Trump’s hiring freeze prompts DOJ to withdraw job offers in AG’s Honors program: report
The Department of Justice is withdrawing job offers in the Attorney General’s Honors Program under the President Donald Trump federal hiring freeze, according to new report.
The Attorney General Honors Program, established in 1953, recruits law students or recent law graduates from top law schools such as Harvard, Duke, Georgetown, Stanford and the University of Virginia.
But Ministry of Justice notified those selected for the program, which serves as a recruitment pipeline for top public sector legal talent, that their offers were being withdrawn, several people familiar with the decision said The Washington Post.
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Sign at the US Department of Justice in Washington, DC (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The Ministry’s Office of Attorney Employment and Management distributed an email to those affected on Wednesday.
“Pursuant to the hiring freeze announced on January 20, 2025, your job offer has been withdrawn,” the email said, according to an email obtained by the Post.
Those familiar with the program said it could hire more than 100 lawyers a year, with recent hires assigned to the antitrust, national security, criminal and other divisions.
They told the Post that the program is key to recruiting new top talent Ministry of Justice to replace outgoing legal talent. The two-year program puts young lawyers on a career path to stay with the Department after the program ends.
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Seal of the Department of Justice in Washington, DC (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
The Post reports that it is uncertain whether the program will continue after federal hiring restarts.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Trump signed a series of executive orders on Inauguration Day this week, including those that trigger a federal hiring freeze as well as withdrawing the U.S. from Paris Climate Agreementand directing every department and agency to address the cost-of-living crisis.
U.S. President Donald Trump sings his second executive order during an inauguration celebration at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, on the first day of his second term, on January 20, 2025. (REUTERS/Carlos Barria)
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“As part of this freeze, no federal civilian position that is vacant as of noon on January 20, 2025 may be filled, nor may a new position be created except as otherwise provided by this memorandum or other applicable law,” the White House memo said. . “Except as noted below, this freeze applies to all executive departments and agencies regardless of their sources of operational and program funding.”
Those exempt from the hiring freeze include military personnel and other federal jobs related to immigration, national security, or public safety.
