Associate Director of Litigation, NIJC

National Immigrant Justice Center; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

The National Immigration Justice Center (NIJC) seeks an Associate Director of Litigation to assist the Director of Litigation in overseeing NIJC's federal court docket and to guide a team of about 20 professionals. The role emphasizes substantive docket management and leadership across a civil rights-focused litigation portfolio.

The position supports interior enforcement, asylum access, habeas challenges, and related appellate work, while coordinating with NIJC's direct services teams to

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree required with bar admission.
• Minimum eight years of litigation experience since admission to bar.
• At least three years in a supervisory role and three years in immigration-specific litigation.

Responsibilities

• Ensure effective and efficient delivery of high-quality legal services across the team.
• Identify emerging issues for litigation and assist with staffing across cases.
• Supervise teams and develop professional growth plans.
• Build and maintain relationships with national litigation partners and pro bono/nonprofit partners.
• Maintain a substantive caseload and argue cases in federal courts as needed.
• Contribute to grant writing, funder reporting, and budgeting for the litigation team.
• Ensure compliance with grant requirements and data collection for litigation practice.
• Collaborate on policy and advocacy strategy and messaging.

Skills

Microsoft Office proficiency

Legal analysis

Oral advocacy

Education

Juris Doctor

Job description

About NIJC

The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) advances human rights and due process for immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers through direct legal services, impact litigation, advocacy, and public education. Headquartered in Chicago with offices in Washington, DC, Indiana, and San Diego, NIJC's team of 100 attorneys, paralegals, and professionals, along with 2,000 pro bono attorneys, is at the forefront of immigration reform.

Job Summary:

The Associate Director of Litigation reports to the Director of Litigation and assists the director in overseeing NIJC's federal court litigation docket. The Associate Director will maintain a substantive docket of litigation while assisting with management and leadership functions on a team of 20.

NIJC's current litigation portfolio is a mix of affirmative district court work and appeals of individual cases to the circuit courts. The district court work is focused on (a) interior enforcement and challenges to DHS's arrest practices, (b) access to asylum and other substantive immigration remedies, (c) challenges to the detention of immigrants (habeas) and the conditions that immigrants face while detained, and (d) challenges to regulations and policies that undermine the procedural fairness of the immigration system. The appellate docket is informed largely by the experiences of NIJC's agency level clients but routinely focuses on asylum and protection-related appeals as well as crim-imm related challenges. Because NIJC's litigation strategy is informed by the experiences of NIJC's agency-level clients, the Associate Director is also expected to work closely with NIJC's direct services teams to identify priorities for litigation.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Ensure effective and efficient delivery of high-quality legal services across the team.
• Identify emerging issues for litigation, provide input to the team and Director, and assist with appropriate staffing across cases.
• Supervise teams' work across cases in accordance with organizational policies and applicable laws; establish and oversee professional development plans for members of the litigation team.
• Build and maintain relationships with national litigation partners and immigration legal service providers and represent NIJC in these networks. Contribute to and oversee team's work with pro bono and nonprofit partners to maximize NIJC's ability to contribute to meaningful litigation.
• Maintain a substantive case load consistent with the overall needs of the team, conduct final review of significant briefs and filings, and argue cases before all levels of federal court where appropriate.
• Participate in grant writing, funder reporting, and budget development for the litigation team and NIJC more broadly.
• Ensure ongoing compliance with grant requirements and programmatic goals, including in the collection of data regarding NIJC's litigation practice.
• Collaborate on policy, communication and advocacy on strategy, impact and messaging

Competencies

• Computer Skills: Proficiency in Microsoft Office.
• Legal Skills: Ability to read, write, analyze, and interpret immigration laws and regulations, professional journals, and technical procedures. Ability to draft legal briefs, memos, reports, correspondence, and procedural manuals. Ability to orally advocate with courts. Must also be able to present information and respond to questions from funders, media, managers, clients, and the public.
• Reasoning Ability: Ability to solve practical and complex problems and including and especially in situations where there are limited precedents or standardization models to rely on. Ability to interpret various instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.

Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Education and/or Experience: A Juris Doctor and a minimum of eight years of litigation experience since being barred. Additionally, candidates must have a minimum of three or more years' experience in a supervisory role and a minimum of three or more years of immigration-specific litigation experience. Experience in the nonprofit sector is preferred.
• Language Skills: Bilingual in Spanish is preferred.
• Team Leadership: Ability to guide, influence, mentor and lead others toward a shared goal

Physical Abilities Statement

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position 50% of the time.
• The person in this position occasionally needs to move about the inside of the office to access filing cabinets, office machinery, etc.
• Constantly operates a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a copy machine.

It is the policy of NIJC not to discriminate against any applicant for employment, or any employee because of age, color, sex, disability, national origin, race, religion, or veteran status. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.

For any technical issues please contact [e-mail].