Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. (ABLE), a non-profit law firm with a long history of representing people living on low incomes in Ohio in achieving equal justice and opportunity, seeks an Attorney to lead its Agricultural Worker and Immigrant Rights (AIR) Practice Group. The position can be based out of ABLE’s Toledo or Dayton, Ohio office.
About ABLE
Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE) is a nonprofit law firm established over 50 years ago to ensure that the most vulnerable people in our communities have the same access to justice as people and companies that can afford to retain an attorney. ABLE and its partner law firm, Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO), are the only law firms available for comprehensive legal representation in non-criminal matters for more than 425,000 people living, working, and raising their families in poverty in Northwest and West Central Ohio. ABLE advocates for – and with – financially disadvantaged individuals and communities to effectuate just and equitable policy changes that address the structural causes of poverty and to protect their right to fairness and justice in the legal system.
The Opportunity
The AIR Practice Group’s advocacy focuses on keeping families together, empowering vulnerable populations, such as crime survivors and unaccompanied children, and building a stronger community for agricultural workers, immigrants, and refugees throughout Ohio. We address racial and ethnic profiling, champion farmworker rights, and address housing, workplace safety, and employment violations. We secure language access and access to public benefits and education and address due process violations in administrative proceedings. We provide direct representation to clients applying for humanitarian relief before USCIS, EOIR, and in federal court, and host pro se clinics to advise and provide limited representation for clients in a number of immigration matters. As an unrestricted legal services organization, ABLE also advocates for changes in local, state, and federal policies and laws to achieve justice for immigrants and refugees. ABLE engages client communities and stakeholders to amplify our advocacy efforts and center impacted voices.
The Managing Attorney will coordinate and manage attorneys, paralegals, and a community organizer to support noncitizen communities. These committed and talented advocates have earned their reputation as among the top immigration advocates statewide, regionally, and nationally. They provide legal representation to agricultural workers and immigrants throughout Ohio in a wide variety of immigration, employment, and civil rights cases and proceedings.
Applying the principles of community lawyering, this position will lead a team of passionate and skillful advocates committed to advancing systemic change and racial justice in immigrants’ rights through a combination of community outreach, impact litigation, policy advocacy, and individual representation. If you want to use your legal skills to challenge the policies and practices that perpetuate poverty and racial injustice and lead a team of similarly motivated staff, you are encouraged to apply.
The Managing Attorney will:
•Manage a team of 18 and provide leadership, creativity, passion, and inspiration in guiding practice group members in achieving ABLE’s mission. Some team members will be supervised by supervising attorneys who report directly to the Managing Attorney.
•Work with practice group members and the Director of Advocacy to develop and drive a comprehensive legal strategy designed to have a lasting impact on and create equity and justice for agricultural workers and immigrants.
•Effectively supervise team members and legal work within the practice group. Be accountable for overall effectiveness of the practice group, including overseeing teamwork, plans, systems, and processes that advance organizational goals; managing impact and growing team members’ skills; directly supervising members of the team including managing individual work plans, administering performance reviews and providing support for professional development.
•Bring a strong racial and economic equity lens and analysis of structural racism to ABLE’s legal strategies and initiatives.
•Collaborate and advocate with impacted community members to further issues identified by community leaders, using a community lawyering approach.
•Think strategically and view issues from a systemic and impact perspective while managing the practice group’s high-volume caseload.
•Build on the diverse skills, talents, and backgrounds of staff to develop a strong team.
•Manage certain aspects of grant writing and grant reporting to funders supporting the practice group’s work.
•Continue to build coalitions with organizations and advocates at the local, state, and national levels, social scientists, and policy counsel at partner organizations and others.
•Draft communications for diverse audiences and translate complex policy and legal issues in relatable and accessible terms.
•Engage in public education and communications, which may include representing ABLE in public settings including public speaking engagements, conferences, media appearances, blog posts, op-eds, conferences, and media interviews.
The Managing Attorney must demonstrate excellent legal, analytical, communication, teamwork, and advocacy skills, administrative leadership, supervisory experience and strong management skills, initiative and sound judgment, and the ability to handle and supervise major advocacy projects and others’ legal work. The ideal applicant has practical knowledge and experience in immigration, civil rights, and employment law; and an understanding of the socio-cultural issues experienced by people living in poverty.
Candidates need to bring a strong commitment to excellence and an ability to work in a fast-paced environment.
Compensation, Benefits, and Work Location
ABLE is committed to providing an equitable work environment, including a commitment to pay equity. We are updating our
salary scales, with expected completion by Fall 2024. The starting annual salary range for this position will likely fall between $92,500 and $115,600; comprehensive fringe benefits, including health insurance and student loan repayment assistance up to $6,000 per year through the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation; Position can be based out of Toledo or Dayton, Ohio; hybrid work is likely, but in-office supervision, court hearings, meetings with community partners, and client-based work in person is required. Some travel between Dayton, Columbus, and Toledo required.
The successful candidate must have the following skills and experience:
• Legal Leadership Experience. Seven years of legal experience preferred, and a demonstrated track record of results in core areas of focus in immigration/civil rights. Litigation and immigration legal experience required, particularly in removal proceedings and humanitarian forms of relief. Knowledge of agricultural worker legal rights preferred. You are adept at managing people and processes and driving complex legal initiatives and projects to resolution. You bring superior legal drafting and research skills, achievement of high standards in quality of legal work, skill in developing and implementing legal advocacy initiatives, and increasing responsibility in scale and scope throughout your career. Ohio bar or ability to be admitted by motion or temporary certification is required.
•Ability to Lead and Manage a Team. You know how to lead a team of passionate legal advocates, navigate conflict, and work within an organization to set a vision and execute it effectively. You know how to achieve your goals in collaboration with others and are skilled at nurturing talent and supervising staff. Experience implementing and managing grant-funded projects required.
•Strong Relationship Builder. You are adept at building and maintaining strong, transformative relationships both within and outside of the organization. You are comfortable working across lines of difference including race, gender, and class among other dimensions of identity and you are effective at surfacing shared values of individuals, groups, and communities, and leveraging that understanding to forge (where possible) investment and consensus. You can build trust and credibility with people from varied backgrounds that allows you to build productive relationships and partnerships. Ability to relate well with clients living in poverty. Ability to communicate fluently in Spanish is required, as well as experience working with interpreters. Strong record of cultural competence and cross-cultural communication skills is required.
•Experience with core ABLE Issues. You have expertise or experience within ABLE’s core issue areas, particularly immigration and worker’s rights. Advocacy experience using a race equity lens and understanding and experience with community lawyering preferred.
To Apply: Please visit https://www.ablelaw.org/careers-with-able to submit your application. Position will remain open until filled.
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