Legal Fellow – Fall 2024

ORGANIZATION SUMMARY:

Founded in 2017, the Lawyering Project is a legal advocacy organization that blends traditional impact litigation with movement lawyering to promote reproductive health, rights, and justice throughout the United States. We are fiscally sponsored by the Tides Center, a 501(c)(3) organization.

Laws that undermine reproductive health, rights, and justice deprive people of moral agency, rob us of control over our bodies, and compound other forms of oppression like racism, sexism, and poverty. Our mission is to eliminate these laws and the harmful impacts they have on people’s lives. We are especially focused on laws that limit the availability or affordability of abortion care; contribute to disparities in reproductive health outcomes; embody gender-based stereotypes; or discriminate against people based on their reproductive decisions.

We envision a society with laws that enable each of us to make decisions about intensely personal matters like sex, pregnancy, family, and healthcare based on our own beliefs and values, and ensure that we all have access to safe pregnancy care, safe abortion care, and safe communities for our families.

The Lawyering Project has three legal programs: Litigation, Access & Innovation, and Pro Bono Initiatives. Our Litigation Program leverages the courts to eliminate barriers to reproductive health services and promote equity in access to care. Our Access & Innovation Program provides legal advice and technical assistance to healthcare providers, researchers, abortion funds, and others who facilitate access to abortion care. Our Pro Bono Initiatives Program operates the Abortion Defense Network, a collaborative effort by nonprofit organizations, private law firms, and government officials aimed at ensuring everyone threatened with liability for providing or supporting abortion care in post-Roe America has access to high-quality, values-aligned lawyers. For further information, visit https://lawyeringproject.org and https://abortiondefensenetwork.org.

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned nearly fifty years of precedent recognizing abortion access as a fundamental right, the Lawyering Project is committed to supporting all people seeking to obtain, provide, or facilitate abortion access while navigating new obstacles and legal risks. We will seize this disruption of precedent as an opportunity to reshape reproductive rights jurisprudence, situating it on a stronger and more progressive foundation. And we will continue to work closely with our partners in the reproductive health, rights, and justice movement, as well as members of the private bar, to realize our vision for a more just and equitable future.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Lawyering Project is seeking a Legal Fellow for a one-year fellowship to begin in Fall 2024. The Legal Fellow will play a vital role in supporting the Lawyering Project’s Access & Innovation and Pro Bono Initiatives programs. In particular, the Legal Fellow will support the Access & Innovation team by assisting in the provision of legal advice and technical assistance to clients. The Legal Fellow will support the Pro Bono Initiatives team by helping to manage the Abortion Defense Network; keeping factsheets and other publications up to date; and maintaining relationships with partner organizations.

The Legal Fellow is an exempt position that will last for 12 months. Exempt employees are expected to work the time needed to complete key assignments and related tasks on schedule.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Conduct legal research, analysis, and writing;
Assist in providing legal advice and technical assistance to Lawyering Project clients;
Cite-check and copy-edit legal memos and other legal documents;
Act as an Attorney Navigator for the Abortion Defense Network, which includes conducting client intake interviews, assessing prospective clients’ legal needs, and working to find appropriate legal assistance;
Update factsheets and other publications;
Stay up to date on developments in relevant areas of the law; and
Cultivate an organizational culture that aligns with the Lawyering Project’s core values.

OTHER DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Assist with other legal work on an as-needed basis;
Assist in maintaining strategic partnerships with allied organizations; and
Represent the Lawyering Project at conferences, convenings, and speaking engagements.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

The Legal Fellow must have:

A J.D. or equivalent degree;
An active license to practice law in a U.S. jurisdiction or eligibility to submit an application for licensure prior to their start date;
0-5 years of relevant legal experience; and
A commitment to promoting reproductive justice.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

Knowledge of reproductive rights jurisprudence and the reproductive health, rights, and justice movement;
Skill in legal research, analysis, and writing; cite-checking; and using the Bluebook.
Ability to take initiative; manage a variety of tasks; meet deadlines; work well under pressure; and demonstrate attention to detail.

ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS:

The Legal Fellow reports to a Senior Counsel and works closely with other staff members, clients, co-counsel, and allied organizations.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

Must be able to travel domestically on an airplane 6-12 times per year.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

This is a full-time position that sometimes requires work during evenings and weekends. This position may be based anywhere within the United States. The Legal Fellow has the option to work from home or from office space provided by the Lawyering Project.

SALARY:

The Lawyering Project has a fixed salary scale based on job responsibilities, education, and experience. For example, the salary for a Legal Fellow candidate with 1-2 years of relevant work experience is $95,000. A copy of this scale is available at https://lawyeringproject.org/lp-salary-scales_2024/.

We offer a robust benefits package that includes: health insurance (medical, dental, and vision); disability and life insurance; flexible spending accounts (FSA) for health, dependent care, and transportation; a retirement savings plan; paid vacation, holiday, and sick days; and paid parental, family, and medical leave. We also provide a professional development stipend and reimbursement for state bar membership fees. For additional information about our benefits, please contact info@lawyeringproject.org.

TO APPLY:

Please email a cover letter including the personal statement described below; resume; legal writing sample (5-10 pages); and list of three professional references to jobs@lawyeringproject.org. Please put “Legal Fellow Fall 2024” in the subject line of the email. Applications that do not follow these instructions will not be considered.

PERSONAL STATEMENT: To best achieve our mission, the Lawyering Project is committed to cultivating an inclusive and equitable workplace in which differences are acknowledged and valued. In a section of your cover letter containing no more than 200 words, please describe the identities, perspectives, and experiences that you would bring to the Lawyering Project that are important to you and/or relevant to our work.

As finalists progress in the application process, other assessments evaluating knowledge, skills, and abilities may be assigned. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis beginning on January 2, 2024.

EEO NOTE:

The Lawyering Project, a project of Tides Center, is an “at-will” and equal opportunity employer. At the Lawyering Project, we believe that a team with varied perspectives and experiences will best enable our organization to thrive and achieve its mission. We are committed to building and maintaining an inclusive work environment that values individual differences. We welcome and encourage applicants with diverse experiences, identities, and backgrounds to apply. We will not discriminate against applicants and employees because of race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity or expression), pregnancy, color, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law or ordinance.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to pregnant people and qualified individuals with disabilities, including in the application process. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, please send an email with the subject line “Reasonable Accommodation Request” to jobs@lawyeringproject.org.