AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION (ACLU) OF TEXAS
The ACLU is the nation’s foremost defender of civil liberties and civil rights, dedicated to defending the Bill of Rights and advocating for marginalized communities through litigation, legislation, and public education. The ACLU of Texas, founded in 1938 and headquartered in Houston, is one of the largest ACLU affiliates in the nation. The ACLU of Texas has regional staff in Austin, Brownsville, Dallas, and El Paso.
Whether it’s protecting the rights of immigrants and refugees, ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBT community, combatting voter suppression, or preserving reproductive rights, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil rights and liberties cases to defend all people from government abuse and overreach.
Legal Investigator and Litigation Assistant
HOUSTON, TX
Hybrid or Remote: Remote*
Supervisor: Senior Manager, Legal Operations
JOB DESCRIPTION
The Legal Investigator will assist with research, story gathering and data analysis to further the organization’s litigation & policy goals based on the organizational priorities. The Investigator will play a key role in our integrated advocacy program that seeks to protect civil rights and civil liberties through litigation, legislative advocacy, and public education and in shaping the overall vision of the affiliate’s work. The person in this position will employ various tools to perform in-depth research to understand the scope and details of civil liberties and civil rights violations. This research will help determine, and lay the groundwork for, the appropriate advocacy tool to address the situation. The Investigator’s work – which may include original research, drafting and filing public records requests and reviewing disclosed documents, writing memoranda, white papers, and reports, gathering data and analysis of that data, interviewing witnesses and potential clients, drafting blogs and more – will assist in “building” cases to be used in legal advocacy, supporting legislative advocacy, policy initiatives and campaigns, supporting public education efforts, and messaging in earned or paid media. This position will also assist with post-investigation filings in cases, client management, and general litigation and departmental administrative support duties throughout the duration of the position.
The position of Legal Investigator & Litigation Assistant will be crucial in helping to fight against the erosion of civil rights in Texas. This position would build much needed capacity to fully develop new litigation, ensure continued community-based priority setting, help to prepare for the upcoming legislative session, and provide up to date information to communities across the state. Moreover, the legal department plays a critical role in assisting its policy colleagues in the analysis of new proposed legislation and drafting of legislative testimony. The research and investigation performed by the Innovator will further our mission of advocacy through an integrated model and cut across all 6 of our issue areas.
DESIRED SKILLS
- A commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging; a personal approach that values the individual holistically and respects differences of race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstances
- Travel may be necessary as part of the investigatory process. A preference for Texas based Innovators or Innovators willing to live in Texas is encouraged but not required.All travel costs will be covered by the organization
- Well organized and attentive to detail; strong analytical skills
- Spanish speaking Innovators are preferred but not required
*REMOTE WORK DETAILS
This position will be remote, with travel to the Houston office required once per quarter. All travels costs will be covered by the organization.
