We Are Hiring! Senior Staff Attorney
Senior Staff Attorney
Job Announcement
March 2022
Conservation Law Center seeks applications for a Senior Staff Attorney to join our team based in the beautiful Midwestern college town of Bloomington, Indiana.
Background
Conservation Law Center (CLC) is a nonprofit public interest law firm with a staff of five full-time professionals. We are lawyers, advocates, and educators who care deeply about the natural world and people’s relationship to it. We work to protect and improve the health, diversity, beauty, and resilience of the planet and defend our shared natural heritage. CLC provides pro bono legal support to conservation nonprofits and agencies, and works with clients on a wide range of transactional, policy, and litigation matters pertaining to regional, national, and international conservation issues.
CLC has particular interest and expertise in several topics, including land protection, conservation easements, the Public Trust doctrine, species preservation, and the protection of freshwater ecosystems especially in the Great Lakes region. While we focus on land, water, and species, climate change is a factor in nearly all the issues we address. In addition to representing dozens of clients around the US, CLC also works for conservation clients in Costa Rica and we expect our international programs to grow. CLC was founded in 2005 by attorney W. William Weeks, former EVP and COO of The Nature Conservancy, who currently serves as the chair of the CLC Board of Directors.
CLC also operates the Conservation Law Clinic in partnership with the Maurer School of Law at Indiana University. In that capacity, CLC works with 2L and 3L student interns on its active projects, advising clients, and researching legal remedies and policy solutions on conservation issues.
Job Description
This is an exciting opportunity to join a growing public interest law firm working on some of the most important and challenging conservation issues in the US and beyond. The Senior Staff Attorney will be involved in all aspects of CLC’s work, including advocacy and litigation on the organization’s substantive focus areas, and helping teach students in the Conservation Law Clinic at Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law. While CLC engages in multiple kinds of conservation advocacy, roughly one-third to one-half of CLC’s work involves litigation. The Senior Attorney will be expected to contribute to CLC’s ongoing projects while also developing their own base of clients for CLC. This full-time position is open to practicing attorneys with seven or more years of experience.
Responsibilities:
Engage in team problem solving, litigation planning, project management, trial work, and legislative strategies where appropriate
Develop and implement client relationship and case strategies
Lead complex cases and the full range of litigation tasks in state and federal court and administrative tribunals
Work collaboratively with other CLC attorneys and staff, and help create a supportive and collegial work environment
Help supervise and mentor associate and graduate fellow attorneys, including building their litigation skills
Help teach 2L and 3L students through active client matters in the Conservation Law Clinic
Develop lectures and discussions on a wide variety of conservation topics to present in seminars and other forums
Help cultivate strategic relationships with clients, partners, experts, and funders
Help CLC communicate its work in support of its fundraising and marketing efforts
Engage in professional development, including attending conferences and participating in opportunities to develop policy papers and articles
Participating in conservation and environmental networks relevant to CLC’s focus areas, including international opportunities
Qualifications
J.D. and admission to the Indiana Bar (or willingness to take the Indiana bar) with a minimum of 7 years of legal experience
Significant experience with environmental or conservation issues
Excellent litigation skills and the ability to manage a litigation docket effectively
Strong legal research, writing, analytical, and oral advocacy skills
Strong sense of personal initiative and work ethic, good judgment, creativity, and flexibility
Commitment and ability to be an exceptional teacher and mentor to early career attorneys and students
Strong communication skills and the willingness to advocate for CLC’s mission with media, partners, and funders
Outstanding academic record
Demonstrated commitment to CLC’s core focus areas
Strong interpersonal skills and the desire to be a member of a supportive team
Ability and willingness to travel as necessary in support of CLC’s work
Additional Background
CLC is in a period of growth and we expect to add several other positions in the coming months. CLC recently helped lead the effort to designate 3.5 million acres (the size of Connecticut) as a Sentinel Landscape through the US Departments of Defense, Agriculture, and Interior. (conservationlawcenter.org/sentinel.) One of only 10 such areas in the entire country, the Sentinel program focuses on landscape conservation on a scale not often seen. In addition to the Senior Attorney position, CLC expects to hire at least two more positions, including a full-time Associate Attorney and a Project Coordinator, to work on the Sentinel Landscapes program. CLC also expects to add an additional full-time Associate Attorney in early 2023, bringing the number of staff to eight people (five attorneys).
We value applicants who have a broad range of interests and experience. Conservation Law Center is committed to equal opportunity for applicants from groups that are historically under-represented at professional levels within the field of conservation, including women and people of color, who are strongly encouraged to apply.
CLC believes firmly in a positive work-life balance and understands that flexibility is part of that balance. Our staff members are professionals and are treated as such. Not every minute of every day must be spent in the office setting—a lesson we’ve all learned from over two years of COVID. Working from home is a regular part of our routines, and maintaining personal appointments and schedules is a part of a modern professional work life that we can always accommodate. Some remote work away from Bloomington may also be possible, with the understanding that we have responsibilities to our clients, students, and colleagues that must be met to maintain the highest professionalism and strong team bonds.
Bloomington, Indiana is located in the unglaciated hardwood hills of southern Indiana, and is home to Indiana University’s flagship campus. The community celebrates its natural beauty, outstanding cultural offerings and food scene, high-quality schools, and convenient access to the outstanding Indianapolis International Airport. Bloomington is 1 hour drive to Indianapolis, 1.5 hours to Louisville, 3 hours to Cincinnati, 3.5 hours to St. Louis, and 4 hours to Chicago.
Application Process
Interested candidates must submit a cover letter, C.V., references, and writing sample (10 pages max) to Office Manager, Melissa Berry at berrym@indiana.edu, Attn: Senior Staff Attorney. PDF format is preferred.
CLC hopes to fill this position as soon as possible. The Senior Attorney will be expected to help teach in Conservation Law Clinic beginning in the fall semester August 2022. Applications received before April 30 will receive preference. We will accept applications until the position is filled.
Salary and Benefits
Conservation Law Center offers salaries competitive with leading national environmental nonprofits including a benefits package for employees and their families that includes health, dental, vision, as well as a retirement match. Expected salary range for the Senior Staff Attorney position is $90,000-$110,000.
We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ethnicity, color, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.