The Justice Department is offering bonuses of up to $25,000 to new hires, as the agency reportedly struggles to attract talent to replace thousands of lawyers lost under the Trump administration. Recent job postings for the DOJ’s civil division advertise that “well-qualified candidates may be eligible for a signing bonus of up to $25,000,” while internally the agency is paying attorneys in the division bonuses of up to $220 per pay period through Thanksgiving, Bloomberg Law reports.
Internal Recognition and Challenges
“It has been my privilege to work alongside you over the past year,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate told staff in an email Monday, according to the outlet. “While I wish I could do more to fully express my appreciation for all that you do, I hope this incentive provides some tangible recognition of your efforts and the value we place on your continued service to the Civil Division.”
The incentives come as the DOJ reportedly faces a talent-retention crisis, a dramatic reversal from its traditional position as a destination for top legal talent. Thousands of lawyers have left the agency since Trump took office. The Appellate Section alone has lost more than 40 percent of its attorneys since last February, the DOJ disclosed in a recent filing.
Impact on Recruitment
“What we are seeing is a total drop in who is applying,” William Treanor, the former dean of Georgetown University Law Center, told the American Bar Association late last year. “It’s very, very dramatic. It’s gone from a good amount of our graduating class to virtually no one applying for jobs at the Justice Department.”
The Independent has contacted the Justice Department for comment. Active DOJ lawyers have hinted at difficulty inside the legal agency, which has been buffeted by challenges to the Trump administration’s most controversial actions, especially its mass deportation arrests.
In February, a DOJ lawyer in Minnesota told a federal judge they were overwhelmed by their workload, as hundreds of people sought to appeal their detention. “The system sucks,” DOJ attorney Julie Le reportedly said in court. “I wish you would just hold me in contempt of court so I can get 24 hours of sleep.”
Resignations and Policy Disputes
Attorneys have also resigned en masse from the DOJ over policy differences. A group of federal prosecutors reportedly left the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office in protest over the administration’s reluctance to investigate the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in January. The DOJ itself has also reportedly fired lawyers tied to past investigations into the president.
Others may have been dissuaded from joining the DOJ over reported changes to its hiring process. Prospective hires have reportedly been asked to detail a Trump executive order or policy that is personally significant to them, a move critics have charged is akin to a politicized loyalty oath.
Policy Changes and Workforce Reductions
Amid these challenges, the Justice Department has suspended a policy requiring U.S. attorneys' offices to hire prosecutors with at least a year of experience practicing law. Overall, the Justice Department, which includes law enforcement agencies including the FBI and DEA, has cut more than 4,000 employees since Trump took office, including about 2,600 from the FBI, Reuters reports.
