TGI Justice Project Seeks Legal Director

TGI Justice Project Seeks Legal Director

Ground-breaking social justice nonprofit looking for an experienced attorney to serve as its next Legal Director. We are the only organization in the country working full-time to end abuses against transgender, gender variant & intersex people in jails and prisons. The Legal Director is responsible for all the legal services of the organization, and is accountable to our constituency members and our organizational collective. Ideal candidates are highly-organized, compassionate, and can aggressively defend and promote the rights and dignity of our communities in the face of state violence and poverty. TGIJP works in teams made up of staff and members from our constituency. An ideal candidate for the Legal Director should be someone with prior experience working in shared-leadership environments, and have the qualifications listed below. TGIJP is an equal opportunity employer, and people of color, people with criminal convictions, and transgender persons are especially encouraged to apply. Please see our website, http://www.tgijp.org, for more information about us.
This position’s projected start date is May 1, 2009. The first month will overlap with the current Legal Director’s last month. Interested candidates should submit a resume, a 1-2 page cover letter, and list of 3 references (with contact information) to the Legal Director Hiring Committee. We will accept application materials via postal mail, fax, or email. In your cover letter, please answer the following questions: Why do you want to work at TGIJP? Why do you feel you are the right person for this position? What role do you think prisons play in our society, and what role ought they play, if any?
The deadline to apply is March 1, 2009.
TGIJP Legal Director Hiring Committee
342 9th Street, Suite 202B
San Francisco, CA 94103
Ph: 415-252-1444
Fax: 415-252-1554
Email: info@tgijp.org

Job Title: Legal Director
Job type: Full time, 40 hrs/week
Compensation: $40,000 to $45,000 DOE, with benefits
Start Date: May 1, 2009

Job Duties:
 Direct all legal work of the organization: work with clients to do human rights research and reporting, direct alternative sentencing support for clients, advocate for clients facing abuse in prison, provide legal advice and referrals for clients, prepare civil litigation to challenge conditions of confinement for clients, educate community on their legal rights via presentations and written materials, and work with clients and legal team to develop and implement state-wide and nation-wide policy
o Work with and mentor/supervise a volunteer legal team (student interns, community members, and other attorneys) in all aspects of the legal work; participate in outreach to recruit interns and legal team members

 Participate as an organizational representative in the Transforming Justice Coalition: meet regularly with Coalition partners, take on tasks related to development of Coalition

 Participate in organizational development and governance: attend weekly staff meetings, general meetings & organizational retreats; participate in horizontal supervision structure; attend trainings on supervision skills; work with consultant to further develop the organization

 Fundraising: Assist Development & Administrative Director when necessary to fundraise, provide needed work status updates to development staff on regular basis

Qualifications:
 J.D. and California Bar membership
 At least 3 years experience providing legal services to low-income people of color (LGBT POC preferred), at least 2 years experience supervising others
 Experience building bridges among diverse communities of oppressed people
 Experience working against the U.S. Prison Industrial Complex
 Demonstrated commitment to trans, gender variant & intersex communities and people
 Demonstrated ally to oppressed communities & conscientious of their role working with others with different levels of privilege
 Highly organized, multi-tasker, self-starter, self-care system in place, able to receive and give constructive criticism, excellent personal and professional communication skills
 Highly proficient using MS Office applications (particularly Word & Excel)
 Experience providing legal services to highly marginalized and oppressed communities, particularly people currently and formerly imprisoned, people with active and past substance abuse problems, homeless people, people with mental illnesses, and/or survivors of trauma including child sexual abuse and domestic violence
 Experience influencing or creating public policy
 Experience working in shared leadership environments
 Not on active probation or parole and able to visit clients in prison or jail
 Flexible work schedule (able to work some weekends and evenings, and some travel)
 Valid drivers license and able to drive to visit clients in all parts of California


Desired Qualifications:
 Fluency in Spanish & English
 Experience in criminal defense and plaintiff-side prison civil litigation
 Experience with international human rights reporting and advocacy
 History of imprisonment, or a family member of imprisoned person(s)
 Experience working in formal collectives
 History of working with and in transgender women of color communities, as well as those with intersex conditions (or disorders of sexual development)
 Proficient in other software a plus: desktop publishing programs, Photoshop, and database programs such as Filemaker and GiftWorks
 Experience teaching others (formally and informally)
 Community organizing experience