Paralegal

The NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the country’s first and foremost civil and human rights law organization. Founded in 1940 under the leadership of Thurgood Marshall, who subsequently became the first Black U.S. Supreme Court Justice, LDF was launched at a time when the nation’s aspirations for equality and due process of law were stifled by widespread state-sponsored racial inequality. From that era to the present, LDF’s mission has been transformative—to achieve racial justice, equality, and an inclusive society.

LDF’s litigation, public policy advocacy, and public education programs in the substantive areas of criminal justice, economic justice, education, and political participation seek to ensure the fundamental and basic human rights of all people to quality education, economic opportunity, the right to vote and fully participate in democracy, and the right to a fair and just judicial system. LDF continues to make an impact in the area of public service and was recognized by Fast Company as one of its 2023 Brands That Matter under its public service category.

The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) seeks a Paralegal to assist LDF attorneys with litigation, education, advocacy, policy projects, and other advocacy-related activities.

LDF operates in a hybrid work environment, where employees are expected to be in the office for a minimum of 2 days per week, unless otherwise indicated.

Responsibilities:

• Proofread documents, including correspondence, advocacy and education materials, press releases, and website information;
• Cite-check, bluebook, quote-check, and generally finalize documents for filing, including motions, briefs, testimonies, and law review articles;
• Assist attorneys with admissions to federal and state courts;
• File and serve court documents, including electronically via ECF;
• Conduct legal database research (e.g. Lexis, Westlaw) and other fact research, as directed;
• Assist attorneys at hearings, oral arguments, depositions, and trials, whether remote or in-person;
• Arrange logistics, include travel, lodging, equipment, technology needs, for in-person trials and hearings;
• Organize, monitor, and update hard copy and electronic case files, including correspondences, pleadings, discovery materials, deposition transcripts and exhibits, hearing transcripts, pre-trial and trial exhibits, and briefs;
• Manage, organize, search and retrieve documents from document repositories including e-discovery databases.
• Gather and organize exhibits required for court filings, hearings, depositions, trials, client meetings, and conferences;
• Coordinate with internal LDF staff and vendors for the provision of services including transcription, printing, scanning, and duplication of documents;
• Coordinate with attorneys, clients, the IT Department, and vendors regarding the retrieval, processing, review, and production of documents, including electronically stored information housed on e-discovery platforms or document repositories;
• Perform administrative tasks, such as filing, copying, scanning, indexing, and mailing of documents, as needed;
• Assist attorneys with communications with clients, class members, and interested community stakeholders regarding LDF advocacy matters;
• Facilitate and support community meetings and other community outreach activities; and
• Provide other myriad support to attorneys in their litigation and advocacy matters.

Qualifications:

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• A college degree, preferably with relevant scholastic, extracurricular, and/or work experience;
• Commitment to racial justice and civil rights;
• Excellent computer skills—familiarity with Office 365 software and comfort with database systems generally;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills;
• Strong research, writing, and analytical skills;
• Willingness to learn and develop new skills and expertise;
• Excellent organizational skills;
• Accuracy and attention to detail;
• Ability to work independently and within a team;
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, high-stress environment;
• Ability to prioritize workload;
• Ability to complete tasks accurately and in a timely manner;
• Willingness to work overtime, including occasional weekends;
• High motivation; and
• Willingness to travel.

The salary range for this position is:

Washington, DC: $72,000 - $90,052

New York: $75,000 - $94,000

Atlanta, Georgia: $65,000 - $81,592

This is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, skills, efforts, requirements, or working conditions associated with the job. While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, management reserves the right to revise the job or to require that other or different tasks be performed as assigned. This description does not constitute a contract of employment, and LDF may exercise its employment-at-will rights at any time.

LDF offers all eligible employees a generous benefits package. To learn more, click the following link: 2025 Benefits Overview.

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The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to you without regard to race, creed, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, marital status, age, veteran status, medical condition or disability, genetic information, gender identity, or any other protected status under federal, state, or local law.