Career Opportunity
Staff Attorney [SC-03]
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
Charleston, South Carolina

The American Civil Liberties Union welcomes applications for the position of Staff Attorney of the South Carolina National Office. This position is available immediately.

OVERVIEW:
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was founded in 1920 to preserve the fundamental liberties written in the Constitution and its Bill of Rights.

The ACLU is composed of two separately incorporated nonprofit organizations. The ACLU, a 501(c)(4) membership organization, is the primary lobbying arm. The ACLU Foundation, a 501(c)(3), conducts litigation and public education programs in support of civil liberties. The majority of support for the ACLU and ACLU Foundation comes from individuals, who believe in the guarantees of freedom, justice, equality, and fair treatment under the law. The ACLU receives no government funding and never charges clients for legal representation.

Every ACLU office builds a menu of programs and services to meet the unique characteristics of the communities that are served. Through communications, lobbying and litigation, the ACLU endeavors to preserve and enhance liberties grounded in the United States and state constitutions and civil rights laws. Among these liberties are separation of church and state, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, the right to privacy, reproductive rights, due process of law, and the right to equal treatment under the law. To learn more about the work of the National ACLU, please visit www.aclu.org.

THE SOUTH CAROLINA NATIONAL OFFICE:
The ACLU South Carolina is a national office of the ACLU and is the state’s guardian of freedom. Working to promote and defend civil liberties throughout the state, its mission includes a variety of legal, legislative and public education programs encompassing a broad range of constitutional issues.

Until recently, the ACLU of South Carolina was a separately governed and operated statewide affiliate organization located in Columbia, South Carolina. In June, 2008, the national ACLU reorganized to create an office of the National ACLU to strengthen its statewide operations and program capacity. The new office, to be opened in July, 2008, will be located in Charleston, South Carolina, with easy proximity to South Carolina’s state capitol, Columbia.

The newly formed ACLU South Carolina National Office will be focused on expanding the ACLU’s capacity to meet the increasing civil liberties challenges in the state. The incoming Executive Director will be reporting to the national organization and working collaboratively with a leadership team of dedicated professionals to (1) Establish and maintain positive, proactive statewide communications with existing members, supporters, and donors; (2) Implement a statewide community engagement strategy designed to attract new supporters, members and donors statewide; (3) Partner with the national leadership team to launch targeted programs and services; and (4) Foster the creation and collaborative efforts of a core team of staff and volunteers to provide high quality service with measurable outcomes.

Under the supervision of the Executive Director, the Staff Attorney will be responsible for building managing and coordinating a statewide legal program and participate in non-litigation advocacy activities including public speaking, media interviews, writing press releases, op-eds, newsletter articles, and reports. The Staff Attorney will work in conjunction with national staff and legal projects, and local cooperating attorneys.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serve as lead and co-counsel on a variety of civil liberties cases; work with the National ACLU litigation team, coalition partners, and cooperating attorneys. This includes performing legal research, conducting discovery, drafting pleadings, motions and briefs, and presenting oral arguments in state and federal courts at both the trial and appellate levels
• Investigate civil liberties complaints that may lead to law reform litigation
• Work closely with the Community Organizer to identify legal issues and litigation opportunities in communities throughout the state
• Create and oversee systems to professionally review, evaluate and respond to phone and mail intake
• Recruit and work with ACLU volunteer attorneys
• Prepare legal memoranda and letters; review, comment or write amicus briefs; provide legal analysis to other senior ACLU staff
• Advocate for civil liberties and serve as a spokesperson for the ACLU both with the press and as a public speaker
• Develop and maintain relationships with fellow legal staff members within the National ACLU and state affiliates. Participate in National ACLU legal conferences
• Establish and maintain relationships with legal services and other public interest attorneys/ organizations in South Carolina
• Prepare regular reports of all significant legal department activities for the South Carolina Executive Director.

REQUIREMENTS AND QUALIFICATIONS:

The ideal candidate will:

• J.D. degree and at least eight years of litigation experience. A litigation background raising constitutional, criminal justice, or discrimination issues is preferred. Experience in non-profit, advocacy or other community-based associations is also preferred
• be a member of the South Carolina State Bar (or must pass the next Bar Examination)
• possess substantive knowledge and understanding of constitutional law and experience working on civil liberties issues
• have experience conducting legal analysis and research
• have excellent communication and interpersonal skills with both legal and non-legal audiences; the ideal candidate will be an enthusiastic “friendraiser” and possess the skills necessary to build relationships and work cooperatively and effectively on a variety of projects with other attorneys, staff members, community organizations and coalitions across the state
• possess the ability to work effectively with and quickly gain the respect and support of various constituencies including clients, prospective clients, local staff, national staff, consultants, and the legal community
• be committed to diversity and demonstrate a personal approach that respects differences of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstance
• be highly resourceful and possess the key qualities necessary to build and sustain a legal committee, litigation docket and other initiatives
• a passionate advocate who is “at home” in a start-up environment, yet comfortable navigating within a larger national structure and hierarchy
• the candidate will possess excellent planning, strategic thinking and management skills with the ability to coach and lead team members in an environment that fosters creativity, teamwork, a commitment to excellence, and mutual respect
• the ideal candidate must have a reputation for honesty, fairness, and high ethical standards in all aspects of professional work
• a willingness and ability to travel frequently throughout the week and on weekends, both locally and regionally, is a must. In addition, the ideal candidate must be willing to devote as many hours as necessary to get the job done
• be proficient with computers; Windows and Microsoft Office in particular
• demonstrate a commitment to the preservation and vigorous enforcement of civil liberties
• commitment to the mission, goals and principles of the ACLU

COMPENSATION:
The ACLU offers a generous and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, commensurate with experience and within parameters of the ACLU compensation scale.

HOW TO APPLY:
Please send a cover letter and resume that describes your interest in this position, your relevant qualifications and experience, and your availability. Applications should also include two writing samples; at least one of which should be a legal research memo, brief, or article.

Please send your application via email to jobs@aclusouthcarolina.org – reference [SC-03/WACLU] in the subject line – or by mail to:

American Civil Liberties Union
RE: Staff Attorney [SC-03/WACLU]
PO Box 20998
Charleston, SC 29403-6322

Applications will be accepted until position is filled, which will not be before August 20, 2008. Please indicate where you learned of this job posting.

The ACLU is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and encourages applications from women, people of color, persons with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals.