Civil Rights Attorney

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Job Title: Civil Rights Attorney

Department: Legal

Job Reports to: Legal Director

FLSA Status: Exempt-Full Time

Pay Range:

Location: Baltimore, MD

About the ACLU of Maryland:

The ACLU of Maryland is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to diversity and inclusion in our work and on our teams. We encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran, or formerly incarcerated person status. Persons with disabilities may request accommodations.

The ACLU of Maryland is a non-partisan, non-profit public interest organization devoted to protecting civil rights and civil liberties. We are an affiliate of the national ACLU, a key defender of civil liberties guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. The ACLU works in the courts, legislature and in communities to defend and expand individual rights and personal freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and civil rights laws. Among ACLU affiliates, the ACLU of Maryland is known for its commitment to racial justice and combating structural inequality. For three decades, our staff has been in the forefront of the struggle for racial justice in Maryland -- challenging systemic residential racial segregation, especially in affordable housing; working to advance equity in public education; and using litigation to disrupt patterns of racial discrimination in law enforcement and the criminal justice system. The new staff attorney will join with other ACLU of Maryland staff and community allies to carry this work forward with a focus on cases informed by community lawyering principles. The ACLU of Maryland is committed to centering race equity in our work, internally and externally, in order to better support and be accountable to communities of color, whose civil rights and civil liberties are systematically threatened by white supremacy.

About the Position:

The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland/ACLU Foundation of Maryland seeks a dynamic and creative attorney to litigate cases and engage in advocacy to further the ACLU of Maryland’s mission of advancing civil rights and civil liberties. This is a full-time, newly-created staff attorney position, working in authentic partnership with communities of color. The position is based in the ACLU of Maryland’s central office in Baltimore.

The ideal candidate will be a team player with a demonstrated commitment to advancing racial equity, relevant litigation experience, knowledge about civil rights, and experience in working with local, state and national partner organizations and community allies. They are a thoughtful team player who values and respects differences of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstance, and they actively work to foster an equitable and inclusive experience for everyone in their work.

Responsibilities:

• Engage in litigation and advocacy informed by local community voices and needs to secure equitable opportunities for Black and Brown people;
• Maintain or develop subject matter expertise on issues related to racial equity and use that expertise to acquire, analyze and disseminate information;
• Work with legal program staff on responding to requests for assistance, case development, and provision of legal representation;
• Engage with communities through building and nurturing relationships and participating in regular conversations with community members, leaders and partners;
• Participate in public hearings, community meetings and state and local coalitions that are strategically aligned with the ACLU of Maryland’s litigation and advocacy;
• Engage with media about the legal work, in coordination with communications department;
• Participate in formulation of legal team vision, plans, and priorities in light of affiliate priorities and capacity;
• Participate in affiliate race equity work, both internal and external to the organization;
• Assist with staff, internship and fellowship recruitment and interview process, as needed, and supervise interns on certain projects;
• Travel to events and meetings within Maryland, including ones scheduled after regular business hours.

Qualifications:

• Juris Doctorate degree, with demonstrated experience in developing, litigating and managing a caseload. Civil Rights litigation experience, especially in the areas of fair housing and education equity, is preferred but equivalent related experience will be considered;
• Admission to practice in Maryland or willingness to take the Maryland bar at next sitting;
• A demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with coalitions and community groups, mentor more junior attorneys and law clerks, and to work strategically to achieve results;
• A strong ability to contribute legal knowledge and expertise in support of community-generated initiatives, and make the law accessible and useful to disenfranchised communities;
• A proven ability to take direction from directly-impacted people, and take action with the purpose of empowering community members;
• Exceptional analytical, legal research, negotiation, writing and oral advocacy skills, as well as the ability to communicate complex issues respectfully and effectively to a variety of audiences;
• Highly self-motivated self-starter, organized, collaborative and adaptable;
• Ties to the Baltimore region and/or Maryland a plus;
• Excel and GIS skills a plus;
• Speaking/writing fluency in Spanish is a plus.
• A strong commitment to racial equity, dismantling white supremacy, and incorporating a structural power analysis into work. Must have knowledge and understanding of how power is manifested in matters of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, religion, ability and socio-economic circumstances.

Compensation & Benefits: Salary is commensurate with experience, in accordance with ACLU’s pay scale for attorneys, which is the subject of ongoing collective bargaining. (Currently, starting salary is $62,000 for an attorney with three years legal experience and $66,500 for someone with five years of litigation experience.) Excellent benefits include three weeks paid vacation at time of hire (increasing to four weeks after three years); 12 office holidays; 12 paid sick days, medical and dental insurance for staff members, their dependents and spouse/domestic partner; Employee Assistance Plan; six weeks of paid medical leave, life and long-term disability insurance; and 401(k) plan with employer match. Direct exposure to cutting-edge civil liberties and civil rights work. This is a position that is exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, and it is in the bargaining unit represented by OPEIU Local 2.

Deadline/Start Date: The position will remain open until filled. Interviews will be scheduled on a rolling basis.

TO APPLY: Submit a cover letter, resume, three professional references and a short, two-page legal writing sample at this website: https://aclumaryland.applytojob.com/apply/pzwn9o94XU/Civil-Rights-Attorney