Paralegal, Women's Rights Project & Abortion Criminal Defense Initiative

ACLU - National Office • New York, NY

5d • Hybrid

About The Position

The ACLU seeks applicants for the full-time position of Paralegal to support two litigation groups: the Abortion Criminal Defense Initiative (ACDI) and the Women’s Rights Project (WRP) at the ACLU’s National office in New York, NY. This is a hybrid role that has in-office requirements of two (2) days per week or eight (8) days per month.
The ACDI is a first-of-its-kind program of the ACLU to confront the criminalization of abortion care in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, including the criminalization of health care providers, patients, abortion funds and others who assist people obtaining abortion care. In addition to direct advocacy, the ACDI is developing and supporting a network of experienced criminal defense attorneys to defend those facing criminal prosecutions or investigation related to abortion care in states across the country.
Since its founding by Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 1972, the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project has been a trailblazer in fighting for gender equity under law. We engage in systemic legal reform to ensure that everyone has the freedom to live, work, and learn free from stereotypes, harassment, and violence based on sex. Doing gender justice work as part of the broad civil liberties and civil rights agenda of the ACLU reflects the reality that women are part of other social change movements and that we must work together if we are to achieve a just society for all.
We will review applications on a rolling basis, but priority consideration will be given to those who submit applications by June 15, 2026.

Requirements

• Must take initiative, be highly organized and detail-oriented, and possess strong interpersonal and time management skills.
• Excellent research, writing, and communication skills.
• Ability to work independently as well as within a team while maintaining a high level of efficiency and professionalism.
• Ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously and see projects through to completion.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor’s degree or one to two years of paralegal experience.
• Basic knowledge of the Blue Book.
• Basic knowledge of Westlaw Next.
• Strong computer skills with advanced knowledge in Microsoft Office Suite e.g. Outlook, Word, Excel, SharePoint, OneDrive, etc.
• Experience creating tables of contents, tables of authorities, mail merges, and creating/inserting macros.

Responsibilities

• Provide litigation support, preparing briefs for filing, and conducting administrative and research projects as needed to support the work of the ACDI and WRP.
• Produce and file briefs, motions, and other pleadings in state courts around the country, including by providing cite-checking, copy-editing, tables-building and other support.
• Assist in tracking of key litigation and legal developments to identify trends and advocacy opportunities for each initiative.
• Support attorneys in each project in management of relationships with stakeholders, partners and cooperating attorneys, and clients.
• Assist in design, planning and execution of ACDI network attorney trainings and other educational resources.
• Work with ACLU attorneys and communications department partners on development of communications assets.
• Manage administrative tasks including attorney calendar management, expensing and invoicing, binder compilation, time tracking, and coordination of travel, as needed.
• Conduct legal and factual research using Westlaw, academic databases, and the Internet.
• Maintain case files and internal litigation tracking systems including case summaries and calendar of litigation deadlines and court dates.
• Provide administrative support for the managers’ review of applications for intern, fellow, and other staff positions, such as scheduling meetings, preparing materials, and taking minutes as well as arranging travel, preparing expense reports, tracking expenses and case costs, and processing invoices.
• Assist in the development and maintenance of ACDI’s and WRP’s website and other public information outlets.
• Work jointly with interns and other staff and communicate routine and/or procedural guidance on projects assigned by managers.
• Engage in special projects and other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Generous paid time-off policy
• Comprehensive healthcare benefits (including medical, dental and vision coverage, parental leave, gender affirming care & fertility treatment)
• 401k plan and employer match
• Annual professional development funds
• Internal professional development programs and workshops

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Associate degree