Job Abstract

The ACLU invites rising third-year law students and law graduates to apply for a sponsorship opportunity to work with us as a Legal Fellow for up to two years. The Disability Rights Program of the National office in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco, California seeks applicants to consider for a sponsored fellowship such as Skadden, Equal Justice Works, or other public interest fellowships to begin in the fall of 2025. This is a hybrid role that has in-office requirements of two (2) days per week or eight (8) days per month.

The Disability Rights Program’s mission is to achieve an America free of discrimination against people with disabilities; where people with disabilities are valued, integrated members of society who have full access to education, homes, health care, jobs, families, voting and civic engagement. We fight to ensure that people with disabilities are no longer segregated into, and over-represented in, civil and criminal institutions such as nursing homes, psychiatric hospitals, jails, and prisons.

The ACLU has fought for decades for the rights of people with disabilities - achieving key wins to stop coerced mental health treatment and unnecessary institutionalization, as well as playing a role in the drafting of the ADA. In 2012, the ACLU established the Disability Rights Project. DRP litigates and advocates to use disability rights laws to end the overrepresentation of people with disabilities in the criminal legal system, including pursuing first of its kind litigation to ensure that municipalities provide trained, non-police responders to people experiencing mental health crises. We also litigate and advocate to promote alternatives to guardianship and to secure equal access to the ballot. We also provide support to affiliates and the National office on disability rights issues that intersect with core civil liberties. While the ACLU’s Legal Department is headquartered in New York, the Disability Rights Program is housed in the San Francisco and Washington, D.C. offices, and fellowship candidates may be based in either location.

Reporting to the Project Director, the Fellow will develop and pursue a litigation and advocacy project at the intersection of disability and civil liberties. We are particularly interested in Fellowship projects that aim to: 1) reduce the overuse of guardianship and conservatorship; 2) challenge exclusionary discipline for students with disabilities; or 3) challenge the overinvolvement of parents with disabilities in family welfare systems. However, we are also open to other project proposals. The Fellow will work closely with DRP to craft their project proposal, and to implement their project.

We will review applications on a rolling basis, but priority consideration will be given to those who submit applications by July 8, 2024.

The Fellow must secure external funding, please email hiring@aclu.org for funding requirements. Our staff will work with candidates to develop their proposals for submission, helping tailor the proposal to address an important civil liberties issue.

• Conduct legal research and analysis and develop theories to support new litigation projects
• Draft legal memoranda, pleadings, affidavits, motions, and briefs
• Interview witnesses and potential clients
• Participate in discovery and trial practice
• Draft and edit public education and non-litigation advocacy materials
• Provide support and assistance to ACLU affiliates and cooperating attorneys
• Help manage summer legal internship program and supervise student interns

• Be committed to advancing the mission of the ACLU
• Center and embed the principles of equity, inclusion and belonging in their work by demonstrating commitment to diversity with an approach that respects and values multiple perspectives
• Be committed to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and conflicts

• J.D. or expected to receive a J.D by the spring of 2025
• Demonstrated commitment to public interest law, civil liberties, and disability rights.
• Willingness to work closely with the Disability Rights Program through the funding application process
• Excellent research, writing, and verbal communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to conduct complex legal analysis and fact-finding
• Excellent interpersonal skills and a proven ability to work independently as well as within a team

The ACLU has a litigator scale that determines pay for attorneys in our Legal Department. The range of salaries are the following, based on year of law school graduation (please consult the hiring manager for specific salary details, based on individual circumstances):

• 0-2 years since law school graduation: $89,250-$111,491
• 3-5 years since law school graduation: $124,873-$147,324
• 6-10 years since law school graduation: $154,069- $173,808
• 11-15 years since law school graduation: $177,058-$187,108
• 16-20 years since law school graduation: $188,874-$193,738
• 21-25 years since law school graduation: $194,719-$198,708
• 26-30+ years since law school graduation: $199,666- $203,553

These salaries are reflective of positions based in Washington, DC. The salary will be subject to a locality adjustment (according to a specific city and state), if an authorization is granted to work outside of the location listed in this posting. Note that most of the salaries listed on our job postings reflect New York, NY salaries, where our National offices are headquartered.

For over 100 years, the ACLU has worked to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBTQ+ community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties cases and issues to defend all people.

We know that great people make a great organization. We value our people and know that what we offer is essential not just their work, but to their overall well-being.

At the ACLU, we offer a broad range of benefits, which include:

• Time away to focus on the things that matter with a generous paid-time off policy
• Focus on your well-being with comprehensive healthcare benefits (including medical, dental and vision coverage, parental leave, gender affirming care & fertility treatment)
• Plan for your retirement with 401k plan and employer match
• We support employee growth and development through annual professional development funds, internal professional development programs and workshops

Accessibility, equity, diversity, and inclusion are core values of the ACLU and central to our work to advance liberty, equality, and justice for all. For us diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion are not just check-the-box activities, but a chance for us to make long-term meaningful change. We are a community committed to learning and growth, humility and grace, transparency and accountability. We believe in a collective responsibility to create a culture of belonging for all people within our organization – one that respects and embraces difference; treats everyone equitably; and empowers our colleagues to do the best work possible. We are as committed to anti-oppression, anti-ableism and anti-racism internally as we are externally. Because whether we’re in the courts or in the office, we believe ‘We the People’ means all of us.

With this commitment in mind, we strongly encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status and record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

The ACLU is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need assistance applying online, please email benefits.hrdept@aclu.org. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.