Associate Attorney

We are seeking a mid-level associate to join our existing practice. As detailed on our website, we have a strong record of overturning wrongful convictions and holding New York City, the State of New York, and individual defendants civilly liable for police and prosecutorial misconduct and unjust convictions, including winning an $80 million judgment in November 2025 for a wrongful conviction, the largest such jury award in U.S. history. Ideally our new associate would start no later than January or February 2026.

Our associates are given as much responsibility as they are ready to handle. Working under the supervision of Joel Rudin, they build relationships with clients, interview witnesses, conduct document discovery, take and defend depositions, draft and argue criminal and civil motions and appeals, assist in trial preparation and at trial, and reinvestigate wrongful convictions. The firm is also planning to expand into other civil rights areas, such as voting rights, in anticipation of the 2026 midterm elections.

Our firm takes an active interest in the development of the law. Recently, we were part of the legal team that secured a favorable Supreme Court ruling for civil rights plaintiffs in McDonough v. Smith, 139 S. Ct. 2149 (2019). We also have briefed and argued many of the leading Second Circuit decisions involving wrongful prosecutions and convictions, including Smalls v. City of New York, 10 F.4th 117 (2d Cir. 2021), Bellamy v. City of New York, 914 F.3d 727 (2d Cir. 2019), Poventud v. City of New York, 750 F.3d 121 (2d Cir. 2014) (en banc), and Zahrey v. Coffey, 221 F.3d 342 (2d Cir. 2000), as well as leading appellate decisions involving Brady violations, including People v. Negron, 26 N.Y.3d 262 (2015), People v. Colon, 13 N.Y.3d 343 (2009), People v. Bond, 95 N.Y.2d 840 (2000), and People v. Ramos, 201 A.D.2d 78 (1st Dep’t 1994).

The ideal candidate has had a federal court or New York Court of Appeals clerkship and/or several years of meaningful litigation experience; excellent research, writing, and oral advocacy skills; a strong work ethic and commitment to excellence; and a deep commitment to criminal defense or civil rights work in the criminal justice field. Compensation is commensurate with experience of 1 to 5 years ($120,000 to $160,000). The job is also eligible for an annual discretionary bonus.

We invite interested candidates to submit a cover letter, resume, list of three references, and writing sample to Amariah Thurston at amariah@rudinlaw.com.

We encourage 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, veteran status, or record of arrest or conviction.

This position is eligible for an annual discretionary bonus.