ACLU-NC Legal Fellow 2027

About the ACLU of North Carolina 

Founded in 1965, the ACLU of North Carolina (ACLU-NC), an affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union, is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to create a more perfect union. Our mission is to realize the promise of the United States and North Carolina Constitutions for all and expand the reach of their guarantees. 

Working in courts, the General Assembly, and in communities, we bring together litigation, legislative advocacy, communications, and organizing strategies to empower communities and achieve our objectives in major issue areas including criminal law reform, voting rights, LGBTQ+ equality, reproductive freedom, and the rights of immigrants. With over 40,000 members and supporters across the state, the ACLU-NC has a staff of more than 25 people with an office in Durham.   

The Opportunity 

The ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NC) seeks a Legal Fellow for a paid, one-year position (which may potentially be extended to two years) to begin in the fall of 2027. This position is open to recent law school graduates and graduates who recently completed a judicial clerkship or another fellowship. Clerkship experience is preferred but not required. The Legal Fellow will work to advance our major issue areas: criminal law reform, voting rights, LGBTQ+ equality, reproductive freedom, or the rights of immigrants. Proposed projects often combine litigation and advocacy with community outreach and public education. While internal funding is available, securing full or partial outside funding is highly encouraged but not required. 

What You’ll Do 

You will help us protect and advance the rights of all North Carolinians by: 

• Coordinating and preparing applications for funding and all reporting needed to sustain or comply with conditions of funding. 

• Consulting closely with the ACLU-NCLF throughout the funding application process. 

• Conducting factual investigations to identify policies and practices that can be challenged through litigation, including through court observation, interviews of clients, potential clients, and witnesses, or public records requests. 

• Drafting legal memoranda, pleadings, affidavits, motions, and briefs. 

• Reviewing and analyzing documents to support litigation and advocacy. 

• Participating in discovery and trial practice. 

• Providing as-needed legal research, writing, and editing support for ACLU-NC. 

• Drafting and editing public education and non-litigation advocacy materials. 

• Conducting community outreach and know-your-rights presentations. 

• Performing occasional administrative work as necessary to support litigation efforts. 

• Occasionally traveling for work and working on the weekends and evenings if needed. 

Who You Are 

• J.D. degree at the start of the fellowship. 

• Admission to the North Carolina bar or pending efforts to seek admission to the North Carolina bar at the start of the fellowship. 

• Demonstrated commitment to public interest law, civil liberties, and racial justice, and to the mission and goals of the ACLU-NC.   

• Excellent research, writing and verbal communication skills, and ability to explain complex legal concepts in plain language. 

• Ability to conduct complex legal analysis and fact-finding in a fast-faced litigation environment.  

• Excellent interpersonal skills, including respect for others’ lived experiences, and ability to work and interact respectfully and thoughtfully with people from backgrounds different from your own.  

• Ability to work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team of legal staff, communications, policy and advocacy colleagues, as well as in coalition with outside organizations/law firms. 

• Being self-motivated with the ability to take initiative, manage a variety of tasks, and meet deadlines. 

• Demonstrated personal commitment to social justice, equity, and inclusion is required, including a personal approach that values individual lived experience and respects differences of race, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstances.  

• Excellent computer skills including knowledge of Microsoft Office suite. 

Compensation 

The full-time salary for this position is $71,000. Excellent benefits include but are not limited to:   

• 3 weeks paid vacation   

• 10 paid office holidays, 1 floating holiday, summer recess (last full week of August) and winter recess (December 25-January 1)   

• 10 paid sick days  

• Hybrid work environment   

• Generous medical, dental and vision insurance options for staff members, their dependents and spouse/domestic partner   

• Flexible spending and dependent care accounts, and employer-funded health reimbursement account

• Up to 12 weeks of paid medical leave  

• Life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance   

• Short-term disability and long-term disability insurance   

• 401(k) and Roth IRA defined contribution retirement plan with employer match   

• Free on-site parking   

This position is exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.    

The ACLU-NC/LF is a unionized employer, and the Legal Fellow position is part of the union bargaining unit. Salary and benefits are subject to a collective bargaining agreement. 

What Else You Should Know 

You are welcome here! The ACLU-NC is committed to an inclusive work environment that reflects the population that we serve. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and are committed to building an organization where all employees and North Carolinians can be proud. We eagerly anticipate applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, parental status, veteran status, or record of arrest or conviction.  

Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S.

To Apply 

Please submit one (1) PDF containing the following: a cover letter explaining your interest in working with the ACLU-NC; a resume; a legal writing sample (no more than 15 pages); a law school transcript; and the names and telephone numbers of three professional references. Your writing sample should be something you primarily authored and edited, without significant drafting or editing by others.  

Applications must be submitted via this link ( ACLU-NC Legal Fellow 2027 - American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina - Career Page ) and include all materials outlined above. Please note that we will only be able to follow up with those candidates under consideration. We will review applications on a rolling basis until the position is filled.  

The ACLU-NC is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. Recognizing that strict minimum requirements tend to disproportionately discourage women and people of color from applying for jobs for which they would otherwise be competitive, we encourage all qualified individuals to apply -- especially people of color; women; people from low-income backgrounds; people with disabilities; people who identify as LGBTQ+; and people who are formerly incarcerated or otherwise directly impacted by the criminal legal system.   

 

The ACLU-NC and the ACLU-NCLF is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. Recognizing that strict minimum requirements tend to disproportionately discourage women and people of color from applying for jobs for which they would otherwise be competitive, we encourage all qualified individuals to apply -- especially people of color; women; people from low-income backgrounds; people with disabilities; people who identify as LGBTQ+; and people who are formerly incarcerated or otherwise directly impacted by the criminal legal system.