Job Title: Senior Attorney, General Administration
Department: Legal
Location: Remote, Oakland, CA, Chicago, IL, or Washington, DC
Reports To: General Counsel for General Administration
Supervises: N/A
Context: At the Sierra Club, we believe in the power of interdependence. Together, we remain committed to the fight for a healthy climate built on a foundation of environmental, racial, economic, and gender justice – a future where all people benefit from a healthy, thriving planet and a direct connection to nature. As the climate crisis and deeply entrenched systemic racism all fuel injustice, we will continue to fight for a bold, transformational agenda that recognizes the interconnectedness between our planet, our humanity, and our future. By recognizing that our destinies are tied, we continue to name that all things are fundamentally connected, and the overlap between ecology, race, gender, and representative government will move to either advance our collective humanity or to oppress it. Sierra Club has close to 700 staff across the country and a network of 64 local chapters that are led and fueled by thousands of volunteers. We are also proud to be a unionized employer, with three labor unions representing more than half of our employees.
Scope: The Senior Attorney, General Administration assists the General Counsel in providing a range of legal support across the organization, including general legal support and advice to programs, teams and campaigns, reviewing and evaluating decisions for legal and regulatory risk, advising on governance and policy questions, and reviewing, negotiating and managing contracts. Works closely with volunteer leaders and staff throughout the organization, at both the National and local level. Advises Sierra Club in various corporate legal matters, including intellectual property, business partnerships, real estate, and risk management.
Job activities include but are not limited to:
Negotiates, drafts, and reviews a wide range of contracts and other commercial agreements (including real estate and business partnership), working closely with internal business and program staff, as assigned by the General Counsel or the Chief Financial Executive.
Manages compliance program implementation and roll-out among various constituencies
Reviews, develops and improves standard contracting procedures and terms, including maintenance of contract database, development and updating of contract templates, improvement of contracting guidelines and procedures, and staff training.
Reviews and evaluates business practices, decisions and actions for legal risk, in consultation with General Counsel, including publication risk review for Club communications.
Assists in the administration of the organization’s records retention policy, including periodic updating of the policy, coordinating staff record reviews, and assisting General Counsel with document retention notices related to specific matters.
Advises and provides training for staff across the organization on legal issues and risks, troubleshooting problems, addressing litigation and legal threats, and responding to other matters in a variety of legal practice areas.
Performs legal research on a wide variety of legal issues in support of General Counsel’s role in advising on organizational policies, governance issues, and specific legal and business issues facing the organization.
Assists General Counsel in responding to and managing legal claims against Sierra Club, and managing outside counsel with respect to litigation and legal threats.
Advises on a range of other business and operational issues relevant to a large, complex tax-exempt organization.
Performs miscellaneous duties, special projects and reports as assigned.
The successful candidate must have the following skills and experience:
A J.D. from an accredited U.S. law school and admission in good standing to a state bar within the United States.
5+ years of relevant legal experience, preferably as in-house counsel.
Familiarity with non-profit organizations, including working within mission-driven organizations, grassroots infrastructures, and distributed workforces.
Strong legal drafting skills and substantial contract review and negotiation experience, preferably for a broad range of clients and types of agreements.
Excellent organizational skills. Ability to track multiple priorities involving a wide variety of legal issues.
Ability to communicate and work effectively with volunteers, staff, and outside counsel.
Strong written and oral communication skills.
Excellent legal research skills.
Able to work independently and as a constructive team member; exercise initiative (ie., set own work priorities), and independent judgment and decision making.
The strongest candidates will also demonstrate the following experience, skills and competencies:
Familiarity with or interest in environmental issues and conservation.
Experience managing challenging group dynamics in ways that build credibility, trust, collaboration, respect for individual differences, and fair outcomes across all levels of an organization.
An understanding and commitment to the Sierra Club’s core values of Anti-racism, Balance, Collaboration, Justice and Transformation.
Skills Required
- J.D. from an accredited U.S. law school
- Admission in good standing to a state bar within the United States
- 5+ years of relevant legal experience
- Familiarity with nonprofit organizations, mission-driven organizations, grassroots infrastructures, and distributed workforces
- Strong legal drafting skills and substantial contract review and negotiation experience
- Excellent organizational skills and ability to manage multiple legal priorities
- Ability to communicate and work effectively with volunteers, staff, and outside counsel
- Strong written and oral communication skills
- Excellent legal research skills
- Ability to work independently, collaborate constructively, exercise initiative, and make independent decisions
- In-house counsel experience
- Familiarity with or interest in environmental issues and conservation
- Experience managing challenging group dynamics and fostering collaboration, trust, respect, and fair outcomes
- Understanding and commitment to Sierra Club core values of anti-racism, balance, collaboration, justice, and transformation
What We Do
The Sierra Club is the largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. For over 130 years, it has worked to promote clean energy, safeguard community health, protect wildlife, and preserve wild places. Through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action, the organization mobilizes millions of members and supporters to defend the right to a healthy world and address the climate crisis.
