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Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., (FDSDI) is hiring an Administrative Officer, a high-level position that reports to the Executive Director. The Administrative Officer manages the administration and operations in support of two law offices, 145+ staff and interns, and supports our mission of providing diligent, zealous, and respectful criminal defense representation.

The Administrative Officer is a one-of-a-kind position. We are looking for a leader who can act independently, manage finite resources effectively, and understand the relationship between a Community Public Defender office and the U.S. Court system. The Administrative Officer may supervise at least three staff members with administrative, financial, or information technology responsibilities.

Duties and Responsibilities: The Administrative Officer acts as the principal advisor to the Executive Director on all aspects of office administration and management, and ensures compliance with national, state and local policies by acquiring knowledge of current requirements and staying informed of changes to the Guide to Judiciary Policy, the Defender Services Operations Manual, applicable state and federal statutes, GSA rules and regulations, and directives from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Defender Services Office, and other agencies as needed.

General administration, management, and supervision:

• Directly assists with day-to-day operations, process improvement, policy development, and short- and long-term strategic planning.
• Supervises and/or directs administrative, financial, human resources, and IT functions.
• Works to recognize issues and improve office management, efficiency, and effectiveness.
• Develops and maintains internal controls to ensure adequate separation of duties exists for financial, procurement, property management, and human resource functions.

Budget and financial management:

• Manages financial operations, develops spending plans, and oversees accounting functions, including the disbursement of appropriate funds.
• Formulates the annual budget, develops caseload projections, analyzes staffing needs and resource allocation, and prepares hiring plans.
• Prepares monthly variance reports, status of funds reports, and workload reports for review and approval by the Federal Defender.

Procurement of government goods and services:

• Determines the need for, and directs procurement of, supplies, equipment, furnishings, and professional services in compliance with judiciary procurement policy.
• Trains and supervises employees responsible for various procurement duties.

Human resources and personnel management:

• Advises on staffing, position classification and compensation, employee performance and evaluation, dispute resolution, benefits administration, and personnel policies, in collaboration with the Personnel Administrator.
• Develops strategies to recruit and retain a diverse workforce, in collaboration with the Personnel Administrator.
• Collaborates with the Personnel Administrator on a comprehensive onboarding program for all new employees and interns, and facilitates offboarding and exit interviews.
• Conducts performance evaluations for administrative staff.

Property management:

• Collaborates with case management, custodial, disposal, and procurement administrators to manage records storage systems and accountable property inventories.
• Prepares for the San Diego office remodel and space refresh project in 2025.

The Administrative Officer provides mentorship, ensures employees are adequately trained to perform their assigned duties, and manages leave and attendance. The position requires travel between the San Diego and El Centro offices and occasional out-of-district travel for attendance at administrative, case management, and/or financial conferences.

Qualifications:

Federal Defenders of San Diego seeks an Administrative Officer who is a trusted and reliable individual with a heart for public service, uses good judgment, and appreciates the importance of diversity and teamwork. The Administrative Officer must be able to work individually and collaboratively and perform their responsibilities with a strong sense of ethics and integrity. They understand and value well-run administration; budget and financial management; human resources; information technology, space, and facilities management; and procurement, property, and records management.

The successful Administrative Officer is a self-starter and innovative thinker who identifies issues and works to resolve them. If they don’t know the answer to a question, they pursue self-education and seek assistance until they do. They are organized and able to handle multiple tasks. They are dedicated to serving clients by supporting the office as a whole. They are respectful to their colleagues and show appreciation for their roles. Above all, they maintain high standards for treating clients and colleagues with empathy and understanding.

Requirements:

To qualify a person must have at least three years of general experience and three years of specialized experience. Some higher education from an accredited college or university, preferably with a concentration in public administration, public policy, business administration, management or related field, may substitute for some of the required experience. Current or prior Federal Defender or law office experienced is preferred, as is progressively more responsible administrative, technical, professional, supervisory, or managerial experience in at least one or more of these functional areas: budget and finance, human resources, purchasing or procurement. A bachelor’s or advanced degree from an accredited college or university is also preferred. Offers are contingent upon applicants being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of hire date.

 

Salary and Benefits:

Salary will be commensurate with experience and number of individuals supervised. The starting salary range is: JSP 11/1 ($82,633) to JSP 14/1 ($139,176). The position does include employee benefits including health and life insurance as well as a 401k plan. Salary is payable only by Electronic Funds Transfer (direct deposit).  This position is at will and is subject to the availability of funds. Employment is subject to a satisfactory background investigation. This position offers one day of telework per pay period. Full-time telework is not available.

Office Information:

The Federal Defenders of San Diego provides legal counsel for low-income individuals who face federal criminal prosecutions in our district, which covers San Diego and Imperial counties. Our attorneys represent clients at all stages of proceedings including pre-charge, at trial, on appeal, and post-conviction. Our staff of 145+ employees includes administrators, attorneys, case managers, investigators, paralegals, and social workers.

 

How to Apply:

Interested applicants are invited to apply by submitting a single pdf document that includes a cover letter, resume, and three references via email to the attention of:

Kasha Castillo, Executive Director

Hiring@fdsdi.com

Subject: Administrative Officer Position – San Diego

Position open until filled. Please, no telephone inquiries.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion:

Our office values diversity and is committed to equity and inclusion. We aspire to embody values of mutual respect, collaboration, openness, and humility that honor the people we represent. Our representation is better when members of the defense team and staff members have diverse backgrounds and experiences. In our hiring, we seek individuals who share these values. We embrace the unique backgrounds, social identities, and lived experiences our employees bring to our office. We are interested in applicants’ talent, diligence, and desire to see that all people are treated fairly and respectfully – no matter the allegation or circumstance.

The Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., (FDSDI) is hiring a temporary full-time Assistant Computer System Administrator (ACSA) in our San Diego office. This is a full-time, temporary position not-to-exceed September 30, 2025, depending on the start date. FDSDI is a nonprofit organization fully funded by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. We are not a government agency and as such are not government employees. FDSDI provides legal representation to indigent persons charged with federal crimes in the San Diego and Imperial Counties. A large part of the caseload involves immigration related offenses, drugs, fraud, bank robbery, forgery and internet related crimes.

Position Description: The ACSA will be primarily responsible for user support services, including but not limited to desktop/network hardware, software installation testing and training; troubleshooting, maintenance and repairs of system and equipment; inventory tracking, website maintenance/development and litigation support. The ACSA receives technical guidance from the office’s Supervisory Computer System Administrator & Computer System Administrator. The ACSA aids on all aspects of the administration of an integrated MS Windows network over a wide area network. The job duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Provide technical support and training for end-users on desktops, laptops and mobile devices.
• Support and maintain printers and scanners.
• Help end users with video conference equipment setup and connections.
• Support a variety of desktop applications including, MS Office O365 and Adobe Acrobat.
• Desktop and laptop imaging and deployment.
• Routine litigation support services, including media conversion, court hardware setup, software, peripheral equipment support.
• Acts as a litigation support and discovery specialist to process, organize, index and format discovery to assist in using the material for case preparation and trial.
• Creates and supports document databases, indexes, transcripts and images in Trial Director, Case Map, MS Access, Cellebrite, Magnet AXIOM and other litigation support applications.
• Administers databases, processes data and electronic files, performs OCR and transfers same to various formats. 
• Assists paralegals and attorneys with the production of discovery to clients, experts and others as necessary.

Position Requirements and Qualifications: To qualify for an Assistant Computer Systems Administrator, (ACSA) a person must be a high school graduate or equivalent. Must have a minimum of three years of general experience and two years of specialized Individual must also frequently lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Experience with law-office IT and litigation-support tools such as Trial Director, Magnet AXIOM, Eclipse, and CaseMap are highly desirable.

Salary and Benefits – Salary will be commensurate with experience and qualifications of applicant. Salary range: JS-9/1 starting at $68,297 to JS12/1 starting at $99,044. Robust benefits offered, including health, dental, and vision. Selected candidate will be subject to verification and offer of employment depends on a successful background verification. All claimed experience, certifications, training, and references will be checked. All positions are at-will and subject to the availability of funds. This is a full-time, temporary position not-to-exceed September 30, 2025, depending on the start date. This position offers one day of telework per month. Full-time telework is not available.

How to Apply– Interested applicants are invited to apply by submitting a single PDF document that includes a cover letter, resume, and three references via email to the attention of:

Sammy Lopez, Supervisory Computer Systems Administrator 

CAS_Employment@fd.org

Subject: ACSA Position – San Diego

Position open until filled. Please, no telephone inquiries.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion:

Our office values diversity and is committed to equity and inclusion. We aspire to embody values of mutual respect, collaboration, openness, and humility that honor the people we represent. Our representation is better when members of the defense team and staff members have diverse backgrounds and experiences. In our hiring, we seek individuals who share these values. We embrace the unique backgrounds, social identities, and lived experiences our employees bring to our office. We are interested in applicants’ talent, diligence, and desire to see that all people are treated fairly and respectfully – no matter the allegation or circumstance.

The Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., (FDSDI) has an opening for a temporary full-time Non-Capital Mitigation Specialist in our San Diego office. This is a full-time, temporary position not-to- exceed September 30, 2025, depending on the start date. FDSDI is a nonprofit organization fully funded by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. We are not a government agency and as such, are not government employees. FDSDI provides legal representation to indigent persons charged with federal crimes in the San Diego and Imperial Counties.

Position Description: The Non-Capital Mitigation Specialist will assist attorneys in investigating, analyzing, developing, and presenting mitigation evidence. Develop and maintain relationships with clients, their family members, local social service providers, pretrial service and probation officers, and other entities to support both the client and attorney. Interview clients and relevant persons in a culturally competent manner. Locate and conduct witness interviews to discover information to assist the attorney in advocating for pretrial release, and develop all mitigating circumstances in the client’s life to assist at trial or sentencing. Obtain necessary client signatures and ensure all release forms are current and timely. Investigate, validate, and report to attorney all aspects of client’s life history from multiple sources including vital records, social services records, educational records, employment and personnel records, military records, medical/health records, arrest reports, institutional records, community records, and interviews with persons relevant to the client. Determine what experts might be consulted and potentially retained to evaluate the client for substance abuse or mental illness. Facilitate client’s entry into treatment, housing, educational or vocational programs. Maintain sufficient knowledge of current research and trends in areas such as substance abuse, mental health, and effects of incarceration. Assist the attorney in court where requested, including preparing sentencing presentations and testifying. Demonstrated commitment to working with indigent, under-served, marginalized and diverse communities preferred.

Applicants must possess the ability to work both independently and in a team environment, communicate effectively both orally and in writing, be accurate and attentive to detail, compose correspondence independently, organize work, set priorities and meet critical deadlines. Applicants must be able to travel as necessary, including possible travel to Mexico. Other duties as assigned.

Position Requirements and Qualifications: Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and relevant experience at a minimum. A candidate with an advanced or graduate degree in social work is strongly preferred. A candidate with a degree in or related to a field such as social work, anthropology, psychology, sociology, law, criminal justice; or a bachelor’s degree with at least three years’ experience investigating and developing mitigation evidence after graduation is preferred. The applicant must pass a background investigation; have a valid California driver license and insured vehicle. Applicant must be able to work flexible hours. The ability to speak, read and write Spanish is preferred.

Salary and Benefits: Salary will be commensurate with experience. Salary range: JS-9/1 starting at $68,297 to JS-14/1 starting at $139,176. Robust benefits offered, including health, dental, and vision. Selected candidate will be subject to verification and a successful background investigation. All education, experience, training and certifications will be verified. All positions are at-will and subject to the availability of funds. This is a full-time, temporary position not-to-exceed September 30, 2025, depending on the start date. This position offers one day of telework per pay period. Full-time telework is not available.

How to Apply: Interested applicants are invited to apply by submitting a single PDF document that includes a cover letter, resume, and three references via email to the attention of:

Sherry O’Sullivan, Chief Investigator CAS_Employment@fd.org

Subject: Non-Capital Mitigation Specialist Position – San Diego

Position open until filled. Please, no telephone inquiries. 

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion:

Our office values diversity and is committed to equity and inclusion. We aspire to embody values of mutual respect, collaboration, openness, and humility that honor the people we represent. Our representation is better when members of the defense team and staff members have diverse backgrounds and experiences. In our hiring, we seek individuals who share these values. We embrace the unique backgrounds, social identities, and lived experiences our employees bring to our office. We are interested in applicants’ talent, diligence, and desire to see that all people are treated fairly and respectfully – no matter the allegation or circumstance.