Staff Attorney, Democracy 2025

Position Summary:

Are you a highly collaborative and detailed-oriented attorney eager to support the pro-democracy community through legal research, analysis, and engagement? If so, Democracy Forward Foundation (“Democracy Forward”) seeks a Staff Attorney to join its Democracy 2025 team. Democracy 2025 is Democracy Forward's infrastructure to support the entire pro-democracy movement.

The Staff Attorney will support Democracy 2025’s work to serve as a strategic hub to support the pro-democracy community in responding to increasing authoritarianism. This role sits at the intersection of legal analysis, supporting partners in the pro-democracy community, and knowledge management, and is ideal for a junior attorney who is energized by working across a broad network of partners and wants to contribute to the infrastructure of the pro-democracy community. Key responsibilities include tracking and analyzing litigation and legal developments, supporting and engaging coalition partners, and developing accessible legal resources for the Democracy 2025 community. 

This position is full-time. Democracy Forward’s office is located in Washington, DC, and the employee is expected to be in the office an average of 2 days per week. While candidates in the DC area are preferred, exceptional fully remote candidates will also be considered. Occasional travel (e.g., for conferences) is expected.

The Staff Attorney will report to the Deputy Director for Democracy 2025 and work closely with the Democracy 2025 Director, the full Democracy 2025 team, the entire Democracy Forward team, and partners across the pro-democracy legal movement.

Key Responsibilities:

Below are the key areas of responsibility for this role. The specifics of each responsibility may vary based on the needs of the organization and department.

Legal Research, Tracking & Analysis:

• Track and analyze developments in litigation and other legal actions across a wide range of subject areas related to responding to increasing authoritarianism, abuses of government power, attacks on civil rights, weaponization of government.
• Conduct legal research and analysis of emerging legal issues in response to the changing legal threat landscape.
• Develop written work product, including memoranda, issue area guides, litigation summaries, and similar resources to support the legal advocacy work of the Democracy 2025 community.
• Review and summarize litigation updates to ensure clarity and accuracy.
• Compose written work that analyzes and explains legal issues to generalist audiences.

Partner Engagement & Support:

• Support and participate in Democracy 2025’s work to support partner organizations, including attending regular working group meetings as a representative of the Democracy 2025 team as needed.
• Brief coalition partners and Democracy Forward staff on legal and litigation developments.
• Maintain relationships with partner organizations across the Democracy 2025 network, engaging with sound judgment and professionalism in both one-on-one and coalition settings.
• Collaborate across Democracy Forward teams to ensure coordinated and effective  approaches to emerging threats and opportunities.

Knowledge Management:

• Maintain and update litigation tracking databases, ensuring legal issues are tagged and organized accurately and consistently.
• Convert litigation data into regular summary reports in digestible, clear, and coherent manners.
• Support the team’s public-facing litigation tracking and analysis.
• Proactively monitor litigation trends, current events, and the activities of relevant organizations and agencies.

Qualifications:

We recognize that strong candidates may not meet 100% of the qualifications listed. If you believe you can contribute meaningfully to our team, we encourage you to apply.

Required:

• J.D. from an accredited law school. 
• Active membership in good standing in the bar of the District of Columbia, or membership in good standing in another state bar with the ability to become admitted in D.C.
• 2–6 years of legal experience.
• Interest in and knowledge of issues related to abuses of government power, civil rights, democratic governance, or related areas.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Clear legal writing.
• Ability to communicate legal topics clearly to generalist audiences.
• Demonstrated organizational skills and ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects and workstreams under tight deadlines
• Enthusiasm for coalition engagement; strong relationship-building and collaboration skills and clear verbal and written communication skills..
• Proven ability to work effectively across teams in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
• Willingness to be flexible and support priorities as they emerge.
• Experience with basic legal research tools, such as Westlaw and PACER. 
• Well-developed collaborative and interpersonal skills including demonstrated self-awareness, commitment to diversity and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across diverse cultures and backgrounds.

Preferred:

• Experience working in a nonprofit, mission-driven, or advocacy organization.
• Familiarity with Airtable, docket trackers, Google Suite, or willingness to learn.
• Existing familiarity with or relationships within the Democracy 2025 partner network.

Work Environment & Physical Demands:

• This role may require occasional travel for team retreats, conferences, or organizational meetings.
• This role may involve sitting for extended periods and working on a computer. Reasonable accommodations will be provided as needed.

The salary range for this position is $100,000 - $125,000 plus excellent benefits. Compensation is commensurate with experience.

Democracy Forward Foundation is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. We encourage applications from all qualified individuals. We strongly encourage people of color; LGBTQIA+ people; women; people with disabilities; and veterans to apply. Please note that all lawyer positions require a law degree and active membership in the bar of a state or the District of Columbia. 

Not sure you meet all of our qualifications? Research shows that men apply for jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria. Yet women and other people who are systematically marginalized tend to only apply if they meet every requirement.  If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply. We are dedicated to considering a broad array of candidates, including those with diverse workplace experiences and backgrounds. Whether you are new to mission-based legal and policy work, returning to work after a gap in employment, or simply looking to transition or take the next step in your career path, we welcome the opportunity to have you on our radar.  Please include in your cover letter the nature of your interest in legal and policy work promoting democracy and progress and what you hope to bring to our team and the role for which you are applying. 

Democracy Forward is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all, including those with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete this application, interview, or otherwise participate in the hiring process, please direct your inquiries to recruiting@democracyforward.org or 833-391-4732.