Legal Program Director

Dolores Street Community Services; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a forward-thinking organization dedicated to immigrant rights as a Legal Program Director. This pivotal role involves leading the Deportation Defense program, managing a dedicated legal team, and overseeing essential operations. You will engage with community partners, advocate for justice, and ensure compliance with program contracts. The position offers a competitive salary, signing bonus, and a supportive hybrid work environment. If you are passionate about social justice and have a proven track record in legal advocacy, this opportunity is perfect for you to make a significant impact in the community.

Benefits

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(K) with employer match

Flexible Spending Account

Commuter Benefits

Generous Paid Holidays

Vacation

Sick Leave

Restorative Breaks

Qualifications

• 3+ years of management experience and 5+ years in removal defense required.
• Strong commitment to immigrant rights and community empowerment.

Responsibilities

• Manage program contracts and ensure compliance with requirements.
• Supervise legal team and oversee legal services provided.
• Engage in outreach and advocacy for immigrant rights.

Skills

Management Skills

Spanish Communication

Problem-Solving Skills

Analytical Skills

Cultural Competence

Team Collaboration

Education

Juris Doctor or equivalent

Tools

Microsoft Office

Windows

Job description

Site/Program: Deportation Defense and Legal Advocacy Program

Compensation: $120,000-$140,000 annual salary, DOE. Full time, exempt position. $10,000 signing bonus will be provided after 3 months of employment. Benefits include medical, dental, vision, long-term disability, life insurance, 401(K) with employer match, flexible spending account, and commuter benefits. Generous paid holidays, vacation, sick leave, Summer and Winter Recess, restorative break. Hybrid office schedule.

To apply: Please visit https://Mission Action.isolvedhire.com/jobs/ and submit cover letter, resume, three references, and a writing sample.

Deadline: Immediately interviewing on a rolling basis until position is filled.

About the Organization:

Mission Action nurtures individual wellness and cultivates collective power among low-income and immigrant communities to create a more just society. As a multi-issue, multi-strategy organization, we work to improve lives on an individual level as well as affect broader social change by engaging in advocacy and community organizing. We work together across programs to address homelessness, lack of affordable housing, and to support immigrant rights in order to meet the complex needs of our communities and collectively address the root causes of suffering and injustice. To learn more about our organization's model and impact, we encourage you to visit our website at: www.missionaction.org.

Since 2008, Dolores Street's Deportation Defense & Legal Advocacy Program has been a local leader in providing pro bono legal defense for individuals and families facing deportation. We use creative legal and advocacy strategies to challenge prolonged detention, constitutional violations, and other injustices in the immigration legal system through direct services, appeals, impact litigation, and public advocacy. We represent individuals threatened with deportation by challenging removability, and through applications for relief, including asylum, withholding of removal, relief under the Convention Against Torture, waivers of inadmissibility and deportability, and applications for U-visa, T-Visa, and VAWA relief. We strive to connect our individual casework to broader movements for immigrants' rights, racial justice, and abolition and to be guided by the communities we work alongside. We are a caring and supportive team that values sustainability and wellness in this challenging work.

Here are just a few examples of our legal team's groundbreaking wins in recent years:

1. Through an innovative workshop series, over the past year we have helped 10 unrepresented asylum seekers win their asylum cases before the immigration court.
2. In 2022, we launched an in-house post-conviction relief program to provide wrap-around services for clients who have been impacted at the intersection of criminal justice and deportation.
3. In 2022, we successfully argued against en banc rehearing in Vasquez Rodriguez v. Garland, 7 F.4th 888 (9th Cir. 2021), opening the door for asylum claims based on imputed gang membership.

As an organizational plaintiff in Pangea et al. V. Dep't of Homeland Security I and II, we successfully challenged the Trump administration's proposed regulations that would have gutted asylum protections and asylee work authorization, preventing those rules from taking effect.

Position Summary:

Mission Action seeks a Legal Program Director to lead and manage our Deportation Defense program. The Director will supervise members of our legal team and oversee the day-to-day operations of our program, including grant management, liaison with external partners and funders, and work with our organization's Senior Leadership Team to carry out our organization's mission.

Responsibilities include:

• Manage program contracts, including meeting reporting requirements, invoicing, liaising with contract partners, ensuring compliance with contract requirements, and managing grant applications and renewals.
• Participate in the agency's Strategic Leadership Team and other agency committees.
• Work with Finance staff to develop and monitor program budget.
• Supervise legal team members.
• Oversee all aspects of legal services, including removal defense, affirmative representation, and limited legal services.
• Oversee communications on behalf of program, including media, social media, and program materials.
• Carry a partial caseload of cases pending at the immigration court and USCIS.
• Lead appellate and impact-oriented litigation efforts.
• Conduct intake with potential clients, screening for claims for relief and providing legal counsel and advice.
• Participate in collaborative meetings and leadership meetings with partner organizations.
• Engage in outreach, education, and advocacy in the area of immigrant rights on the local and state level.
• Lead, maintain, and establish relationships with community partners/collaboratives, immigration service providers, pro bono attorneys, funders, and government stakeholders.

Other Organizational Duties:

• Conduct business in accordance with the Mission Action Employee Handbook, exercising sound judgment and serving the best interests of the agency and the community.
• Work within the framework of the agency's mission, vision, values, theory of change; and organization's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, restorative justice, trauma-informed work, and language justice.
• Participate in agency meetings, community activities, and trainings.
• Work with Mission Action's other program leadership in furtherance of the agency's mission.
• Commit yourself to treating each community member with respect and dignity.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Juris Doctor or equivalent and active bar admission.
• Minimum of three years management and programmatic development experience required.
• Minimum of five years of removal defense experience required.
• Ability to communicate effectively with monolingual Spanish-speakers (i.e., advanced Spanish skills).
• Ability to work effectively and compassionately with survivors of trauma and clients with mental illness.
• Strong commitment to service low-income and underserved communities, with an ability to relate to and communicate with a broad range of clients and colleagues.
• Demonstrated commitment to immigrant rights and community empowerment.
• Familiarity and demonstrated commitment to Mission Action mission, values, and organizational work.
• Strong organizational, problem-solving, and analytical skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to work as part of a team and independently to manage priorities and prioritize workflow.
• Strong computer knowledge, ability to use Windows and Microsoft Office.
• Commitment to providing culturally competent services.

Mission Action is an equal-opportunity employer that values lived experiences and seeks applicants of the greatest diversity possible. We encourage people of color, women, older people, members of the LGBTQ community, immigrants and those impacted by Mission Action's work, individuals with disabilities, including HIV, and community members who grew up in the Mission District, to apply. Pursuant to the SF Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment.