The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Florida (ACLU of Florida) seeks a supervising attorney to combat pressing civil rights and liberties issues affecting communities across the state. The ideal candidate will have experience in immigrants’ rights and one or more other subject areas, such as protecting First Amendment freedoms.
The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Florida is an affiliate of the national ACLU, a national public interest organization devoted to the defense of civil rights and civil liberties. For over 100 years, the ACLU has served as the nation’s primary protector of the liberties that define our democracy. The organization implements its vital civil liberties mission in all 50 states in large part through affiliate entities such as the ACLU of Florida.
The ACLU of Florida, the state’s largest civil rights and civil liberties organization, employs litigation, public-policy advocacy, communications strategies, and public education to protect and promote a broad range of constitutional values and individual rights, such as freedom of speech, equality, due process, racial justice, privacy, religious liberty, criminal-justice reform, voting rights, reproductive freedom, LGBTQ+ rights, disability rights, and immigrants’ rights. The ACLU of Florida litigates a broad range of constitutional cases in state and federal courts through direct representation, filing amicus briefs, and submitting administrative complaints to state and federal agencies.
POSITION OVERVIEW
The supervising attorney is a staff position within the affiliate’s Legal Department. The position reports to the Legal Director. The position will include focus on immigrants’ rights as well as significant work in other areas. This can be remote or located in one of the organization’s offices in Miami or Tallahassee and will include some travel.
PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES
The primary programmatic focus of this position will be the development of litigation and other legal advocacy projects in immigrants’ rights and other areas. The Supervising Attorney will:
- Develop, prepare, and litigate cases at all stages in federal district and appellate courts.
- Engage in pre-litigation, post-litigation, and non-litigation advocacy, including preparing demand letters, conducting settlement negotiations and enforcement, preparing advocacy materials and public-education resources, and delivering public testimony.
- Work closely with and provide policy analysis and legal expertise to non-legal program staff at the ACLU of Florida and ACLU National.
- Engage regularly with print, radio, TV, and digital media on immigrants’ rights issues, in coordination with communications staff.
In addition, the position will hold significant management responsibilities. The Supervising Attorney will:
- Supervise multiple legal staff members.
- Supervise fellows, interns, and volunteers.
- Manage development and mentoring of staff, including identifying, supporting, and developing staff strengths, as well as—for attorneys—ensuring opportunities for writing, discovery, witness examinations, arguments, and other professional-growth points.
- Monitor team performance against established metrics and identify areas for improvement.
- Ensure compliance with ACLU of Florida policies, safety regulations, and quality standards.
- Facilitate regular team meetings to discuss progress, goals, and feedback, including yearly performance reviews.
- Collaborate with the Legal Director and senior staff in creating an organizational culture of planning, accountability, and belonging.
OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES
In addition to the primary responsibilities above, the Supervising Attorney will also:
- Develop and strengthen relationships with community partners, coalitions, stakeholders, and affected communities.
- Prepare and deliver “know your rights” information to affected communities.
- Respond to the legal needs of affected communities, potentially on an emergency and immediate basis.
- Participate in legal and advocacy conferences and develop and provide CLE presentations on pertinent topics.
- Communicate ACLU views and positions to a variety of audiences, including judges, community residents, and policymakers, through public speaking, traditional and social media, and other means.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
First and foremost, the candidate must have exceptional analytic, research, writing, and legal advocacy skills. The candidate should also have significant litigation experience.
The other required qualifications are that the candidate possess a J.D. and that they be a member of the Florida Bar (or able to secure Florida Bar membership within one year of the beginning of their employment).
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
While no one person will have all of the qualities listed below, the successful candidate will bring many of the following qualifications and attributes:
- Significant expertise and experience in immigrants’ rights.
- Significant management experience.
- At least seven years of federal district court or appellate litigation experience.
- Strong and demonstrated commitment to civil rights and civil liberties consistent with the mission and goals of the ACLU.
- Broad substantive knowledge of constitutional law.
- Exceptional oral advocacy skills.
- Demonstrated experience working in a fast-paced environment with a keen ability to simultaneously work on and manage multiple projects and deadlines and set priorities.
- Enthusiasm, patience, and cultural competence to work cooperatively on a variety of projects with lawyers, organizers, and other staff members, as well as with diverse community organizations and coalitions.
- Experience working and communicating with marginalized or vulnerable communities.
- Collaborative spirit and a sense of humor.
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively and professionally with lawyers, paralegals, legal assistants, and clients.
- A commitment to diversity; a personal approach that values the individual and respects differences of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstance.
- Ability and willingness to travel and work extended hours, including nights and weekends, as needed.
- Fluency in Spanish.
Compensation will be commensurate with experience, within a starting range of $100,000-$125,000. The ACLU of Florida provides excellent benefits, including health and dental insurance with generous vacation, holiday, and sick leave policies, as well as an employer-matched Defined Contribution/401K Retirement Plan. Base vacation leave is five weeks per year (and six weeks per year after five years).
Please send an email to [email protected] and attach a cover letter, resume, and two substantial writing samples demonstrating thorough legal analysis. All inquiries should include “Supervising Attorney position” in the subject line, and all attachments should be in Microsoft Word or PDF format.
Applicants who proceed beyond a first interview will be required to complete a research-and-writing assignment.
Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Please indicate where you learned of this job posting. No phone calls, please.
This job description provides a general but non-comprehensive list of the essential responsibilities and qualifications required. It does not represent a contract of employment. The ACLU of Florida reserves the right to change the job description and/or posting at any time without advance notice.
The ACLU of Florida is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. The ACLU of Florida encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, or veteran status. We encourage formerly incarcerated individuals to apply.
The ACLU of Florida undertakes affirmative action strategies in its recruitment and employment efforts to ensure that persons with disabilities have full opportunities for employment in all positions.