Description:
Position Description:The Staff Attorney, Special Projects will be a critical member of A Nonprofit Organization Litigation team, reporting to the Director of Legal and Research. The Staff Attorney, Special Projects will serve a vital role in moving forward the League's moonshot to abolish the electoral college and will also directly support state and local Leagues in litigation and legal matters relating to the League's [CS1] core and emerging issues determined by our membership.
The League announced our focus on abolishing the electoral college in summer of 2022 and has outlined a plan for engagement with members, supporters, and the public. Additionally, the League's core issue work includes voting rights, redistricting, improving elections, and money in politics. Our emerging policy issues cover immigration, healthcare, climate change, gun safety, and direct election of the President. This role will manage a portion of the League's federal litigation portfolio, work with other departments to launch and implement the electoral college work, support state and local Leagues in state litigation, assist in tracking League litigation across the country, conduct and coordinate legal research, maintain relationships with legal partners and pro bono counsel, and prepare educational materials about the litigation work of the League.
The Staff Attorney, Special Projects represents the organization with internal and external audiences and must have experience representing clients and supporting or leading litigation. The Staff Attorney, Special Projects will assist in balancing the needs of our membership and protecting our nonpartisan policy in often complex electoral and civil rights issues. This position is a grant-funded position per fiscal year with potential renewal based on budget, performance, and funding.
Principal Duties and Responsibilities:
- Manage a caseload within our primary programmatic focus, the Campaign for Making Democracy Work, which includes voting rights, redistricting, improving elections, and money in politics.
- Under the supervision of the Director of Legal & Research and in collaboration with other A Nonprofit Organization staff, manage research needs—legal and otherwise—related to our moonshot to abolish the electoral college and any resulting legal needs.
- Manage a limited caseload related to our moonshot and urgent issues portfolio.
- Assist Director of Legal & Research in assessing prospective state and federal litigation, including accurately applying policy positions to prospective litigation and work to reconcile policy work with litigation.
- Provide support to state and local Leagues of Women Voters regarding prospective and ongoing state court litigation.
- Assist Litigation team in tracking, updating, and reporting ongoing LWV litigation.
- Work with allied organizations to forward League policies, strategies, and mission.
- Represent the organization in oral and written briefings for Leagues, coalition partners, and allies.
- Represent the League in external settings, including on task force calls, panels, presentations, and events.
- Work with other departments, including communications, to draft litigation press releases, issue-specific policy reports, fact sheets, action alerts, talking points, issue briefs, or op-eds.
- Supervise and support legal interns year-round.
- Depending on team needs, supervise and support fellows and junior attorneys.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Requirements:
Licensing:
- Licensed attorney in good standing in at least one state in the United States; barred in DC is a plus, or willing to waive into DC at the earliest opportunity.
Qualifications:
- 2-5 years of litigation experience.
- Experience with voting rights, election, or constitutional litigation in either a traditional law firm, nonprofit, or government setting is a plus.
- Clear interest or experience in electoral reform or constitutional amendments.
- Possess excellent legal research and writing skills, analytical skills, strong verbal and written communications skills, attention to detail, and customer service-oriented attitude.
- Strong organizational skills and an ability to track a high volume of information at the local, state, and federal level.
- Ability to translate legalese into plain language for non-legal audiences.
- Prior experience developing a range of educational and training materials, including planning webinars, communicating legal research and legal findings, and developing legal recommendations.
- Ability to consistently produce high-quality work products in a fast-paced environment.
- Ability to work with and center historically disenfranchised communities of different cultures and backgrounds. This includes having a mature understanding of how structural racism and prejudice impact communities of color and balancing the appropriate role for the League.
- Demonstrable commitment to working with and in diverse communities and promoting DEI in the workplace.
- Must understand and comply with rules of professional conduct and ethics on a consistent, ongoing basis.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, including a commitment to teamwork and collaboration.
- Experience working with volunteers preferred.
- Personal and professional alignment with A Nonprofit Organization mission and values.
