New

Staff Attorney, Senior Staff Attorney, or Senior Counsel, National Prison Project

New York, New York, United States; Washington, District of Columbia, United States

ABOUT THE JOB

The ACLU seeks a full-time position of Staff Attorney, Senior Staff Attorney, or Senior Counsel in the National Prison Project of the ACLU’s National office in New York, NY or Washington, D.C. This is a four-year, limited term position. This is a hybrid position that has in-office requirements of two (2) days per week or eight (8) days per month. This position may be approved for remote work from a different U.S. location

The National Prison Project works to ensure that conditions in prisons, jails, juvenile detention centers, and immigration detention facilities comply with the Constitution, domestic law, and international human rights principles. NPP has successfully litigated on behalf of incarcerated and detained people in more than 25 states, and is the only organization litigating conditions of confinement cases nationwide. Our priorities include reducing overcrowding, improving health care, eliminating violence and maltreatment, and increasing oversight and accountability in prisons, jails, and other places of detention. We also work to reverse the policies that have given the United States the highest incarceration rate in the world and led to extreme over-representation of people of color in our country’s prisons, jails, and immigration detention facilities.  

This position is part of a collective bargaining unit. It is represented by ACLU Staff United (ASU). 

WHAT YOU'LL DO 

Reporting to the Deputy Project Director of the National Prison Project, the Staff Attorney / Senior Staff Attorney / Senior Counsel should be prepared to contribute to all aspects of the Project’s litigation and non-litigation work. This position will have a particular emphasis on challenging immigration detention conditions and the use and abuse of immigration detention in the federal government’s mass deportation system, and will coordinate closely with counterparts in the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project.

This is an ideal opportunity for an attorney committed to justice, transformative change, and the power of legal advocacy to shift narratives and systems.

YOUR DAY TO DAY

  • Litigating in federal courts, including appellate courts, throughout the country  
  • 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 
  • 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 prisoners’ rights, criminal justice, and immigration detention issues 
  • 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 prisoners’ rights, criminal justice and civil liberties issues 

FUTURE ACLU'ERS WILL 

  • Be committed to advancing the mission of the ACLU
  • Center and embed the principles of equity, inclusion and belonging in their work by demonstrating commitment to diversity with an approach that respects and values multiple perspectives
  • Be committed to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and conflicts

WHAT YOU'LL BRING

  • J.D. degree and active Bar membership  
  • Complex civil litigation experience in federal courts  
  • Demonstrated experience working with immigration detention, and issues related to conditions of confinement.  
  • A demonstrated ability to work independently as well as within a team. Ability to foster and contribute to a collaborative team environment is essential 
  • Excellent legal research and writing skills 
  • Demonstrated ability to perform complex legal analytical work 
  • Demonstrated ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively 
  • Self-motivated, diligent and able to meet strict deadlines in a dynamic environment 
  • Ability to travel required 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Fluency in Spanish strongly preferred; fluency in other languages commonly spoken by immigrant detainees preferred 
  • Demonstrated experience working in immigrant detention and immigrant community settings strongly preferred 
  • Experience in class action litigation 
  • Experience working with reporters and the media on criminal justice and immigration issues 

COMPENSATION

The ACLU has a litigator scale that determines pay for attorneys in our Legal Department. The range of salaries are the following, based on year of law school graduation (please consult the hiring manager for specific salary details, based on individual circumstances)

  • 0-2 years since law school graduation: $92,374-$115,393
  • 3-5 years since law school graduation: $129,244-$152,480
  • 6-10 years since law school graduation: $159,461- $179,891
  • 11-15 years since law school graduation: $183,255-$193,657
  • 16-20 years since law school graduation: $195,485-$200,519
  • 21-25 years since law school graduation: $201,534-$205,663
  • 26-30+ years since law school graduation: $206,654- $210,677

The ACLU is committed to equity, transparency, and clarity in pay. These salaries are reflective of positions based in New York, NY where are National Offices are headquartered.  Salaries are subject to a regional pay adjustment if authorization is granted to work outside of the location listed in this posting.  

For details on our pay structure, please visit: https://www.aclu.org/careers/ACLU_Geographic_Pay_Structure-July_2024.pdf

WHY THE ACLU

For over 100 years, the ACLU has worked to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBTQ+ community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties cases and issues to defend all people.

We know that great people make a great organization. We value our people and know that what we offer is essential not just their work, but to their overall well-being. 

At the ACLU, we offer a broad range of benefits, which include:

  • Time away to focus on the things that matter with a generous paid time-off policy
  • Focus on your well-being with comprehensive healthcare benefits (including medical, dental and vision coverage, parental leave, gender affirming care & fertility treatment)
  • Plan for your retirement with 401k plan and employer match
  • We support employee growth and development through annual professional development funds, internal professional development programs and workshops

OUR COMMITMENT TO ACCESSIBILITY, EQUITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Accessibility, equity, diversity and inclusion are core values of the ACLU and central to our work to advance liberty, equality, and justice for all. For us diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion are not just check-the-box activities, but a chance for us to make long-term meaningful change.  We are a community committed to learning and growth, humility and grace, transparency and accountability. We believe in a collective responsibility to create a culture of belonging for all people within our organization – one that respects and embraces difference; treats everyone equitably; and empowers our colleagues to do the best work possible. We are as committed to anti-oppression, anti-ableism, and anti-racism internally as we are externally. Because whether we’re in the courts or in the office, we believe ‘We the People’ means all of us.

With this commitment in mind, we strongly encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status and record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.    

The ACLU is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need assistance applying online, please email benefits.hrdept@aclu.org. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.

 

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