Staff Attorney

Staff Attorney

Job Description

Department: Legal Department

Employment Type Full-time

Location: Dallas, TX

Supervisory: No

Union Position Yes

Pay Grade: L3 ($84,000 - $88,000)

Pay Class: Exempt

ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW

The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas is the leading civil rights organizations in the Lone Star State. We work in courts, legislatures, and communities to protect and extend the civil rights for Texans throughout the state. The ACLU of Texas is both a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization. The ACLU of Texas operates across Houston, Austin, Dallas, El Paso, and Brownsville, Texas.

ROLE OVERVIEW

The Staff Attorney reports to the Legal Director and plays a leadership role in developing and managing litigation and related activities in support of the ACLU’s mission.

RESPONSIBILITIES Specific responsibilities include:

• Develop and maintain a robust docket concentrating on civil rights and liberties.
• Review, investigate, and select for legal representation complaints received through the ACLU-TX intake system, as well as referrals from other organizations and agencies and attorneys.
• Develop and prosecute select civil liberties and civil rights cases, including legal research and memoranda, the drafting of pleadings and briefs, discovery and motion practice, mediation, trials, settlement negotiation, post-judgment litigation, and appeals in both state and federal courts.
• Develop and execute non-litigation legal advocacy, such as preparing and filing administrative complaints, and provide limited representation in administrative proceedings.
• Provide legal support to community partners and advocates advancing ACLU- TX’s goals in non-legal spaces.
• Participate as a legal expert in local and statewide legislative processes, including by analyzing bills and policies, developing talking points, engaging in public education, and authoring and delivering testimony.
• Litigate select cases as lead counsel or as co-counsel with cooperating or other public interest and private attorneys.
• Conduct legal and factual research; prepare legal memoranda and letters; draft demand letters; review, comment or write amicus briefs.
• Advocate for civil liberties and serve as a spokesperson for the ACLU both with the press and as a public speaker, when appropriate.
• Support the advocacy and legal needs of cross departmental advocacy work.
• Collaborate and work with ACLU National colleagues on joint projects, cases, or working groups, when appropriate or as needed.
• Perform other duties as assigned.