ACLU of Oregon/ACLU Foundation of Oregon

LEGAL DIRECTOR

The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon/ACLU Foundation of Oregon (ACLU of Oregon) seeks a Legal Director to coordinate and manage all aspects of its Litigation Program.

The ACLU of Oregon is dedicated to advancing and defending the civil liberties principles found in the Bill of Rights of the Oregon and U.S. Constitutions through litigation, lobbying, public education and communications. Its main office is in Portland, with a satellite office in Eugene. This position will be in the Portland office.

The ACLU of Oregon is committed to ensuring equal opportunity in employment without discrimination based upon religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or familial status, or any other basis unrelated to the individual’s abilities and qualifications to serve. People of color, women, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) individuals, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Job Duties and Responsibilities:
The ACLU of Oregon has had an active legal program since our inception in 1955, but we are now hiring our first attorney to manage our Litigation Program. This is a remarkable opportunity for a visionary attorney to build on the success of the premier civil liberties and civil rights organization in Oregon.

The ACLU of Oregon has dozens of highly qualified volunteer cooperating attorneys, an active Lawyers Committee, a request screening committee, as well as volunteer request counselors.

For more than 25 years, the Oregon affiliate has been a leader in advancing and protecting civil liberties and civil rights based on the protections of the Oregon Constitution. The ACLU of Oregon has also been very successful in utilizing litigation to prevent erosions of civil liberties and civil rights related to initiatives and other ballot measures.

The ACLU of Oregon Litigation Program has traditionally emphasized amicus appearances at the appellate level in state court, but has also engaged in direct representation of individuals and organizations in both state and federal court.
One of the first priorities for the Legal Director will be to work with an ad-hoc committee to evaluate the current Litigation Program and make recommendations to the Lawyers Committee and the Board of Directors regarding the future direction and priorities of the program.

The Legal Director will report to the Executive Director.

The Legal Director’s primary responsibilities will be to:

• Supervise and direct all ACLU of Oregon litigation;
• Recruit and retain ACLU cooperating attorneys;
• Monitor litigation being handled by cooperating attorneys and provide back-up assistance as needed;
• Serve as co-counsel on ACLU of Oregon cases as appropriate;
• Supervise the litigation intake and review process, including training and supervision of volunteer request counselors;
• Supervise legal research and analysis of potential cases, including recruiting and assigning specific requests to cooperating attorneys and law students;
• Staff meetings of the Intake Screening Committee and the Lawyers Committee, including preparation of agendas, circulating copies of background material in advance and keeping minutes;
• Organize Continuing Legal Education training on civil liberties and civil rights issues as appropriate;
• Present regular reports to the Executive Committee and the Board on litigation activities; and
• Develop and maintain relationships with legal staff at the National ACLU, its projects and other affiliates.

In addition, the Legal Director will work collaboratively with other staff to coordinate the Litigation Program with other ACLU of Oregon programs, such as Legislation, Communications, Field and Development. Specifically, the Legal Director will:

• Participate in public speaking to community and bar organizations, the news media and the public related to litigation issues;
• Assist in writing news releases, newsletter articles and updating the ACLU website related to litigation issues;
• Be willing to meet with individual donors to discuss the Litigation Program;
• Attend national and regional ACLU training and staff conferences; and
• Attend Executive Committee and Board meetings.

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum 5 years membership in the Oregon State Bar, or of another state—if prepared to obtain admission to the Oregon Bar as soon as possible (extraordinary candidates with less experience may be considered);
• Civil litigation experience;
• Exceptional analytic, research, writing and oral advocacy skills, including the capacity to act quickly—and competently—under pressure;
• Ability to develop and implement short and long-term litigation strategies;
• Ability to think creatively and to use non-litigation strategies to promote objectives, including building coalitions with ally organizations and public advocacy;
• Strong self-motivation and the ability to manage multiple deadlines;
• Ability to work effectively and professionally with clients, other counsel, volunteers, staff and Board members, and a commitment to the highest ethical standards;
• Demonstrated ability and willingness to learn about and understand cultures other than one’s own; and
• Capacity for administrative work, including the supervision of and coordinating with others inside and outside the ACLU.

Helpful Skills & Experience:

• Criminal law and/or appellate experience;
• Broad knowledge of constitutional law;
• Demonstrated commitment to civil liberties, civil rights and the ACLU mission;
• Experience working with legislative processes;
• Spanish speaking and writing ability;
• Experience working with people of races, religions and national origin other than one’s own.

Compensation: Salary commensurate with experience, including health, life, disability, pension and other benefits; Bar dues, liability insurance and CLE expenses provided by ACLU.

Deadline: Applications will be reviewed beginning the week of October 29, 2007 but will be accepted until the position is filled.

Application: Applicants are expected to submit:

1. A cover letter describing interest in the position;
2. A current resume;
3. A persuasive writing sample; and
4. The names and phone numbers of three references

Materials should be sent either by:

E-mail (in MS Word or Adobe PDF format) to: info@aclu-or.org

Or mailed to:

ACLU of Oregon
Legal Director Search
PO Box 40585
Portland, OR 97240