Staff Attorney, Senior Staff Attorney or Senior Counsel, Immigrants' Rights Project [Term-Limited]
About The Position
The ACLU seeks applicants for the full-time position of Staff Attorney, Senior Staff Attorney or Senior Counsel in the Immigrants’ Rights Project of the ACLU’s National office in New York, NY or San Francisco, CA. This is a hybrid role that has in-office requirements of two (2) days per week or eight (8) days per month. This is a 2-year term-limited position. The Immigrants’ Rights Project is part of the Legal Department of the national ACLU and has offices in New York and San Francisco. For nearly 40 years, the Project has litigated in trial and appellate courts across the country, including the U.S. Supreme Court, to protect the civil rights and civil liberties of immigrants and seek equal justice under the law. Our work has focused on due process, access to the courts, unfair detention, equal treatment, and state and local laws and policies. For example, we have challenged attacks on birthright citizenship; removals under the Alien Enemies Act; the targeting of student activists for arrest, detention, and deportation; family separation; the Muslim ban; multiple attacks on the asylum system; indefinite and mandatory detention; immigration detainers; state and local anti-immigrant laws; racial and language profiling connected to immigration enforcement; and attempts to eliminate judicial review. We work closely with partners at the national ACLU and affiliates, as well as allied organizations, to pursue litigation and to engage in and support other forms of advocacy and education. This position is part of a collective bargaining unit. It is represented by ACLU Staff United (ASU).
Requirements
- J.D. degree and active Bar membership
- A minimum of two years complex civil litigation experience in federal courts is strongly preferred
- Demonstrated ability to work independently as well as within a team; ability to foster and contribute to a collaborative team environment
- Excellent legal research and writing skills
- Demonstrated ability to perform complex legal analytical work
- Demonstrated ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively
- Self-motivation and diligence, with a proven ability to meet firm deadlines and manage competing priorities in a dynamic environment.
Nice To Haves
- Fluency in Spanish strongly preferred
- Fluency in other languages commonly spoken by immigrants in the U.S. preferred
- Demonstrated experience working in immigrant community settings strongly preferred
- Experience working with reporters and the media preferred
Responsibilities
- Conduct impact litigation and advocacy to advance and enforce immigrants’ rights.
- Litigating in federal courts throughout the country and potentially in state courts
- Handling a substantial caseload in federal court, working closely with other staff attorneys, local counsel, immigrant rights organizations, and clients
- Conducting legal research and writing legal memoranda
- Fact-gathering through interviews and investigations
- Analyzing legislation for potential litigation
- Drafting pleadings and briefs, engaging in discovery and motion practice, and conducting evidentiary hearings and oral arguments
- Providing technical assistance and expert legal advice to local ACLU affiliates, cooperating attorneys and others who seek assistance from the Project
- Conducting policy advocacy on immigrants’ rights
- Developing new cases and non-litigation advocacy projects
- Engaging in public speaking and articulating ACLU views to a variety of audiences on a broad range of immigrants’ rights issues
- Supervising paralegals and legal interns
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
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
