How to hire an assistant attorney general

How to hire an assistant attorney general, step by step

Here's a step-by-step assistant attorney general hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an assistant attorney general job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new assistant attorney general
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an assistant attorney general do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring an assistant attorney general, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   An assistant attorney general's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, assistant attorney generals from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents assistant attorney general salaries for various positions.

   Type of Assistant Attorney General	Description	Hourly rate
   Assistant Attorney General	Lawyers advise and represent individuals, businesses, and government agencies on legal issues and disputes.	$30-73
   Legal Extern	Legal externs are law students who took the opportunity to do on-the-job training at a law firm. Instead of monetary compensation, they receive academic credits... Show more	$11-44
   Housing Counselor	A Housing Counselor works directly with clients and organizations to support moderate and low-income clients in overcoming barriers to housing and financial stability. They represent the homeowner in interventions and/or mediation proceedings with the mortgage servicer, lender, and/or other stakeholders.	$20-69

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Litigation
   • Legal Research
   • State Agencies
   • Legal Advice
   • Appeals
   • Civil Litigation
   • Federal Courts
   • Legal Issues
   • Administrative Law
   • State Courts
   • Federal Agencies
   • Administrative Hearings
   • Grand Jury
   • Complex Litigation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage, organize and analyze documents and information produce pursuant to subpoenas.
   • Represent state agencies and employees in civil litigation and administrative hearings while performing extensive motion preparation and pretrial discovery.
   • General trial and appellate counsel for major civil litigation involving state and federal constitutional questions and matters of statutory construction.
   • Investigate and prosecute health care providers who defraud Medicaid and Medicare.
   • Investigate and prosecute Medicaid fraud, as well as patient abuse and neglect cases.
   • Provide mediation services for consumers in Nebraska.

   More assistant attorney general duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your assistant attorney general job description helps attract top candidates to the position. An assistant attorney general salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for an assistant attorney general in Mississippi may be lower than in California, and an entry-level assistant attorney general usually earns less than a senior-level assistant attorney general. Additionally, an assistant attorney general with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average assistant attorney general salary

   $99,341yearly

   $47.76 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level assistant attorney general salary

   $64,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average assistant attorney general salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$116,006	$56
   2	Massachusetts	$107,457	$52
   3	Colorado	$103,587	$50
   4	Oregon	$101,295	$49
   5	Washington	$99,842	$48
   6	Alaska	$95,239	$46
   7	Illinois	$89,266	$43
   8	Texas	$86,720	$42
   9	Rhode Island	$83,403	$40
   10	North Carolina	$82,866	$40
   11	Iowa	$81,242	$39
   12	Georgia	$79,100	$38
   13	North Dakota	$73,889	$36
   14	Minnesota	$73,278	$35
   15	Arizona	$73,143	$35
   16	Montana	$71,880	$35
   17	Wyoming	$71,722	$34
   18	Florida	$71,156	$34
   19	Missouri	$66,512	$32
   20	Oklahoma	$64,261	$31

   Average assistant attorney general salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Commonwealth	$104,548	$50.26	5
   2	Colorado State Express	$101,165	$48.64
   3	State of North Dakota	$100,706	$48.42	3
   4	Iowa State Association of Counties	$97,757	$47.00
   5	Loup Logistics	$97,259	$46.76
   6	Fort Bend County	$97,018	$46.64	2
   7	My Florida Regional Mls	$96,779	$46.53
   8	Attorney General of Iowa	$96,513	$46.40
   9	BNSF Railway	$95,815	$46.06
   10	Nueces County	$93,105	$44.76	6
   11	Missouri Enterprise	$91,828	$44.15	30
   12	The State of Oregon	$91,645	$44.06	4
   13	Louisiana State Police	$88,487	$42.54
   14	Lighthouse	$81,667	$39.26
   15	U&s Services, Inc.	$80,523	$38.71
   16	Lake County	$80,491	$38.70	2
   17	Touro College	$80,091	$38.51
   18	Iowa Department of Transportation	$75,161	$36.14
   19	Orange County High School	$70,651	$33.97
   20	City of Atlanta	$70,457	$33.87

4. Writing an assistant attorney general job description

   A job description for an assistant attorney general role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's an assistant attorney general job description:

   Assistant attorney general job description example

   The Ohio Attorney General's Office has played a vital role in shaping Ohio's past and present and the work it does today helps chart the state's future. The office consists of nearly 30 distinct sections that advocate for consumers and victims of crime, assist the criminal justice community, provide legal counsel for state offices and agencies, and enforce certain state laws. In these and other capacities, staff members interact with tens of thousands of Ohioans each year.
   
   The Ohio Attorney General's Office is seeking an Assistant Attorney General for an opening in our Criminal Justice Section. This position will work a hybrid in-person/remote schedule. There may be changes to this schedule based on training and operational needs. The headquarter location is our Columbus, OH Office.
   
   The Criminal Justice Section is seeking an Assistant Attorney General who ideally has at least 2 years of practice experience; as well as excellent oral, written, and client communication skills for an opening in our Corrections Unit. The successful candidate will have sufficient experience and judgment to eventually function independently in a supervised relationship. Duties include representing the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and Department of Youth Services; defending these departments and their employees against lawsuits brought by inmates.
   What's in it for you:
   
   At the State of Ohio, we take care of the team that cares for Ohioans. We provide a variety of quality, competitive benefits to eligible full-time and part-time employees. For a list of all the State of Ohio Benefits, visit our Total Rewards website ! Our benefits package includes:
   
   Medical Coverage Quality, affordable, and competitive medical benefits are offered through the Ohio Med PPO plan. Dental, Vision and Basic Life Insurance Dental, vision and basic life insurance premiums are free after one year of continuous service. Time Away From Work and Work/Life Balance Paid time off, including vacation, personal, and sick leave 11 paid holidays per year Childbirth/Adoption leave Ohio Public Employees Retirement System OPERS is the retirement system for State of Ohio employees. The employee contributes 10% of their salary towards their retirement. The employer contributes an amount equal to 14% of the employee's salary. Visit the OPERS website for more information. Employee Development Funds The State of Ohio offers a variety of educational and professional development funding that varies based on whether you are a union-exempt employee or a union-represented employee. Deferred Compensation The Ohio Deferred Compensation program is a 457(b) voluntary retirement savings plan. Visit the Ohio Deferred Compensation website for more information.
   
   Qualifications
   Licensed to practice law in the State of Ohio pursuant to Section 4705.01 of the Ohio Revised Code.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find assistant attorney generals for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any assistant attorney generals they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level assistant attorney generals with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your assistant attorney general job on Zippia to find and recruit assistant attorney general candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit assistant attorney generals, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new assistant attorney general

   Once you've found the assistant attorney general candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new assistant attorney general first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire an assistant attorney general?