POSITION: RIS Staff Attorney
REPORTS TO: Managing Attorney, RIS
SECTION: Religious Immigration Services
STATUS: Exempt
SALARY: $80,000 - $87,000
Summary Description: The Staff Attorney has responsibility for providing direct legal immigration services to dioceses and religious institutes sponsoring foreign born religious workers; upholding a high level of legal responsibility in analyzing and applying complex immigration law and policy; developing, maintaining, and managing attorney client relationships; assisting the section to develop priorities and strategies to fulfill its mission; maintaining client data in LawLogix; and maintaining expertise on religious immigration law.
Primary Responsibilities:
Legal Representation
- Represent a minimum of 100 individual cases before Department of Homeland Security and Department of State.
- Provide accurate and comprehensive legal advice to dioceses and religious institutes on immigration options for individuals they are sponsoring and how immigration regulations impact the dioceses and religious institutes.
- Provide accurate and comprehensive legal advice to foreign nationals for long-term planning on immigration status, nonimmigrant status, travel issues, permanent residence, and naturalization.
- Maintain a broad knowledge and understanding of U.S. immigration law and be informed about changes in immigration regulations and policies.
- Exercise independent legal judgment and discretion in clients' work.
- Prepare and provide strategic planning to dioceses and religious institutes to assist them in complying with immigration regulations.
- Analyze complex legal issues with long-term implications.
- Analyze individual's immigration documents and organization's qualifying documents.
- Review client's immigration history and background.
- Develop strategies tailored to individual cases which impact major life decisions.
- Communicate and consult daily on immigration matters with clients and potential clients.
- Respond daily to email, phone calls, faxes, etc. from clients.
Case Management
- Manage cases from the initial non-immigrant stage through permanent residence and naturalization.
- Maintain expertise in managing caseload through the Section's case management software, LawLogix.
- Update LawLogix on a daily basis with case notes, reminders, call-ups, and new documents.
- Regular review of all active files to ensure compliance with immigration law, current information and documents, and to determine immediate or future action.
- Prepare monthly case reports for RIS Director.
- Participate in weekly case management meetings.
- Advise clients on record keeping and strategic planning for immigration purposes.
- Maintain client confidentiality in providing dual representation for dioceses/ religious communities and religious workers.
Advocacy
- Work with CLINIC's Advocacy Section to develop priorities and strategies for advocacy.
- Provide Advocacy Section with compelling stories of religious worker cases.
- Work with Department of Homeland Security and Department of State to assist with individual advocacy of specific cases.
- Contact members of Congress on individual constituent cases.
- Respond to government regulations affecting religious worker cases.
Training and Technical Assistance
- Prepare and provide trainings for staff of dioceses and religious institutes, through seminars, workshops, and webinars.
- Prepare and or contribute to a quarterly newsletter and pamphlets on religious immigration issues to inform clients on religious immigration issues.
Outreach and Development of Organizational Clients
- Promote on-site and web-based consultations for religious institutes, dioceses and seminaries to review their policies and procedures on religious immigration cases and help them establish appropriate internal procedures regarding foreign-born religious workers.
- As assigned, accept opportunities to speak at conferences held by religious institutes, dioceses and seminaries.
- As assigned, writes articles and participates in seminars on religious immigration issues sponsored by other organizations.
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:
- Juris Doctor Degree
- One to three years of immigration law practice
- Member in good standing of the Bar of the highest court in any State or the District of Columbia
- In-depth knowledge of immigration law
- Strong legal analytical skills
- Able to successfully make recommendations that affect the entire Section and, on occasion, the entire organization
- Ability to travel on occasion for trainings, site visits, and conferences
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Able to multi-task and manage priorities
- Experience using LawLogix or other online case management software
- Strong organization skills
- Demonstrate knowledge of and support the organizations mission, vision, value statements, policies and procedures, operating instructions, confidentiality standards, and the code of ethical behavior
- Fulfill CLINIC's expectations that all staff abide by the following Organization Behaviors
- Serve with integrity
- Develop innovative solutions
- Promote learning - for themselves, for their colleagues, and for our network
- Cultivate constructive relationships
- Model stewardship
- Maintain a positive attitude
- Exhibit leadership skills and initiative
- Communicate effectively
- Own your work
- Teamwork and cooperation with colleagues
- Resolves conflicts effectively and makes effective decisions
Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity Commitment
CLINIC considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, family responsibilities, religion, age, disability, service in the military, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. CLINIC also provides "reasonable accommodations" to qualified individuals with disabilities, in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and applicable state and local laws. All interested individuals, regardless of background, are encouraged to apply.
We embrace and encourage our employees' differences in race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, and other characteristics that make our employees unique.
Work Environment:
- This position may require extended periods of standing, sitting, as well as some repetitive movements, bending and repetitive lifting of significant weight.
- Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the key components and primary responsibilities.
- The work you will do is covered by a collective employment agreement between Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. "CLINIC" and the Nonprofit Professional Employees' Union "NPEU" Local 70.
APPLICATION: To be considered for the position, please submit both a RESUME and COVER LETTER.
