Position:

IRAP is seeking an attorney to join the Litigation Department. Attorneys with 8 or more years of legal experience will be considered a Senior Staff Attorney if successful in the application process. The attorney will be supervised by the Litigation Director or one of the department’s supervising attorneys. IRAP’s Litigation Department brings innovative court challenges in U.S. courts to address systemic issues affecting refugees, asylum seekers, and others in need of a safe home. 

Responsibilities:

• Manage, supervise, lead, and engage in all aspects of litigation and litigation-related advocacy as appropriate for level of experience, including case development and filing, legal and factual research, client counseling and interviews, motions practice, discovery, resource creation, policy advocacy, and media advocacy. IRAP’s litigation department develops and brings a range of cases in lead counsel capacity, including FOIA, mandamus, Administrative Procedure Act challenges, and large class actions.
• Collaborate with IRAP staff members in other program departments to ensure that litigation is supporting and leveraging the work of other departments, including policy, legal services, and communications.
• Represent IRAP in externally facing relationships, including with other advocates, pro bono firms, media, and donors.
• Participate in tasks that support the organization, including joining hiring committees, participating in cross-departmental task forces, and providing feedback on organization-wide issues.

Qualifications:

• Law degree and license to practice law in the U.S. state from which the candidate will perform work for the position. 
• At least 3 years of relevant legal experience after law school that provide a foundation for readiness to counsel clients, manage litigation-related projects, draft complex briefs, initiate and lead litigation (with appropriate support based on experience level), and develop additional complex litigation skills. Applicants with limited federal court litigation experience, but other experience that provides such a foundation, including direct legal services or policy/advocacy work, are encouraged to apply.
• Commitment to teamwork. Ability to work collaboratively and communicate clearly and respectfully with people of different backgrounds, including IRAP staff across the organization, other advocates, and pro bono firms.
• Commitment to centering displaced people and equity principles in our work. We encourage applications from attorneys with lived experience of displacement and/or marginalization.
• Openness to accepting and providing constructive feedback.
• Ability to manage competing deadlines and work on fast turnarounds when needed; identify, analyze, and research complex issues; problem-solve creatively and pursue creative approaches to case development and advocacy; communicate with clients in a culturally sensitive and ethical manner; and write coherently and incorporate feedback, with an interest in developing one’s writing skills and producing good writing.
• Excellent English communication skills required. Additional languages are a plus, particularly Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Haitian Creole, Pashto, Somali and/or Spanish.
• Prior experience working with marginalized and/or displaced communities and using interpreters for client communications preferred.
• Familiarity with the Immigration and Nationality Act, refugee processing, and/or a practical understanding of immigration law are a plus.

How to Apply:

Applicants must submit a cover letter explaining interest in IRAP, including any personal or professional connection to marginalized and/or displaced communities and interest in joining the litigation department in particular. A resume, including a listing of bar admissions and language skills (including any languages for which you are conversational. A writing sample, preferably a legal brief or a complex legal memorandum written by the applicant and a list of 3 references.