Deputy Project Director, Women's Rights Project

Job Description

ABOUT THE JOB

The ACLU seeks a full-time position of Deputy Project Director in the Women’s Rights Project of the ACLU’s National office in New York, NY . Since its founding by Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 1972, the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project has been a trailblazer in fighting for gender equity under law. We engage in systemic legal reform to ensure that everyone has the freedom to live, work, and learn free from stereotypes, harassment, and violence based on sex. Our recent work includes challenging employment rules that penalize workers for their pregnancies or push them out of the paid workforce altogether, winning a historic settlement against Facebook for targeting ads for jobs, housing, and credit only at men, and fighting the mass eviction crisis and other unfair housing practices that disproportionately lock out women, particularly Black women, from housing opportunities. Reporting to the Project Director , the Deputy Project Director will be responsible for: building out new directions for the ACLU’s women’s rights litigation in collaboration with the Project Director; supervising administrative and legal staff as directed; participating as an individual contributor with their own litigation and advocacy docket; and assisting the Project Director with administrative duties as directed.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy and Management Alignment

• Serve as strategic partner to Project Director in building out new initiatives for the ACLU’s women’s rights litigation
• Assist Project Director with development and implementation of strategic plans, including setting short- and long-term goals and reviewing substantive filings to ensure alignment with strategic priorities
• Collaborate with and share ownership of decisions made by the Project Director, Center Director, and Senior Staff

Supervision and Staffing

• Supervise Project paralegals, legal administrative assistant, and legal staff as directed.
• Support staff retention, feedback, and professional development efforts for all project staff
• Assist Project Director in ensuring balance of work across project staff, including opportunities for writing, discovery, witness examinations, arguments, and other professional growth.
• Oversee sustained efforts to create and nurture pools of diverse candidates from which to recruit
• With an eye on growing an excellent and diverse staff, oversee process for hiring and onboarding new staff, fellows, and interns, which includes furthering our board-mandated goal to increase the percentage of staff with disabilities and significant disabilities and working in furtherance of our other announced diversity hiring initiatives.

Litigation and Advocacy

• Engage in litigation in federal and state court, including drafting pleadings, briefs, and affidavits; conducting discovery and motion practice; handling hearings and trials; and arguing appeals in both federal and state courts
• Represent the project through public speaking opportunities at conferences and events; serve as project spokesperson in consultation with project director and ACLU communications team
• Collaborate with staff across the organization, including with other Projects within the ACLU’s Legal Department, Communications, Affiliate Support and Nationwide Initiatives, National Political Advocacy Department, and state affiliates
• Build relationships with stakeholders and conduct outreach to national, state, and community partners to develop coalitions and further advocacy goals
• Provide technical assistance and legal advice to ACLU affiliates, cooperating attorneys and others who seek assistance from the Women’s Rights Project
• Travel as required for litigation, conferences, and case and strategy development

Administration

• Assume responsibility for ongoing administrative functions such as maintenance of the case docket, completion of the time survey, and recruitment of pro bono firms, among other work, as directed
• Assist the Project Director and Development Department with fundraising and donor cultivation as directed
• Assist the Project Director with expense tracking and budgeting as directed
• Engage in special projects and other duties as assigned
• Center principles of equity, inclusion, and belonging in all work, embedding the values in program development, policy application, and organizational practices and processes
• Commitment to the mission of the ACLU
• Demonstrate a commitment to diversity within the office using a personal approach that values all individuals and respects differences in regards to race, ethnicity, age, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, religion, disability and socio-economic circumstance
• Commitment to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and/or conflicts

EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS

• J.D. degree and significant litigation experience
• If not currently admitted to the New York Bar, candidate must be admitted to the bar of another state and agree to become admitted to the New York Bar within one year of hire
• Demonstrated commitment to the ACLU’s mission to defend civil liberties and civil rights
• Commitment to women’s rights and gender equity
• Ten or more years of legal experience, including litigating civil rights cases and class actions, preferred
• Experience supervising and managing staff, preferred
• Excellent legal analytical and research skills, preferred
• Demonstrated ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively, preferred
• Demonstrated ability to work with a wide range of people and foster a team environment, preferred

COMPENSATION

The annual salary for this position is $159,135 (Level D). This salary is reflective of a position based in New York, NY. This salary will be subject to a locality adjustment (according to a specific city and state), if an authorization is granted to work outside of the location listed in this posting. Note that most of the salaries listed on our job postings reflect New York, NY salaries, where our National offices are headquartered.

ABOUT THE ACLU

The ACLU dares to create a more perfect union – beyond one person, party, or side. Our mission is to realize this promise of the United States Constitution for all and expand the reach of its guarantees.

For over 100 years, the ACLU has worked to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBTQ+ community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties cases and issues to defend all people from government abuse and overreach.

Equity, diversity, and inclusion are core values of the ACLU and central to our work to advance liberty, equality, and justice for all. We are a community committed to learning and growth, humility and grace, transparency and accountability. We believe in a collective responsibility to create a culture of belonging for all people within our organization – one that respects and embraces difference; treats everyone equitably; and empowers our colleagues to do the best work possible. We are as committed to anti-oppression and anti-racism internally as we are externally. Because whether we’re in the courts or in the office, we believe ‘We the People’ means all of us.

The ACLU is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. The ACLU encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status and record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Black people, Indigenous people, people of color; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex people; women; people with disabilities, protected veterans, and formerly incarcerated individuals are all strongly encouraged to apply.

The ACLU makes every effort to assure that its recruitment and employment provide all qualified persons, including persons with disabilities, with full opportunities for employment in all positions.

The ACLU is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need assistance applying online, please email [email protected] . If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.