The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (“Lawyers’ Committee”), one of the nation’s leading civil rights organizations, seeks an attorney with criminal justice experience to serve as Counsel in its Economic Justice Project to work on the Records Assistance Program (“Program”). The Records Assistance Program seeks to address the collateral employment consequences of criminal records which disproportionately disadvantage minority communities. The Program is the result of a class action settlement with the Census Bureau in Gonzalez v. Pritzker, and the Lawyers’ Committee will coordinate with class co-counsel and the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University (Cornell ILR) to carry out remedies to class members under the settlement agreement.
No calls with be accepted. The position will remain open until filled and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Specifically, the Lawyers’ Committee will lead the effort to provide class members across the United States with pro bono legal assistance to seal, expunge, or correct their criminal records. The Counsel will help develop and will lead the implementation of the Program’s pro bono and legal services coordination component, including:
• developing and conducting expungement and record sealing/correction training for volunteer attorneys and pro bono law firms;
• providing technical assistance and legal support to volunteer attorneys and law firm pro bono coordinators;
• working with the Lawyers’ Committee’s Director of Pro Bono to engage pro bono volunteers and law firms;
• assigning cases to legal aid attorneys, volunteer attorneys and pro bono law firms;
• managing volunteer attorneys in collaboration with law firm pro bono coordinators, when appropriate;
• closely monitoring the status of cases assigned to volunteer attorneys to ensure progress;
• coordinating with partners to implement the requisite technological infrastructure before the launch of the Program; and
• reporting case dispositions and results to Program partners, including Cornell ILR.
This is a full-time position based in Washington D.C. The Counsel will report to the Lawyers’ Committee’s Economic Justice Project Director. Work on the program is expected to last for approximately three years.
The ideal candidate is organized, responsive and capable of managing multiple projects simultaneously. Required qualifications include:
• Graduation from an accredited law school
• Membership in a state bar
• Demonstrated commitment to racial justice and criminal justice
• Minimum three years legal experience
• Criminal defense experience, including representing clients in expungement and record sealing/clearance petitions and filings
• Experience managing large projects
• Experience developing legal training materials and conducting legal training programs to groups of various sizes
• Strong organizing and coalition building skills
• Excellent writing, interpersonal and presentation skills
• Experience with case management systems
Preferred qualifications include:
• Understanding of expungement/record sealing laws in various states and jurisdictions, and knowledge of the different types of relief available to individuals with criminal backgrounds seeking reentry
• Experience training and providing support to pro bono attorneys on how to obtain expungement, record sealing and other criminal history-related relief for clients
• Experience working with volunteer management systems and dynamic databases
• Ability to speak and write in Spanish or other languages
To Apply: Please fill out the application form and include your cover letter and resume here:
https://podio.com/webforms/18363362/1234802.