Senior Staff Attorney - ACLU of Oregon

Aclu Or; Oregon; On-site; USD 104,000 - 127,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid vacation time

Paid personal time

14.5 paid holidays per year

Remote work stipend

Health insurance

Job summary

ACLU of Oregon is seeking a Senior Staff Attorney with a strong civil litigation background to manage cases, amicus briefs, and research while coordinating with policy and communications teams. The role may involve media interviews, legislative work, and community education.

The position emphasizes dedication to equity and anti-oppression values, with a salary of $115,481 and comprehensive benefits. Remote work stipend and other perks are offered.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree required with a minimum of 5 years civil litigation experience.
• Membership in the Oregon State Bar is required.
• Strong litigation management and writing skills are essential.

Responsibilities

• Manage our legal cases and related work, including amicus briefs and research.
• Represent the ACLU of Oregon in interviews, legislative work groups, public hearings, and educational forums.
• Support ballot measure work, policy work at local and state levels, and communications initiatives.

Skills

Civil litigation

Litigation management

Legal research

Legal writing

Education

Juris Doctor (J.D.)

Oregon State Bar member

Job description

What is the Senior Staff Attorney position at the ACLU of Oregon?

As of the date of this posting (May 5, 2026), we are seeking to fill one Senior Staff Attorney position:

Summary of this position: The team member in this position is:

• A seasoned, experienced civil litigator with strong litigation management, coordination, and implementation abilities;
• Proficient in doing a wide range of legal-related research and writing to support the work of the ACLU of Oregon’s legal, policy, and communications teams;
• Capable of representing the ACLU of Oregon in a wide array of settings, including interviews with journalists and the press, legislative work groups and public hearings, and educational forums.

This position manages our legal cases and related work, including amicus briefs and research, the day-to-day of which is often done by our volunteer cooperating attorneys. As needed, this position will also engage in day-to-day work with our legal cases, amicus briefs, research, and related matters.

This position will also support our ballot measure work, policy work at the local and state levels, and communications and education work as needed. Oftentimes, this work consists of legal-related research and writing as well as other types of technical support.

This position does not supervise any staff positions, although the position may have lead-type responsibilities.

Important information: For this recruitment, we will prioritize candidates at the Senior Staff Attorney level. The required education and legal experience is a J.D., a minimum of 5 years of civil litigation experience, and membership in the Oregon State Bar.

Who this position works with: This position is part of our legal team and works closely, collaboratively, and supportively with all areas of the ACLU of Oregon – especially with our policy and communications & storytelling teams.

What values are important and required: This position requires a strong and continued commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, anti-racism, anti-misogyny, anti-transphobia, anti-homophobia, anti-ableism, and all other types of anti-oppression, as well as the proven ability to incorporate these values in work both internal and external to our organization.

Where to get more information: Please review this job description for more information about this position.

Organizational note: The ACLU of Oregon reserves the right to make changes to job duties and responsibilities for positions, consistent with the values and operational needs of the ACLU of Oregon, which may change from time to time.

What are the qualifications required for this position?

We are looking for individuals with the following experience, abilities, and values:

• Required education, legal, and licensure experience: Juris Doctor degree, a minimum of 5 years of civil litigation experience, and member of the Oregon State Bar.
• Required equity & inclusion values and experience: proven significant and continuous prior commitment to and experience with the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, anti-racism, anti-misogyny, anti-transphobia, anti-homophobia, anti-ableism, and other forms of anti-oppression.
• Strongly preferred – prior experience in ACLU of Oregon issue areas: prior litigation experience in several of the following areas — First Amendment, racial justice, criminal system reform, law enforcement accountability, LGBTQ+ rights, immigrant and refugee rights, and systems change or impact litigation.
• Sincerity: the assessment that you are honest, that you say what you mean and mean what you say. The idea that you can be believed and taken seriously and that your actions are aligned with your words.
• Reliability: the assessment that you meet the commitments you make, and that you keep your promises.
• Competence: the assessment you have the ability to do what you’re doing or propose to do. Note that being competent does not mean being perfect. Part of doing something well is knowing what you don’t know how to do, being willing to learn, and asking for help when you need it.
• Care: the assessment you have the other person’s interest in mind as well as your own when you make decisions and take actions.
• Equivalent education and/or experience: We will consider applicants who can demonstrate non-traditional work-related experiences comparable to more direct forms of work experience or education.
• Candidates who meet the qualifications of other positions: Sometimes, candidates may not meet the qualifications of this position but may have qualifications to meet another position at the ACLU of Oregon; we may offer candidates the opportunity to consider another position with the ACLU of Oregon, and we reserve this organizational right within our sole discretion.

What are the pay & benefits for this position?
This is a salaried, exempt, full-time position. The annual salary for the Senior Staff Attorney position is $115,481.

Because we have established an internal salary system that centers equity, clarity and transparency, competitiveness, and sustainability, salaries for positions are not negotiable.

• paid vacation time
• paid personal time
• 14.5 paid holidays per year
• office rest (shutdown) periods during summer and winter as consistent with the organization’s values and work needs
• flexible Friday hours, consistent with operational needs and supervisor approval
• remote work stipend and commute-related benefits
• health insurance (medical/vision and dental)
• life insurance
• long-term disability insurance
• employer contributions to a wellness FSA account
• 401(k) retirement plan with matching and other contributions of up to 5.5% of salary, subject to the organization’s 401(k) plan requirements, which include a vesting schedule
• support for work-related coaching
• parental leave
• funds to support professional development related to work
• funds to support relationship and connection building related to work

Please note that all employment-related pay and benefits provided to ACLU of Oregon’s employees are subject to all applicable policies, practices, processes, and legal requirements, including changes to them that may occur from time to time.