Senior Counsel, Litigation

Legal Defense Fund; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 157,000 - 216,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Hybrid work environment

Professional development

Job summary

NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) seeks an experienced Senior Counsel to join the Litigation Department. The Senior Counsel will strategize on civil rights matters and lead case teams across LDF’s docket, reporting to the Director or Deputy Director of Litigation.

LDF operates in a hybrid work environment with in-office presence required at least two days per week. The role emphasizes leadership, advocacy, and public engagement in a high-impact civil rights program.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree.
• Minimum of 10 years of litigation experience and bar admission in NY/DC/GA.
• Outstanding legal research, writing, and oral advocacy skills.
• Broad litigation experience at trial and appellate levels; class actions a plus.
• Federal/state advocacy experience related to reform for communities of color.
• Effective public speaking and ability to work collaboratively or independently.

Responsibilities

• Litigate racial justice issues across diverse dockets.
• Lead and supervise complex case teams and staff.
• Draft petitions, briefs, and memos for courts and agencies.
• Investigate claims, manage discovery, hearings, and appeals.
• Support policy team with strategy and advocacy.
• Represent LDF in media, conferences, and public venues.
• Develop relationships with partners and allies.
• Travel as needed; contribute to strategic plans.

Skills

Litigation experience

Oral advocacy

Bar admission

Public speaking

Supervisory experience

Education

Juris Doctor

Job description

The NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the country’s first and foremost civil and human rights law organization. Founded in 1940 under the leadership of Thurgood Marshall, who subsequently became the first Black U.S. Supreme Court Justice, LDF was launched at a time when the nation’s aspirations for equality and due process of law were stifled by widespread state-sponsored racial inequality. From that era to the present, LDF’s mission has been transformative — to achieve racial justice, equality, and an inclusive society.

LDF’s litigation, public policy advocacy, and public education programs in the substantive areas of criminal justice, economic justice, education, and political participation seek to ensure the fundamental and basic human rights of all people to quality education, economic opportunity, the right to vote and fully participate in democracy, and the right to a fair and just judicial system.

LDF seeks an experienced Senior Counsel to join the Litigation Department. The Senior Counsel will strategize on a range of civil rights matters, and lead case teams across LDF’s litigation docket. The Senior Counsel will report to the Director of Litigation or a Deputy Director of Litigation.

LDF operates in a hybrid work environment where employees are expected to be in the office a minimum of two days per week, unless otherwise indicated.

Responsibilities

• Litigating the full range of racial justice issues, including: educational opportunity, diversity, adequacy, access and retention; employment and housing discrimination; voting rights; and criminal justice;
• Developing, leading, supervising, consulting, and advising on complex, civil rights impact cases in federal and state courts and before administrative bodies;
• Drafting petitions for certiorari, merits briefs and amicus briefs in the United States Supreme Court, other federal courts, and state courts that bear significantly on the civil rights of Black people;
• Investigating potential claims, preparing complaints, participating in motion practice, discovery, hearings and oral arguments, trials, and appeals;
• Supporting LDF’s policy team in developing and implementing strategies to advance LDF’s policy agenda related to the substantive subject matter areas;
• Supervising, managing, and assisting litigation teams that include LDF staff attorneys, organizers, cooperating counsel, fellows, legal interns, and others from within and outside of LDF;
• Directly supervising legal fellows, research associates, legal interns, and/or administrative assistants;
• Serving as a public thought leader on issues confronting Black communities;
• Representing LDF in the media, at conferences, and in other public venues;
• Developing and maintaining relationships with community partners, coalition members, and legal allies;
• Assisting in creating and implementing multi-pronged strategic plans using litigation, organizing, public education, legislation and policy advocacy;
• Preparing policy reports, memoranda, briefing papers, public education materials, and talking points for internal and external use;
• Assisting LDF colleagues in developing skills in impact litigation and the other interdisciplinary advocacy strategies necessary to effect change;
• Fostering relationships with other advocates, lawyers, and civil rights organizations;
• Travel as necessary, when conditions permit; and
• Other responsibilities as assigned.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree;
• Minimum of 10 years of litigation experience and admission to the New York, Washington, D.C. or Georgia Bar or eligibility to waive in, based on the office location;
• Commitment to the racial justice mission of LDF;
• Outstanding legal research, writing, and oral advocacy skills;
• Broad, relevant litigation experience at the trial and appellate level; experience litigating class action cases strongly preferred;
• Federal and/or state advocacy experience related to reform for communities of color;
• Effective public speaking experience;
• The ability to work both collaboratively and independently;
• Supervisory and case management experience with an interest in and commitment to the professional development, training and support of attorneys, legal interns and administrative staff;
• Capacity to analyze and articulate legal concepts and other complex issues to a variety of audiences; and
• A vision for attacking persistent barriers to full access and equality for people of color, and Black people in particular.

LDF’s attorney scale sets pay for practicing attorneys based on year of law school graduation and office location. The total salary range for this position by region for candidates with 10-20 years of experience post-law school graduation is as follows:

New York: $164,000 - $224,000

Washington, D.C.: $157,000 - $216,000

Atlanta: $142,500 - $194,500

This is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, skills, efforts, requirements, or working conditions associated with the job. While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, management reserves the right to revise the job or to require that other or different tasks be performed as assigned.

This description does not constitute a contract of employment, and LDF may exercise its employment-at-will rights at any time.

LDF offers all eligible employees a generous benefits package. To learn more, click the following link: 2026 Benefits Overview.

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The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to you without regard to race, creed, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, marital status, age, veteran status, medical condition or disability, genetic information, gender identity, or any other protected status under federal, state, or local law.