Senior Attorney, Immigration

Description

About the Legal Aid Justice Center

The Legal Aid Justice Center is a nationally recognized, non-profit organization that partners with communities and clients to fight for racial, social, and economic justice. We understand that the harms our clients endure are inextricably linked to overarching systems of injustice. Together we are dismantling those systems through a combination of community organizing, litigation, policy advocacy, public relations, and individual legal services.

Very recently, we helped lead the fight to reform Virginia’s unemployment insurance system, including advocacy that resulted in the distribution of over $1 billion in illegally withheld payments to over 160,000 Virginians. During the pandemic, we helped hundreds of families avoid eviction through a combination of legal representation and help accessing rent relief funds. Our staff are on the front lines of some of the most important anti-poverty fights happening today.

Founded in 1967, LAJC has offices in Charlottesville, Richmond, Petersburg, and Falls Church and provides services under six key program areas: Civil Rights & Racial Justice, Economic Justice, Youth Justice, Health Justice, Immigrant Justice, and Worker Justice. For more information, visit justice4all.org.

LAJC’s latest strategic plan is available at LAJC Strategic Plan 2022-2026.

About the Immigration Justice Program

LAJC has a long history of serving immigrant communities across Virginia, including individuals without documentation and facing deportation. LAJC’s Immigrant Justice Program works to end mass detention and deportation of immigrants in Virginia and to break the ties between immigration enforcement and local and state government and law enforcement. We work to ensure that immigrant communities remain intact and protected in Virginia, fight the separation of immigrant families and the exclusion of immigrants from state benefits, and protect young immigrants across the Commonwealth whether in federal custody or in their communities.

Previously, the team also supported farmworker campaigns, but in 2022, as a result of its significant growth, LAJC launched a new Worker Justice Program to house the farmworker campaigns, in addition to other worker justice efforts.

LAJC’s recent wins include:

• A coordinated effort to drastically reduce the population of a local immigration detention center down to historically low levels through impact litigation and partnerships with organizing efforts.
• Increasing the eligible age for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status children.
• Ending mandatory ICE notifications for misdemeanor arrests.
• Establishing in-state tuition and state-funded financial aid for undocumented students with pending asylum applications who graduate from Virginia high schools.

In addition to individual legal defense and federal litigation on behalf of detained immigrants, our attorneys and organizers partner with local community members, community groups, and national advocacy organizations to promote systemic reforms and advocate for policies that promote the integration and protection of immigrant communities.

About the Position

The Legal Aid Justice Center seeks to hire a senior immigration attorney. The role can be in our Charlottesville or Richmond, VA office. The attorney will be responsible for helping develop and implement strategies to:

• End mass detention and deportation of immigrants in Virginia.
• Break the ties between immigration enforcement and local/state law enforcement.
• Ensure immigrant communities remain intact and protected in Virginia.
• Fight the separation of immigrant families and their exclusion from state benefits, such as in-state tuition.
• Protect immigrants across the Commonwealth, whether they are in federal custody or in their communities.
• Fight for the inclusion of undocumented immigrants in rent relief during the pandemic.

The attorney will work closely with organizers, families, community members, local, state, and national-level partners, and other LAJC advocates. This position will involve individual representation, impact litigation, community outreach, and policy advocacy. Additionally, the attorney will co-teach the Immigration Law Clinic at the University of Virginia School of Law, ensuring cases are litigated professionally by law students and that they align with strategic goals.

Job Duties

• Monitor and advance the central Virginia docket of individual cases to meet community needs, including direct representation and immigration consultations.
• Lead impact campaigns, including federal litigation, policy advocacy, state and local advocacy, and grassroots community lawyering.
• Co-teach the Immigration Law Clinic at the University of Virginia School of Law, with up to eight students, focusing primarily on removal defense cases.
• Participate in work groups, coalitions, and community events.
• Assist with advocacy communications, such as drafting press releases and social media content.
• Supervise legal interns.
• Contribute to team-wide systems and decision-making.
• Promote racial equity, including recruitment and retention of diverse staff, creating spaces for discussion on marginalization, and advocating for institutional change.

Senior Attorney Responsibilities

• Contribute to organizational health through working groups and hiring committees.
• Provide immigration-related support to the administrative team.
• Offer learning and training opportunities relevant to immigration law.
• Represent clients on immigration law matters.
• Engage in community lawyering and provide support across the organization on immigration issues.

Requirements

• Strong commitment to social, economic, and racial justice.
• At least 3 years of experience practicing as an attorney.
• Strong commitment to immigrants’ rights.
• Experience working directly with immigrant communities.
• Fluency in Spanish sufficient to interview and counsel clients.
• Membership in the Virginia State Bar, or eligibility and willingness to become a member promptly.

Preferred Qualifications

• At least 1 year of practice in immigration law, ideally in removal defense.
• Supervision experience, either formal or informal.
• Experience working for a public interest law firm, legal services organization, or nonprofit.

Location

The role can be in our Charlottesville or Richmond, VA office. Occasional travel between offices is required. While a regular office presence is needed, LAJC offers a remote work policy to support flexible scheduling.

Application Review Date

We will begin reviewing applications after November 7, 2024. Please be patient as we carefully evaluate each candidate. We will continue to accept applications until the position is filled.

Application Instructions

Complete the online application. This position requires a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three references. Address the cover letter to Rhoma Javed at [email protected]. Submit all materials through the online application system. We will not contact references without advance consent.

Salary

The salary range is $75,000 – $99,478.21, with an anticipated hiring range of $75,000 – $87,999.96.

Benefits

We provide:

• Generous paid time off, including 3 to 6 weeks of vacation, 12 days of health leave, and 14 holidays.
• 100% employer-paid health, dental, and vision insurance.
• A 403(b) retirement plan with a 4% employer contribution.
• A relocation package.

Vaccination Requirement

All employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have an approved exemption. Proof must be provided within one day of employment.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Legal Aid Justice Center is an equal opportunity employer, committed to inclusive hiring and diversity. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. LAJC is committed to strengthening the voices of low-income clients, working with community partners, and rooting out the inequities that perpetuate poverty.

Learn more here