About Us …
The American Immigration Representation Project (AIRP) is a newly created coalition of leading immigration nonprofits working in concert with pro bono attorneys from private law firms. The AIRP will mobilize and support the pro bono efforts of lawyers, largely new to immigration cases, in providing direct representation in removal cases, focusing primarily on those who are detained.
AIRP intends to deploy its lawyers to several pilot projects at immigration detention centers and will likely deploy lawyers to other detained hearing sites and immigration courts nationwide.
The American Immigration Council (Council) is the fiscal sponsor for AIRP and will house AIRP’s staff, under the umbrella of the Justice Campaign—a collaboration between the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the Council. The Justice Campaign is a broad-based project to activate a community of lawyers and other supporters to advocate for due process and justice for noncitizens targeted for immigration enforcement.
Your Role …
The Project Manager will work with AIRP leadership, the Justice Campaign Manager and other legal, education, and pro bono staff at AILA and the Council to initiate and implement expanded pro bono efforts. The Project Manager will be in weekly communication with the AIRP leadership team and will lead monthly calls with the AIRP steering committee. The Project Manager will be essential in building out the model for this national pro bono representation project and will be responsible for managing the budget to implement AIRP goals.
As Project Manager, you are accountable for developing protocols for the screening and selection of pro bono cases; developing tools to leverage the expertise of partners in support of the AIRP project; liaising between the AIRP firms and the referring nonprofits to develop efficient and rapid placement of pro bono cases; ensuring pro bono lawyers receive adequate training; designing metrics for evaluation of the efficacy of the AIRP’s work; and if required, supervising junior attorneys who will support the project’s efforts.
Your Background …
Active member of the bar, in good standing, in at least one U.S. state. 5+ years of project management experience in training or mobilizing pro bono projects or nonprofit organizations. Familiarity with drafting and implementing strategic plans in complex organizations. Strong leadership skills and ability to develop and sustain collaborative relationships internally and with external partners.
5 years of removal defense experience, including crim-imm and detention experience; experience practicing before the immigration courts, the BIA, and the court of appeals. Familiarity with the following forms of immigration relief: asylum, withholding of removal, convention against torture, voluntary departure, § 237(a)(1)(h) waivers; claims to derivative and acquired citizenship; naturalization as a defense; waivers such as § 212(c), § 212(h), § 212(i); U status , T status, VAWA, and other discretionary forms of relief or prosecutorial discretion.
Our Workplace …
GREAT opportunity! Competitive compensation package (salary and benefits). Dynamic, challenging, rewarding, and collaborative work environment.
How to Apply …
We encourage qualified applicants to submit resume, cover letter and salary requirement to: hr@immcouncil.org. Within your cover letter, please explain your motivation for applying for this opportunity; relevant work experience, and interest in working with our organization.