Litigation Director

We are looking for an experienced Litigation Director to join our team in Los Angeles and/or Orange County.

WHO WE ARE

We are the nation’s largest legal and civil rights organization for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). Our mission is to advocate for civil rights, provide legal services and education, and build coalitions to positively influence and impact Asian Pacific Americans and to create a more equitable and harmonious society. We serve more than 15,000 individuals and organizations every year, focusing on the most vulnerable members of AAPI communities while also building a strong voice for civil rights and social justice. With our Advancing Justice affiliates in Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., we enrich, enhance, and serve our communities all across the country.

WHAT WE BRING

• The special opportunity to join a mission driven team
• Flexible, hybrid work schedules
• Rich medical, dental and vision benefits
• Retirement options through 403B and match

WHO YOU ARE

You share our mission of advocacy for Asian Pacific Americans. You enjoy the thrill of serving the public interest while championing civil rights and social justice. You take pride in your work enriching lives and communities in Los Angeles and across the country. You are looking for your next role in an organization that supports your career as much as you support the organization and its goals. You are looking for a job where you make a difference, and your impact is directly proportional to your contribution. You are a game changer. You are a leader. You are an advocate.

WHAT YOU BRING

• Juris Doctorate and an active member in good standing with the California State Bar  
• Minimum ten (10) years of extensive and varied experience in impact or complex litigation, including as lead litigator with co-counsel, and preferably with background in addressing social justice issues
• Minimum four (4) years of supervisory experience or equivalent.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Litigation Director leads the development, execution, and evaluation of Advancing Justice Southern California (AJSOCAL) impact litigation practice, overseeing AJSOCAL’s Impact Litigation program staff. The Litigation Director collaborates and coordinates across the organization to determine litigation priorities. This position requires a thorough knowledge of the AJSOCAL services and available resources, both within and outside of the organization. The Litigation Director acts as AJSOCAL’s spokesperson for all litigation matters. This position is NOT covered under the Collective Bargaining Unit (CBU)

Your day-to-day responsibilities:

60% Lead litigation team and client representation.

• Manage and guide litigation to ensure alignment with AJSOCAL’s mission, vision, and values.
• Lead all active and potential litigation cases, guiding litigation strategy and directing case development to ensure high quality work-product.
• Actively stay abreast of state and nationwide legal trends that enable proactive and thoughtful identification and initiation of high-impact litigation.
• Manage case-related expenses and awards
• Coordinate internal approval process for all affirmative litigation cases.
• Maintain and regularly disseminate docket of active affirmative and impact cases to organizational leadership.  
• Oversee co-counsel relationships, including identifying, communicating, and resolving issues discovered during engagements
• Work with all AJSOCAL programs areas, providing litigation support to program staff
• Strategize with VP of Programs and other managing directors on how impact litigation can best be used to advance AJSOCAL priorities and how direct services and policy advocacy can inform or lead to litigation and vice versa.
• Maintain and comply with the highest degree of professional and ethical standards in client confidentiality and personal conduct, as well as oversee compliance with those standards by staff involved in litigation
• Design and implement litigation-related professional development plans and related in-house support resources to expand AJSOCAL staff attorneys’ capacity for litigation and to cultivate impact cases that arise from direct services work
• Oversee evolution of in-house document exemplar bank

25% Support community outreach and education

• Act as organization spokesperson for all litigation, including with media, community stakeholders, donors, and with Advancing Justice affiliates. Coordinate with the Communications department to create media strategy related to litigation.

• Provide leadership and ongoing support to key coalitions, legal aid partnerships, networks and collaborations. Collaborate with Development department to strengthen AJSOCAL’s mission and litigation priorities, including grant proposal/report drafting

•  In coordination with CEO, VP of Programs, and Pro Bono Director, cultivate relationships with private bar for staff professional development opportunities and fundraising potential (e.g., firm monetary support, individual donations, etc.)

15% Other duties as assigned

• Provide ongoing feedback and evaluation of direct reports.

• Serve on the Strategy, Programs & Mission Team to help shape the direction of AJSOCAL’s programmatic areas.

• Develop and manage budgets for all units and projects under Director’s purview.