Exam Bulletin - Deputy Attorney General IV

Department of Justice

Exam Code: EX-4746

Examination Plans Included:

  • DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV - Open

Final Filing Date: Applications are accepted on a continuous basis.

Classification Details

DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV: $11,993.00 - $16,096.00 per Month

View the DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV classification specification.

Application Instructions

This examination utilizes weekly cut-offs. Each cut-off (filing) date is anticipated to be on a Friday, excluding holidays. Cut-off dates are subject to change based on the needs of the Department of Justice. Please see below for the most current cut-off dates. Additional cut-off dates will be released monthly.

Upcoming Filing Cutoff Dates:

  • 12/2/2025
  • 12/5/2025
  • 12/12/2025
  • 12/19/2025
  • 12/26/2025

Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) must be received or postmarked by the filing date indicated above. Applications postmarked, personally delivered or received via interoffice mail after the filing date will be processed in the next group.

IMPORTANT NOTE: In order to be added to the eligibility list, candidates must complete the following steps by the associated cut-off date to be considered filed timely for that cut-off period.

1. Submit the Standard State Employment Application (STD 678) to EX-04746 using the “Apply Now” button above.

a) Please add your CA State Bar License number under Licenses/Certificates in the Education tab (2) of the online application.

2. Complete the Deputy Attorney General IV Examination on Assess.ai using the link located in the Test Components tab (4) of the online application.

a) Please provide proof of completion of the Deputy Attorney General IV exam in the Application Package tab (5), which is made available to you to screenshot after completion of the examination.

b) If you are unable to upload proof, you may also upload a word document or select the “Bypass File” option to provide the email you used to take the online exam and the date of completion.

Examination results will not be processed and merged onto the eligibility list until the STD 678 is received by the Testing and Selection Unit (TSU) and the corresponding examination can be identified. TSU is not responsible for contacting candidates who fail to submit either the online examination or application materials by the cut-off date. In addition, candidates must meet the Minimum Qualifications to receive examination results and be merged on to the eligibility list.

Who Should Apply:

The information below will help you determine which classification(s) is(are) appropriate for you. Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications as stated on this bulletin to compete in this examination.

Open and Open, Non-Promotional Examination(s):

  • DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV - Open

For all Classifications, once you have participated in any of the following examinations, you may not recompete for 12 months:

Exam Code(s):

    4746

For DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV, once you have participated in any of the following examinations, you may not recompete for 12 months:

Exam Code(s):

  • EX-04746

How To Apply:

Submit an Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) to apply for this examination.

Electronic applications can be submitted through your account at www.CalCareers.ca.gov.

You may apply by mail to:

  • Department of Justice
    Testing and Selection Unit
    ATTN: Deputy Attorney General IV Examination
    P.O. Box 944255
    Sacramento, CA 94244-2550

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678).

You may drop off your application and any applicable or required documents at:

  • Department of Justice
    Testing and Selection Unit
    1300 I Street, First Floor Lobby
    Sacramento, CA 95814
    8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
    ATTN: Deputy Attorney General IV Examination

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678). All applicants must provide proof of identification. Accepted forms of identification are: 1) a photo identification card or 2) two forms of signed identification.

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING TO ENSURE YOUR EXAM RESULTS ARE PROCESSED TIMELY: Examination results are either electronically sent through your CalCareers account or mailed to the address listed on your application (STD 678). In order to ensure timely receipt of communications please ensure you are checking your CalCareers account and/or mailing address regularly. The Examination Team is not responsible for contacting candidates who fail to submit their required application materials with the online Training and Experience Questionnaire examination as outlined on this bulletin.

If using the United States Postal Service for delivery, there is no guarantee that your application will be postmarked and arrive by the cut-off date. If your application does not have a postmark and arrives after the cut-off date, your application will be considered for the following cutoff. Therefore, to ensure timely delivery of your application, it is recommended that you use either electronic delivery, parcel service, or certified mail. Using one of these options will provide proof the application was sent prior to the cut-off date. Dates printed on Mobile Bar Codes, such as the Quick Response (QR) Codes available at the USPS, are not considered Postmark dates for the purpose of determining timely filing of an application.

Applications received after the cut-off date, regardless of the submission method, will be held to the next cut-off period unless timeline proof of submission can be provided.



Applications received without the required documents will be considered incomplete and may be rejected. To apply for this examination, please complete and return the following required documents:

  • Other - Examination Proof of Completion: Please provide proof of completion of the Deputy Attorney General IV Examination.

 

 

Special Testing Arrangements:

If you require assistance or alternative testing arrangements due to a disability, indicate on your application that you need reasonable accommodation. You will be contacted by a representative of the testing department to make the necessary arrangements. If you have not been contacted by the time you receive notification of testing, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

If you are unable to submit your application or complete the test due to a disability, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

Minimum Qualifications

All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this exam bulletin to be accepted to the examination.

00105705 - DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV

ALL LEVELS MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

All classes require active membership in The California State Bar. (Applicants who are not members of The California State Bar but who are eligible to take The California State Bar examination or are in their final year of law school will be admitted to the examination but will not be considered eligible for appointment until they are admitted to The State Bar.)

Applicants who are six months from meeting the required legal experience will be admitted to the examination, but must meet the total required years of experience prior to appointment.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Six years of legal experience in the practice of law*, one year of which must have been at a level of responsibility equivalent to Deputy Attorney General III or higher.



DEFINITION OF TERMS: 

*Legal experience in the “practice of law...” is defined as: (1) only that legal experience acquired after admission to any State Bar, or (2) experience as a judicial clerk for a federal court, California's state courts, or any other state's courts, or (3) legal experience acquired while practicing under a provisional license to practice law issued by the State Bar of California’s Provisional Licensure Program, to constitute experience in the practice of law. For an individual's judicial clerkship to qualify as “legal experience in the “practice of law,” the experience must have been gained after receipt of a Juris Doctor or equivalent degree.

“…level of responsibility equivalent to …” – means the applicant must have experience of appropriate type and length in a position at the same (or a higher) level of responsibility as the class specified.

Position Description

00105705 - DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV

Incumbents in this class are well-experienced attorneys with expertise in a broad or specialized area of law and have demonstrated their ability to independently perform assignments consisting of the more complex and sensitive legal work of the Office of the Attorney General and to consistently produce favorable results on these proceedings. A Deputy Attorney General IV represents and acts as counsel for large state departments, for a group of boards and commissions whose legal work is more difficult, and advises district attorneys, county counsels, grand juries, and other public agencies staffed principally by attorneys. Persons in this class are assigned litigation of great difficulty and handle cases that are likely to be appealed to the highest courts. They may act as lead persons over the work of other attorneys.

Positions exist in Alameda, Contra Costa, Fresno, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Diego, and San Francisco counties.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Honesty, integrity, reliability, fair, and conscientious.

ADDITIONAL CHARACTERISTICS:

All employees shall have general qualifications as described by California Code of Regulations, title 2, section 172.

Examination Information

This examination consists of the following component(s):

Component OrderComponent TypeComponent DuePercentage of Final Score
1Supplemental ReportWith Application100%

Components that are due with your application will be scored and will count toward your final examination result. Failure to submit these items may result in disqualification or elimination from the examination.

A final score of 70% must be attained to be placed on the eligible list.

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE QUESTIONNAIRE - 100%

The Training and Experience (T&E) Questionnaire consists of job-related questions designed to assess an applicant’s education, training, and experience with performing relevant job duties, as well as the possession of job-related knowledge, skills, and abilities. The exam will be scored using objective, point-based scoring criteria. The T&E will be conducted online through a third-party testing platform utilized by the Department of Justice.

Please be advised that the online testing platform, Assess.ai, works best when using the Google Chrome web browser. Other browsers, including Safari and Firefox, may be used as well, but we recommend Google Chrome. Internet Explorer should NOT be used when taking this examination. Please ensure you have downloaded the most recent version of your browser prior to accessing the examination.The examination is not timed and is accessible at any time of day, all days of the year. For technical assistance, please contact the Testing & Selection Unit (TSU) during normal business hours at the phone number or email address located in the Contact Information section below.

NOTE:  Please ensure the name used to take the examination matches the name on the STD 678. Incomplete examination responses, application packages, or otherwise missing information may lead to an inability to process a candidate’s examination. TSU is not responsible for contacting candidates who fail to submit either the online examination or application materials by the cut-off date. Examination results are anticipated to be mailed to candidates within 2-4 weeks of the cut-off date to which they applied. If you do not receive examination results within 4 weeks of the cut-off date to which you applied, please contact TSU using the information provided.

In addition to evaluating the applicant's relative knowledge, skill and ability as demonstrated by quality and breadth of education/experience, emphasis in each test component will be on measuring competitively, relative to job demands, each applicant's:

KNOWLEDGE OF:

1. The general principles of jurisprudence.
2. State and federal constitutional law and principles.
3. State and federal civil law and principles found in constitutions, case law, and statutes.
4. State and federal rules of evidence.
5. Professional and ethical rules as they relate to the practice of law and particularly the role of public attorneys.
6. The organization and structure of administrative, state, and federal court systems.
7. General courtroom protocol and procedures in the various courts.
8. State and federal rules and/or codes of civil procedure.
9. Applicable local, state, and federal authority to formulate and apply legal strategy and advise on legal options.
10. Appropriate methods of factual investigation and their relative advantages and disadvantages.
11. Techniques and strategies for conducting trials and administrative hearings.
12. How to make effective formal and informal oral presentations for various purposes and audiences.
13. The principles and practices for properly conducting legal research and checking for recent amendments to statutes.
14. How to conduct legal analysis.

ABILITY TO:

1. Identify and comply with procedural rules.
2. Reason logically to develop research and/or investigation strategies and/or plan the development of a project or case.
3. Analyze information to detect potential logical, legal, and/or factual flaws in arguments or assumptions.
4. Develop innovative solutions and strategies.

SKILL IN:

1. Properly identifying the nature of problems, generating alternatives, and implementing solutions and approaches that successfully address the problems.
2. Identifying issues relevant to a case given the available information and applicable law.
3. Determining what additional factual information is needed.

Eligible List Information

A Departmental Open eligible list for the DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL IV Classification will be established for:

  • Department of Justice

The names of successful competitors will be merged onto the eligible list(s) in order of final score regardless of test date. Eligibility expires 24 months after it is established. Applicants must then retake the examination to reestablish eligibility.

Veterans' Preference will be granted for this examination. Veterans' Preference is an assistance program for veterans, veteran widows and widowers, and spouses of 100% disabled veterans who seek employment with the state. Veterans' Preference is also extended to currently serving military members nearing their retirement or separation date.

You are not eligible for Veteran's Preference if you are:

  • A veteran who has been dishonorably discharged or released.
  • A veteran, widow or widower of a veteran, or spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran who currently has permanent civil service status. (Permanent civil service status is the status of an employee who is lawfully retained in his/her position after completion of the applicable probationary period. This does not include limited term).

Veterans' Preference is codified in Government Code Sections 18973 – 18979.

Veteran status is verified by the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Directions to apply for Veterans' Preference are on the Veterans' Preference Application (Std. Form 1093), which is available at www.CalCareers.ca.gov, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Career Credits are not granted for examination(s) administered on an Open basis or a Promotional basis.

Appeal Information

Candidates may file an appeal with the State Personnel Board (SPB) within 30 days of the postmarked date of any decision notice (e.g., Minimum Qualifications denial, exam results). Examination appeals are required to meet one of the following grounds to be accepted by the State Personnel Board; (1) fraud; (2) discrimination; (3) erroneous interpretation or application of minimum qualifications (MQs); or (4) a significant irregularity in the examination process. Appeals can be filed online at the website above or mailed to Appeals Division, State Personnel Board, 801 Capitol Mall, Sacramento, CA 95814-4806. Please refer to SPB's website for more information this process at https://www.spb.ca.gov/appeals/appeals.aspx

 

Additional Examinations

Under Section 432.7(e) of the Labor Code, persons seeking employment with the Department of Justice may be asked to disclose arrest or detention information regardless of whether or not the arrest or detention resulted in conviction, referral, or participation in diversion programs prior to appointment. Department of Justice regulations may require, as a minimum, pre-employment investigations consisting of fingerprinting; inquiry to local, State, and national files to disclose criminal records; verification of minimum qualifications (i.e., college transcripts); financial status; previous employment background; and personal interviews to determine applicant’s suitability for employment.

Testing Departments

  • Department of Justice

Contact Information

Questions regarding this examination should be directed to:

Department of Justice
Testing and Selection Unit
ATTN: Deputy Attorney General IV Examination
1300 I Street, Suite 720
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 210-6021
Fax: (916) 445-1218
dag@doj.ca.gov

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice). TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The State of California is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.

Drug Free Statement

It is an objective of the State of California to achieve a drug-free State work place. Any applicant for State employment will be expected to behave in accordance with this objective, because the use of illegal drugs is inconsistent with the law of the State, the rules governing civil service, and the special trust placed in public servants.

General Information

Examination and/or Employment Application (STD 678) forms are available at the California Department of Human Resources, local offices of the Employment Development Department, and through your CalCareer Account (www.CalCareers.ca.gov).

If you meet the requirements stated on this examination bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirements does not assure a place on the eligible list. Your performance in the examination described in this bulletin will be rated against a predetermined job-related rating, and all applicants who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

Department of Justice reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all applicants will be notified.

General Qualifications: Applicants must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, the ability to work cooperatively with others, and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists: Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.

High School Equivalence: Equivalence to completion of the 12th grade may be demonstrated in any one of the following ways: 1) passing the General Education Development (GED) Test; 2) completion of 12 semester units of college-level work; 3) certification from the State Department of Education, a local school board, or high school authorities that the competitor is considered to have education equivalent to graduation from high school; or 4) for clerical and accounting classes, substitution of business college work in place of high school on a year-for-year basis.

Accepted applicants must provide proof of identification at each in-person test session. Acceptable identification consists of a photo identification card or two forms of signed identification.
Application Methods:
Electronic (Your CalCareer Account)
By Mail
In Person (see bulletin for details)
Alternate Application Process

While we recommend that you utilize your CalCareer Account to take advantage of all the tools available, you may choose to apply for this examination without using your account. In this case, print and complete the Exam Application Package Checklist and include it if you submit a hard copy application.

Exam Application Package Checklist

Blank Application Form (STD678)

Accommodation Request (STD679)