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Associate Attorney, Fossil Fuels Program

Employer
Earthjustice
Location
Chicago, Illinois and New Orleans, LA
Salary
Salary in New Orleans: $76,200 - $93,400. Salary in Chicago: $85,100 - $104,400
Closing date
Sep 30, 2021

View more

Focus Areas
Environment
Job Function
Conservation, Legal, Research
Position Type
Full Time
Degree Level
JD
Experience Level
Professional

Earthjustice is the premier nonprofit environmental law organization. We take on the biggest, most precedent-setting cases across the country. We wield the power of law and the strength of partnership to protect people’s health; to preserve magnificent places and wildlife; to advance clean energy; and to combat climate change. We partner with thousands of groups, supporters, individuals and communities to engage the critical environmental issues of our time, and bring about positive change. We are guided by a passionate, ambitious vision for the future for people and our planet: until justice stands for all, we will never rest. We are here because the earth needs a good lawyer.

Founded in 1971, Earthjustice has a distinguished track record of achieving significant, lasting environmental protections. We achieve this by hiring people who share a passion for justice and a healthy environment. Our headquarters are in San Francisco with offices in Anchorage, Juneau, Los Angeles, Tallahassee, Honolulu, New York, Philadelphia, Denver, Seattle, Bozeman, Miami and Washington, DC. 

Earthjustice is accepting applications for two Associate Attorneys to join our Fossil Fuels Program. We use the power of the law to challenge the onslaught of new oil and gas infrastructure development that threatens climate, communities and our environment. Both positions will work cross-regionally with a focus on either the U.S. Gulf region or the Ohio River Valley, with one position based in New Orleans, Louisiana and the other in Chicago, Illinois. 

At a time when we desperately need to reduce greenhouse emissions, the oil and gas industry is aggressively expanding fossil fuel infrastructure, locking us into decades of future fossil fuel use and directly harming communities already hardest hit by climate disruption. Earthjustice’s Fossil Fuels program uses litigation, administrative advocacy, and partnership to advance an end to U.S. oil and gas extraction and production, and stop new infrastructure (e.g., petrochemical facilities, export terminals and pipelines).

The Associate Attorney program is designed to help attorneys who are in the early stages of their careers to develop into thoughtful, professional, and effective advocates skilled in the various phases of public interest litigation. The term for the associate position is three-years with the potential for an extension.   

Responsibilities:

  • Work with program staff and clients to investigate, develop, and litigate cases.
  • Participate in the full range of tasks involved in litigation, including factual investigation, legal research, memo writing, comments, briefing, discovery, and oral advocacy.
  • Review and analyze administrative records and technical documents, and prepare comments on proposed agency actions, permits, and environmental review documents.
  • Engage with clients, coalition partners, and experts, as well as internal communications and legislative staff.
  • Hire and supervise law students who work at Earthjustice as interns or clerks.

Qualifications:

  • Admitted to, or eligible for admission to the Louisiana Bar for the New Orleans-based position or the Illinois Bar for the Chicago-based position.
  • 1-5 years of post-graduate litigation and/or clerkship experience.
  • Excellent legal research, writing and analytical skills.
  • Strong work ethic and initiative, and sound yet creative judgment.
  • Ability to work well both independently and with a team.
  • Strong desire to fight for the right of all to a healthy environment.
  • Demonstrated awareness and sensitivity to the needs and concerns of individuals from diverse cultures, backgrounds and orientations.
  • Commitment to help create a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work culture that encourages and celebrates differences.
  • Willingness to contribute to recruiting, hiring, developing and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce.

We offer a mission- and employee-focused work environment and a competitive compensation package, including excellent benefits.  Earthjustice is an equal opportunity employer and highly values diversity.

Salary is based on experience and location.
Salary range in New Orleans, LA: 1-5 years $76,200 - $93,400
Salary range in Chicago, IL: 1-5 years $85,100 - $104,400

To Apply: 

Interested applicants should submit the following:

  • Resume.
  • One page cover letter that addresses why you would like to serve as an associate for this specific position.
  • Writing sample, preferably a legal brief or memorandum that primarily reflects your work.
  • Law school transcript.
  • List of three references. 

Please contact us at jobs@earthjustice.org if you are having technical difficulties submitting your application. No phone calls, drop-ins, or hard copies. Earthjustice only considers applications submitted for current openings via Jobvite. Unsolicited resumes or resumes for posted positions that are not submitted via Jobvite will not be reviewed or retained.

Applications may be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Earthjustice brings our associate attorneys on board on a quarterly schedule during the months of January, April, June and September.

Earthjustice is driven by a passion for justice, partnership, and excellence. Our core values lead us to seek a broad range of perspectives and backgrounds to achieve our mission and to maintain an inclusive environment where all staff are valued and respected. As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to employment practices that ensure that employees and applicants for employment are provided with equal opportunities without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, or any other factor that is not related to the position.

For positions located within the City and County of San Francisco Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment-qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

For positions located within the City of Los Angeles: We will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring.

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