Legal Director, Civil Rights & Racial Justice Program

Description

LAJC is seeking an attorney to serve as the Legal Director of our Civil Rights & Racial Justice (CRRJ) program. The Legal Director provides strategic vision for and guidance over CRRJ’s advocacy campaigns. Launched in 2017, CRRJ has already made its mark at the state and local level in pursuing campaigns that expose and challenge the criminal legal policies that contribute to poverty in low-income communities and communities of color across Virginia. Programmatic successes include: cementing civilian oversight of law enforcement in Charlottesville in the wake of deadly, unchecked white supremacist violence; introducing legislation to combat unconstitutional pretrial detention; obtaining a favorable result in a federal contempt proceeding against the Department of Corrections for failing to comply with settlement agreement mandating adequate healthcare to women in prison; successfully challenging as unconstitutional Virginia’s “habitual drunkard” law for criminalizing people experiencing homelessness and substance use disorder; and supporting community leaders’ efforts to secure the release of policing data in Richmond that revealed widespread racial disparities in departmental interaction with city residents.

LAJC’s programs use various tools to dismantle the systems that contribute to poverty in Virginia, including individual representation, organizing, policy advocacy, major litigation, and community education and technical assistance, and the Legal Director is expected to have enough familiarity with each tool to strategize around their use in any particular campaign. The Legal Director is also expected to mentor and directly supervise other staff, including attorneys, organizers, interns/fellows and volunteers; build relationships with directly impacted community members, members of the bench and bar, agency heads and elected officials; and work in coalition with other legal, non-profit and community-based advocacy organizations. LAJC also hosts the University of Virginia Law School’s Civil Rights Clinic, and the Legal Director will work with other staff to provide supervision and instruction to clinic students. Finally, the Legal Director serves as a member of LAJC’s management team, which advises the Executive Director as she decides organizational priorities for all programmatic work and provides stewardship of organizational resources.

Job Duties

Legal Director is expected to have enough familiarity with each tool to strategize around their use in any particular campaign. The Legal Director is also expected to mentor and directly supervise other staff, including attorneys, organizers, interns/fellows and volunteers; build relationships with directly impacted community members, members of the bench and bar, agency heads and elected officials; and work in coalition with other legal, non-profit and community-based advocacy organizations

Skills Required

Required Qualifications 

• Minimum 7 years’ membership in any state bar; if not admitted in Virginia, must be eligible for admission to the Virginia Bar without examination
• Mission-aligned experience (work or lived) partnering with and advocating in low-wealth communities and communities of color
• Familiarity with criminal legal policy/system (from work or lived experience)
• Ability to work and communicate effectively across lines of identity and difference
• Ability to effectively supervise across lines of identity and difference
• Ability to work effectively both independently and collaboratively
• Strong oral advocacy, research and writing skills
• Willingness to work a flexible schedule that may include evening and weekend events, as well as occasional travel

Preferred Qualifications

• Federal civil rights litigation experience
• Policy advocacy at the agency and legislative level
• Familiarity with organizing campaigns and/or community lawyering
• Prior advocacy experience (work or lived) using an explicit race equity lens
• Minimum 3 years’ prior supervisory experience (in official capacity as supervisor or substantially similar work without official title)

Comfort with technology and data review

Additional Info

Location

• Richmond or Charlottesville, Virginia but statewide travel is necessary

Benefits

• Generous leave
• Excellent family health, dental and vision insurance
• 403(b) retirement plan & loan repayment assistance
• Personal professional development budget & paid bar dues

Generous leave

• Excellent family health, dental and vision insurance
• 403(b) retirement plan & loan repayment assistance
• Personal professional development budget & paid bar dues

Generous leave

• Excellent family health, dental and vision insurance
• 403(b) retirement plan & loan repayment assistance
• Personal professional development budget & paid bar dues

Application Instructions

Email a cover letter, resume, three references, and a writing sample to Angela Ciolfi, Executive Director, at hiring@justice4all.org. The cover letter should highlight any experience (lived or worked) advocating for justice for people who experience marginalization because of their race or economic status and/or specialized skills, such as data analysis, technology skills, or language fluency.

Applications will start being reviewed immediately and on a rolling basis with an expectation that an offer will be made around April 17, 2020. Questions? Contact Adeola Ogunkeyede, adeola@justice4all.org (through April 17, 2020) or Angela Ciolfi at hiring@justice4all.org (after April 17, 2020).