Law Clerk
Position Type: Part Time – Permanent (average of 20 hours/week)
Start Date: December 1, 2026 (Approximate)
Location: Tacoma, Washington
Salary Range: JSP 11-1 to 14-1 ($41,552 to $69,983, part-time salary) DOE
Opening Date: December 1, 2025
Closing Date: Open until filled
Preference given to applications received by March 1, 2026
Area of Consideration: Nationwide
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Position Overview
This in-person position serves as a part-time Career Law Clerk to the Honorable Mary Jo Heston, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge in the Western District of Washington at Tacoma. Duties include extensive legal research, writing on a full range of issues arising in bankruptcy and federal court litigation, and miscellaneous administrative duties. This position requires strong organizational and interpersonal skills. This position is an average of 20 hours/week and shared with another part-time Career Law Clerk.
Minimum Qualifications
To qualify for the position of law clerk on the personal staff of a federal judge at JSP grade 11, a person must be a law school graduate (or be certified as having completed all law school studies and requirements and merely awaiting conferment of degree) from a law school of recognized standing, and have one or more of the following attributes:
- Grade Point Average of 3.25 or higher, or standing within the upper third of the law school class from a law school on the approved list of either the American Bar Association or the Association of American Law Schools;
- Experience on the editorial board of a law review of such a school;
- Graduation from such a school with an LLM degree; or
- Demonstrated proficiency in legal studies that, in the opinion of the judge, is the equivalent of one of the above.
For appointment at a JSP grade 12, applicants must meet the qualifications for a JSP grade 11, possess one additional year of full-time legal work experience after graduation from law school, and be a member of the bar of a state, territory, or Federal Court of general jurisdiction.
For appointment at a JSP grade 13, applicants must meet the qualifications for a JSP grade 12 and have two years of full-time legal work experience.
For appointment at a JSP grade 14, applicants must meet the qualifications for a JSP grade 12 and have three years of full-time legal work experience, with two of the three years serving as a law clerk in the federal judiciary.
Preferred Qualifications
The qualified applicant should have an excellent academic record, demonstrate exceptional research and writing skills, have a strong work ethic, and be able to work both independently and in a team environment. Additional preferred qualifications include strong organizational, time-management, and problem-solving skills. An interest and any related experience in bankruptcy is preferred but not required.
Benefits Information
Selected applicant will be required to complete a six-month probationary period. Failure to successfully complete the probationary period may result in termination of employment. Court employees are considered “at-will” and are not covered by the Office of Personnel Management’s civil service classifications or regulations. They are, however, entitled to similar benefits as other federal government employees. These benefits include:
- Eleven paid holidays per year
- Medical coverage with pre-tax employee premiums. (Part-time employee premium proration applies.)
- Dental, vision, group life insurance and long-term care options
- Flexible Benefits Program (pre-tax flexible spending for health care, dependent care and commuter/parking costs)
- Participation in the Thrift Savings Plan (similar to 401K plan, with employer matching up to 5%) and Federal Employees Retirement System
More information about benefits can be found here: https://www.uscourts.gov/careers/benefits
Application Procedure
Applicants should complete an Application for Judicial Federal Employment, Form AO-78 http://www.uscourts.gov/forms/AO078.pdf. Please submit a letter of interest, resume, writing sample, list of references, and law school transcript along with the completed Form AO-78 in a single PDF via OSCAR (https://oscar.uscourts.gov/) or by email to carrie_selby@wawb.uscourts.gov. The subject line should read: Career Law Clerk #25-01
This court provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and interviewing process, please notify Human Resources at hr_wawb@wawb.uscourts.gov. The decision on granting reasonable accommodations will be made on a case-by-case basis.
The Court reserves the right to modify the conditions of this job announcement, to withdraw the announcement, or to fill the position sooner than the closing date, any of which may occur without prior written or other notice. In the event that a position becomes vacant in a similar classification, within a reasonable time from the original announcement, management may elect to select a candidate from the applicants who responded to the original announcement without posting the position. More than one position may be filled from this announcement.
Other Information
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court is part of the federal Judicial branch of government and is independent of the Executive and Legislative branches.
Applicant must be a U.S. citizen or eligible to work in the United States.
As a condition of employment, the selected candidate will be subject to an FBI fingerprint and background check. The selectee may be appointed provisionally, and retention will depend upon a favorable suitability determination of the background check. All information provided by applicants is subject to verification and background investigation.
The United States Bankruptcy Court requires employees to adhere to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees.
Electronic fund transfer (direct deposit) participation for net pay is required.
See the Court’s website at: www.wawb.uscourts.gov
Equal Opportunity Employer
