Policy Counsel - State Policy

Description:

What You'll Do
Strategy Development and Policy Recommendation

•  Own priority issues for CRL, build subject-matter expertise, lead or participate in issue working groups, and drive the strategy that turns policy goals into results.
• Track legislative and regulatory developments in real time and get ahead of them, flagging risks and openings before they become urgent.
• Analyze proposed legislation and regulations for their real-world impact on consumers, particularly people of color and low-income people, and translate that analysis into CRL's position.
• Shape draft legislation and regulatory proposals through hands-on legal research and policy recommendations.
• Write and edit regulatory comment letters, testimony, speeches, articles, and policy briefs and sharpen the writing of colleagues across research and communications.
• Review and advise on coalition sign-on letters.

Litigation Support

• Help shape CRL's litigation strategy on consumer policy issues, including amicus briefs, and support coordination with federal regulators.
• Build and maintain relationships with outside counsel and litigation partners and keep litigation efforts coordinated internally and externally.
• Draft amicus briefs and other litigation documents and represent CRL in litigation matters as needed.
• Field legal questions from ally organizations, litigation units, and law firms.

Relationship Building and Advocacy

• Build real relationships with senior staff at allied organizations, trade groups, and companies with a stake in lending policy and use them to rally support for CRL's positions and defeat harmful proposals.
• Get in front of senior legislative staff, legislators, regulators, and enforcement officials in state capitals to move CRL's state agenda forward.
• Represent CRL at meetings, conferences, and, at times, in the media, spotting opportunities to put CRL's voice in the conversation.
• Talk directly with lenders to understand real financial practices on the ground and push for better ones.

Other:

• Mentor or supervise junior staff or interns.
• Take on other work as CRL's priorities evolve.

What You'll Need:

• J.D. and active bar admission.
• At least 2 years of experience or a track record that shows you can own a policy issue independently and lead on it when needed.
• Familiarity with state legislative and rulemaking processes, and federal or state laws touching civil rights, housing/mortgage lending, predatory lending, consumer law, or banking law.
• Sound legal and business judgment, the ability to give practical, timely advice, juggle several areas of law at once, and see how multiple issues intersect on a single question.
• Excellent writing, editing, and oral communication skills; comfort producing polished work with limited oversight and giving useful feedback to peers.
• A genuine commitment to public interest law, low-income families, and communities of color, with the racial justice lens to understand how federal, state, and local policy has shaped racial wealth disparities.
• Skill at building relationships with external partners and turning them into real collaboration.
• Strong project management skills.
• A self-starter who thrives juggling multiple fast-moving projects, but who also genuinely enjoys working as part of a team. Exceptional attention to detail.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, and willingness to travel as needed.

Nice-to-Have Qualifications

• Prior experience in consumer financial protection or fair lending advocacy.
• Experience in civil rights, housing/mortgage lending, predatory lending, consumer law, or banking law.
• Proficiency in Asana or other project management tool.
• Experience working within coalitions or issue work groups.
• Familiarity with state legislative and regulatory processes and key state regulators (e.g., state attorneys general, state banking and financial regulators).

As State Policy Counsel

• You bring legal rigor to advocacy. You move fluidly between dense legal research and the plain-language advocacy materials that move people to act.
• You're proactive, not reactive. You track the landscape before anyone asks, spot risks and openings early, and show up with a recommendation, not just an update.
• You build trust across the aisle and across the table. Allies, regulators, and legislative staff all take your call, because you've earned it.
• Your writing does the persuading. Comment letters, testimony, and briefs carry your precision and your ability to make a legal argument land with a non-legal audience.
• You measure success in outcomes, not credit. You care more about the win for consumers than whose name is on the brief.

Work Arrangements
This is a hybrid role, based out of either Oakland, CA or Durham, NC. Staff are expected to be in the office three days per week, with Monday and Wednesday as communal days and the third day determined by each individual. This role may include occasional travel. Similarly, because we work across three time zones, leaders often make themselves available to connect during evening hours.

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