Description:

A Non-Profit Organization is seeking a full-time Staff Attorney based in California. This is an exempt position that reports to one of A Non-Profit Organization's Senior Managing Attorneys. The ILRC 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., Austin, Houston, Laredo, and San Antonio, 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 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. This position will be approximately 50% policy work on immigration enforcement at the local and state level in California, and 50% legal technical support and capacity building with openness to a range of immigration law expertise. We are open to a range of three to seven years of immigration law expertise.

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

Representing the A Non-Profit Organization in various local and statewide enforcement coalitions which aim to disentangle law enforcement from ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), including as needed leading or co-leading certain coalitions;
Supporting California decarceration campaigns including through the California Alliance for Youth and Community Justice (CAYCJ), among others;
Providing individualized campaign strategy technical assistance to local campaigns at the intersection of criminal and immigration law (for example, sanctuary policy campaigns, youth and adult jail closure campaigns);
Connecting criminal and youth justice legal system reform and immigration organizers and attorneys to learn about each other's local organizing efforts, identifying mutual points of advocacy, and facilitating effective collaboration;
Analyzing local and state legislation that affects ICE enforcement, due process of immigrants, and related issues. As needed, drafting legislation, advising legislative staff and other parties, and testifying before legislature;
Supporting on written resources and strategy around national enforcement issues as needed;
Working with local and state partners to develop a broader narrative around criminalization, prosecution, and deportation in California;
Interfacing with media, giving press interviews, and supporting the development of media campaign strategy;
Participating in regional collaboratives and task forces to represent the A Non-Profit Organization and provide relevant information on immigrants' rights, immigration law, and policy updates;
Attending legal workshops to screen community members for forms of relief and/or assist with immigration applications;
Providing in-person and remote legal trainings on immigration law and policy to a range of audiences including immigrant community members, community organizers, public defenders, district attorneys, judges, paralegals, and immigration attorneys;
Engaging in intensive writing including updating manuals, practice advisories, and online resources, for attorneys, paralegals, community organizers, and members of the immigrant community, on a range of immigration law topics;
Writing grant proposals, writing reports, and supporting the execution of foundation grant deliverables, and representing the A Non-Profit Organization in meetings with funders and supporters; and
Traveling for trainings, meetings, and other events throughout California, and, at times, throughout the United States.

Qualifications: Requirements for the position include:

We are open to a range of immigration experience from three years to seven years as an attorney doing immigration work on any of the following topics:

Special immigrant juvenile status (SIJS)
U visas
T Visas
VAWA (Violence Against Women's Act)
Asylum
Family based adjustment of status
Removal defense

Experience, exposure to, or interest in, policy work including legislative, administrative, or budgetary advocacy, at the local or state level;
Experience working with a wide array of groups, including individuals directly impacted by immigration or criminal legal systems;
Commitment to abolitionist values;
Excellent communication skills and attention to detail;
Excellent writing, editing, legal analysis, and oral presentation skills;
Exceptional time management skills and the ability to meet deadlines;
Excellent public speaking skills;
Skilled in the ability to convey complex legal and policy issues to diverse audiences;
Commitment to immigrant rights and understanding of issues related to criminalization;
A strong work ethic, including the following qualities: organized, flexible, reliable, and dependable, with the ability to be an independent worker and to manage several projects simultaneously while thriving in a team-based collaborative decision-making environment;
A willingness to travel throughout California, and at times across the United States;
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 relevant experience or knowledge about the following:
Spanish or Asian language proficiency within the range of conversational to fluent;
Experience in “crim/imm” law (immigration consequences of criminal offenses);
Media expertise including prior experience being interviewed by media, writing op eds, or developing media strategies in support of policy campaigns;
Deep experience supporting and moving campaigns at the local, state, or federal level on immigration enforcement or adjacent topics;
Experience in any area of immigration law policy;
Knowledge of immigration issues in state court systems, including youth justice, child welfare, probate and family courts (particularly in California or Texas); and
Experience working in, leading, or forming coalitions.