Description:

A Non-Profit Organization is seeking a full-time Senior Staff Attorney based in California. This is an exempt position that reports to one of A Non-Profit Organization's Senior Managing Attorneys. The A Non-Profit Organization currently has a hybrid work model that requires two in-office days per week.

The A Non-Profit Organization is a national nonprofit legal support center headquartered in San Francisco with staff in Washington, D.C., San Antonio, Laredo, Houston, and Austin, TX, Southern California, and the San Joaquin Valley of California. The mission of the A Non-Profit Organization is to work with, educate, and enhance the capacity of immigrants, community organizations, and the legal sector, in order to build a democratic society that values diversity, dignity, and the rights of all people. Founded in 1979, the A Non-Profit Organization is regarded as one of the foremost experts on engaging immigrants and developing their leadership in the democratic process, providing expertise on complex issues of immigration law, procedure and policy, and engaging in advocacy and educational initiatives on policies that affect immigrants. We are a team-based organization that makes most of its decisions in a collaborative fashion that allows for significant staff input.

Summary of this position: The Senior Staff Attorney will further the A Non-Profit Organization's technical support, capacity building, and policy work on behalf of immigrants and the practitioners who defend their rights, particularly public defenders and others who advocate for noncitizens with crim/imm issues. This position requires expertise in crim/imm and post-conviction relief.

Job Responsibilities:The Senior Staff Attorney will participate in several programs, including, but not limited to:

Primarily focusing on providing technical information and support to public defenders who represent noncitizen defendants in criminal proceedings, and to immigration advocates, especially non-profit and pro bono advocates, who represent noncitizens with crim/imm issues in immigration proceedings. This includes:
Analyzing new legal developments and writing practice advisories, geared toward audiences such as attorneys, paralegals, community members, or policymakers;
Preparing and leading webinars and in-person seminars on a variety of topics in immigration law with a focus on crim-imm and post-conviction relief;
Working as a team to create or update materials, including online materials like the California Quick Reference Chart;
Writing, updating, and editing select chapters in A Non-Profit Organization manuals, including chapters focused on post-conviction relief, immigration consequences of crimes, and criminal bars to immigration relief;
Working as an “Attorney of the Day” to answer individual case questions; and
Cultivating relationships with public defender offices in rural areas of California.
Providing information, training, and support to help communities understand, organize, and fight to preserve their rights in the immigration and criminal legal systems;
Working with coalitions on campaigns against restrictions on immigration relief, attacks against due process, ICE enforcement, crim/imm, post-conviction relief, and other emerging issues, and working for local, state, or federal policies that support the rights of immigrants, especially those who have had some contact with the criminal legal system;
Analyzing state and federal legislation that affects crim/imm, post-conviction relief, ICE enforcement, due process of immigrants, removal defense, and eligibility for relief. As needed, drafting legislation, advising legislative staff and other parties, and testifying before legislature;
Strategizing around stories and media opportunities to drive local and national campaigns for immigrant rights;
Representing A Non-Profit Organization, and as necessary taking a leading role, in collaboratives to support immigrant rights;
Writing grant proposals, writing reports, and managing deliverables for foundation grants, and representing the A Non-Profit Organization in meetings with funders and supporters;
Traveling for trainings, funder visits, and other events throughout California and to some extent throughout the United States; and
Providing amicus support as needed, in cases before the BIA, California courts of appeals, the Ninth Circuit, and the Supreme Court.

Qualifications:Requirements for the position include:

Experience and expertise in, and commitment to, defending the rights of noncitizens who have come in contact with the criminal legal system;
A minimum of seven years of experience representing clients in a crim/imm context. Criminal defense and post-conviction relief expertise preferred, but other experience employing a crim/imm analysis to represent noncitizen defendants and advise other defenders in criminal proceedings will be considered;
Broad knowledge of the intersection of criminal and immigration law and California post-conviction relief;
Excellent writing, editing, legal analysis, and oral presentation skills;
Ability to lead meetings attended by, write for, and communicate with a range of people, including immigration and criminal defense attorneys, community members, legislators, policy-makers, journalists, funders, and others;
Excellent time management skills and the ability to meet deadlines;
Willing to work closely with and learn from colleagues, including being willing to take direction and editing from others and to incorporate feedback;
A strong work ethic, including the following qualities: organized, flexible, reliable, and dependable, able to work independently, and able to handle several projects simultaneously. Comfortable in team-based efforts and a collaborative decision-making environment;
A willingness to travel approximately 10-15% of their time across California and at times, nationally; and
A current Bar membership in good standing for any state in the United States or the District of Columbia

It is a plus if the applicant has additional experience including:

Experience working closely with community organizers and non-lawyers on organizing campaigns;
Writing and securing grants from foundations and corporations;
Legal or other writing experience, for a range of audiences;
Training, teaching, or other public speaking experience;
Working in, leading, or forming coalitions;
Collaborating with immigrant communities, with an emphasis on supporting community leadership;
Coordinating civic engagement projects or working as a community organizer;
Second language proficiency, within the range of conversational to fluent;
Experience with communications work on immigration or criminal legal issues;
Established relationships with allied organizations in California and nationally; and
Experience in administrative and federal appeals.