Senior Staff Attorney

Muslim Advocates•Washington, DC

23d•$110,000 - $130,000•Remote

About The Position

Muslim Advocates (MA)—a national legal-advocacy, social-justice, and educational organization—seeks applications from talented and motivated attorneys wishing to join our growing legal team as a senior staff attorney. MA's movement-centered mission works with and for diverse Muslim and historically marginalized communities to build community power, fight systemic oppression, and demand shared wellbeing. We work in coalition with grassroots and community-based partners to dismantle discriminatory systems, including systems of state surveillance, mass incarceration, detention and deportation, and family regulation. We also work to defend movements from targeted state repression related to their principled dissent. Recognizing the limitations of any singular strategy, we use a combination of public education, policy work, systemic-change litigation, direct legal services, and technical assistance to movement leaders and community-based partners. The senior staff attorney will report to the legal director and play a key role in our litigation and advocacy across all areas of our work.

Requirements

At least 7 years of practice experience as an attorney
Subject-matter expertise and legal-advocacy experience in one or more of the following areas: immigration detention-and-deportation system students’ rights under the First Amendment and under Title VI of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 criminal legal system prisoners’ rights and carceral abolition legal frameworks concerning putative national security low-wage workers’ rights
Demonstrated experience in or commitment to movement and client-centered lawyering
Sound professional judgment
Rigorous critical-thinking skills
Strong oral and written communication skills
Exceptional time-management and organizational skills
Demonstrated ability to work and collaborate effectively in a remote environment as part of a team, with clients, and with myriad partners and allies
Demonstrated self-starter who readily takes accountability for all areas of their work
Ability to receive and implement feedback effectively
Flexibility and adaptation in response to shifting priorities
J.D. from an accredited university
Be admitted in good standing to the bar of any state and/or the District of Columbia
Be fluent in oral and written English
Be willing and able to travel as the demands of the position require

Nice To Haves

Experience litigating in federal and state courts, including in complex civil litigation
Experience with federal and state/local policy advocacy
Experience preparing administrative complaints directed to civil-rights bodies within federal and state/local agencies
Fluency in ASL (American Sign Language), ISL (International Sign Language), and/or one or more non-English languages (with a preference for Arabic, Urdu, Dari, Farsi, Pashto, Tajik, and/or Uzbek)
Demonstrated experience in: applying cultural humility in interactions with others applying trauma-informed approaches in interactions with others

Responsibilities

Litigation work, including but not limited to: identifying and weighing potential legal claims/arguments/strategies; client contact, advisals, and communications; drafting pleadings, motions, and briefs; strategizing for and conducting written and oral discovery; strategizing for, exploring, and guiding settlement negotiations
Provide technical expertise/assistance to partners
Develop relationships with grassroots and organizational partners and related, shared advocacy
Develop and present Know Your Rights (KYR) guidance
Develop trainings for advocates
Participate in ongoing advocacy coalitions
Federal and/or state/local policy advocacy, as required
Screen and follow up on intakes
In-depth, complex legal research and writing for both litigation and non-litigation advocacy
Oral advocacy and communications/media/public advocacy relating to both litigation and non-litigation work
Oversee interns and fellows