Overview

Limited Term Positions Available: Staff Attorneys

Position 1: Staff Attorney

Position 2: Staff Attorney (bilingual, fluent Spanish speaker required)

NNEDV seeks two Staff Attorneys to join our WomensLaw Team. The Staff Attorneys are supervised by the WomensLaw Legal Director. The Staff Attorneys are primarily responsible for: 1) providing legal information on the WomensLaw Email Hotline; 2) creating, editing, and updating legal and non-legal content on the WomensLaw.org website; and 3) developing educational and training curricula and conducting trainings for victim service providers, law students, and pro bono attorneys. Both positions are limited term positions currently funded through September 30, 2024 with the possibility of an extension if renewal funding is secured.

The WomensLaw team is the only project within NNEDV whose target audience is survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Through the WomensLaw.org website and Email Hotline, we strive to empower victims through knowledge of the law. This is a great opportunity for lawyers who want to assist domestic violence victims in the legal context without representing clients or appearing in court.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES

To assist with the goals of the WomensLaw team, under the supervision of the WomensLaw Legal Director and Deputy Legal Director, the Attorneys will be responsible for the following duties:

  • Approximately 65-75% of the Staff Attorneys’ time will be devoted to answering Email Hotline inquiries from victims, their loved ones, and advocates all over the country, providing legal information, referrals, and support in a “plain language” format. The topics are usually related to restraining orders, custody, divorce, immigration, domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and misuse of technology. Additional Email Hotline-related tasks include researching laws and other topics as needed, training volunteers, reviewing Email Hotline replies written by volunteer law students and attorneys, and more. The bilingual Staff Attorney will perform all of these tasks in Spanish the majority of the time, but may also perform them in English.
  • The Staff Attorney will spend approximately 25-30% of their time on tasks related to the WomensLaw.org website, including interpreting statutes into “plain language” to create, update, or edit legal content for WomensLaw.org, updating resources on the website, writing or editing non-legal content related to domestic violence, as well as other related tasks. If needed, the Staff Attorney may review amicus briefs for sign-on and write legal summaries and statements of interest.
  • The bilingual Staff Attorney will spend about 15-20% of their time on tasks similar to the ones described in the previous bullet on the Spanish side of the WomensLaw.org website. In addition, they will review Spanish translations and Spanish website content.
  • The bilingual Staff Attorney will spend 10-15% of their time developing bilingual, culturally, and linguistically appropriate training materials for internal and external trainings. They will also conduct community outreach to disseminate these materials as needed.

REQUIRED SKILLS, EDUCATION, AND QUALIFICATIONS

A successful candidate will meet the following requirements:

  • J.D. and Bar admission required.
  • Minimum of five years of relevant experience.
  • Excellent writing and grammar.
  • Ability to explain complex concepts in a plain-language, easy-to-understand manner.
  • Superior organizational skills and attention to detail.
  • Ability to relationship-build with advocates across time zones.
  • Facilitation/training skills for in-person and virtual events.
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills.
  • Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
  • Willingness to take on new projects and problem solve creatively.
  • Proficient computer skills, including Microsoft Office suite.
  • For the bilingual Staff Attorney position, fluency in spoken and written Spanish is required.

DESIRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

  • Prior experience working with survivors of domestic violence and/or sexual assault, especially in the context of family law, strongly preferred. Immigration experience/knowledge considered a plus.

LOCATION

This position offers a flexible and collegial working environment in our offices on Thomas Circle in downtown Washington, DC, near McPherson Square Metro. Because of COVID-19 precautions, currently, NNEDV is in a voluntary work from home status; however, a DC-based employee will ultimately work out of our offices.

NNEDV may also consider non-DC-based, remote applicants for this position. Please indicate in your cover letter if you are applying as a non-DC-based remote-only applicant.

TO APPLY

To apply for this position, all of the following are required:

1)     A cover letter—please indicate whether you are D.C.-based or non-D.C.-based, remote only;

2)     A resume; and

3)     Please compose a response of less than one page to a hypothetical D.C. resident who writes into the Email Hotline to say: “I am being abused and I want a restraining order to keep myself and my children safe.” In your response, please provide the D.C. resident with legal information, not legal advice, about restraining orders and any other topics you think are appropriate. You can use WomensLaw.org as reference, including WomensLaw.org links as needed in the response.

If you are applying for the bilingual, Spanish-speaking Staff Attorney position, please write the Email Hotline response in Spanish, but include your resume and cover letter in English.

  • Please combine the three application components listed above into a single PDF and attach to your email.
  • Please also copy and paste your cover letter into the body of the email.
  • Send to Stacey Sarver, Esq. at WLJobs@NNEDV.org.
  • Applications that do not contain all of the required items may not be considered.

No U.S. mail or faxes please.

Applications received by November 28, 2022 will be given priority; however, the position will remain open until filled.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

  • These are full-time exempt positions.
  • Minimum starting salary for these positions is $70,000 if based in Washington, D.C. It may be adjusted for experience.
  • For remote staff, salary may be adjusted for experience and locality.
  • NNEDV pays the entire cost for each employee’s Health (HMO plan), Dental, Life, and ShortTerm and Long-Term Disability Insurances.
  • NNEDV contributes 3% to each employee’s 401k retirement plan (no match required), where eligible under our plan documents.
  • NNEDV provides 19 paid holidays, including the last week of each year, 15 days of accrued annual leave, and 10 days of accrued sick leave.
  • NNEDV also offers vision insurance at a nominal cost.
  • These positions are limited term and are currently funded through September 30, 2024, with possibility of extension if additional funding is secured.

We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. NNEDV encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship,

About National Network to End Domestic Violence

The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) is a social change organization dedicated to creating a social, political, and economic environment in which domestic violence no longer exists. NNEDV advocates for law, policies, and funding to address domestic violence, and provides training, technical assistance, education, and support to state and territory domestic violence coalitions, as well as local domestic violence, sexual violence, and stalking programs, transitional housing programs, and the general public.

NNEDV is deeply committed to creating and sustaining an organizational culture that values diversity, inclusion and equity and envisions an organization that reflects the rich cultural diversity of the community. In pursuit of this vision, we are committed to educating, developing, and supporting an organization that embodies diversity in its many forms.