Legal Director

VIDAS provides competent and compassionate immigrant legal services at no or low cost to clients. With offices in Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Vallejo, and on the Santa Rosa Junior College and Napa Valley College campuses, VIDAS provides a full range of trauma-informed advocacy, representing clients in removal proceedings, asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, family-based petitions, DACA, work authorization, U and T visas, adjustment of status, and naturalization. We also connect our clients with supportive community services.

The Legal Director provides critical leadership for our staff and community, offering reliable, steadfast support for clients amidst changing immigration laws and policies. Our culture is intentionally inclusive and anti-racist. We believe in fierce individual advocacy as well as the importance of movement lawyering. VIDAS encourages people of all backgrounds to apply, even if you do not meet all desired qualifications.

Management

- Supervises attorneys, DOJ accredited representatives, paralegals, and staff in effective, compassionate immigrant legal advocacy, with a special emphasis on removal defense

- Coordinates weekly or bi-weekly case management meetings to ensure effective oversight of all cases, strategize individual issues, and promote best practices

- Provides virtual and in-person staff trainings on relevant topics and case updates

- Works in a mentorship role, cultivating leadership among staff and training the next generation of immigrant legal advocates

- Contributes to staff hiring and termination decisions, workflow maintenance, and overall HR strategies

Community Outreach

- Provides accurate, updated information for community members and organizations about changing immigration laws and policies

- Takes the lead on community events including seminars, know your rights forums, and clinics (such as DACA, naturalization, and pro se asylum applications)

- Builds and maintains trusting relationships with stakeholders, amplifies immigrant agendas and prioritizes immigrant political and economic power in our community

Direct Representation

- Maintains a moderate caseload of removal defense clients

- Demonstrates exceptional courtroom demeanor, meticulous attention to detail, persuasive written and oral advocacy, demonstrated positive results for clients

- Files persuasive and comprehensive briefings and relevant appeals with the court, sets the bar for legal research and writing

- Maintains strict confidentiality, supports clients through trauma-informed interviewing and advocacy, considers extralegal needs of clients and connects them with appropriate resources

Administration

- Supports Executive Director in grant reporting and management

- Supports strategic planning in collaboration with board leadership

- Contributes to long-term sustainability planning

Desired Qualifications

- At least 5 years of significant immigration legal advocacy, with a focus on removal defense representation

- Demonstrated commitment to social justice advocacy, mutual aid, and amplifying calls for immigrant economic and political power

- Thorough and persuasive research, writing, and oral advocacy

- Supervisory experience, including mentorship, training, and leadership in the field

- Cultural competence and emotional intelligence in working with people of all ages from all over the world, many of whom have experienced violence and/or are currently in a state of crisis

- Capacity for creative problem-solving, resourcefulness, and collaboration with multiple stakeholders

- Spanish fluency

Salary $90,000 to $115,000 depending on experience and organizational capacity

Benefits include: 13 paid holidays, vacation time, sick leave, 100 percent employer paid health insurance, 401K retirement match, employer-provided professional development training, trauma-informed advocacy training and genuinely engaging wellness programs, and a supportive, dynamic team environment where everyone is invested in your success!

Job Types: Full-time, Part-time

Pay: $90,000.00 - $115,000.00 per year

13 paid holidays, vacation time, sick leave, 100 percent employer paid health insurance, 401K retirement match, employer-provided professional development training, trauma-informed advocacy training and genuinely engaging wellness programs, and a supportive, dynamic team environment where everyone is invested in your success!

13 paid holidays, vacation time, sick leave, 100 percent employer paid health insurance, 401K retirement match, employer-provided professional development training, trauma-informed advocacy training and genuinely engaging wellness programs, and a supportive, dynamic team environment where everyone is invested in your success!