Immigration Community Lawyer
Vermont Legal Aid (VLA) and Vermont Asylum Assistance Project (VAAP) seek full-time Staff Attorneys in northern and southern Vermont to staff their joint Community Lawyer Initiative.
The Community Lawyering Initiative is a joint project between VLA and VAAP dedicated to delivering immigration and related legal services in places where immigrants already seek support, connection, and safety, including trusted community-based organizations, mutual aid networks, and the detention centers where ICE holds people in Vermont.
VLA southern-based position will be an employee of Vermont Legal Aid, based in the Springfield or Rutland VLA office, working in close partnership with VAAP staff, and will focus on affirmative-posture immigration and related matters. This is a bargaining unit position. See https://www.vtlegalaid.org/about-vla/jobs for job description details.
VAAP northern-based position will be an employee of the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, based in the VAAP Burlington office, and will focus substantively on detained and defensive-posture immigration matters. See https://www.vaapvt.org/openings for job description details.
General responsibilities: interview prospective clients, assess legal problems and identify legal advice; provide trauma-informed and linguistically and otherwise accessible services; conduct factual investigations and analysis; perform legal research, prepare briefs, and argue appeals; delivery trainings and community legal orientations; engage in regular travel to and coordination with community-based organization partner sites; become proficient in immigration and related law.
We encourage applicants from a broad range of backgrounds, and we welcome information about how your experience can contribute to serving our diverse client communities. Applicants are encouraged to share in their cover letter how they can further our goals of social justice and individual rights. We are an equal opportunity employer committed to a discrimination-and-harassment-free workplace.
Starting salary is $70,000-$78,000, commensurate with experience. Benefits include generous paid vacation, retirement, and health benefits. Attorney applicants must be licensed to practice law in Vermont, eligible for admission by waiver, or have passed the UBE with a Vermont passing score. In-state travel in a personal vehicle required. The funding for these positions is geared toward attorneys earlier in their careers, ideally 1-5 years in practice. These are one-year contracts renewable subject to funding.
Applications received by close of business on December 15, 2025, will be prioritized, but we will continue to accept applications until the positions are filled. Your application should be sent as a single PDF and include a cover letter and resume, bar status, writing sample, and at least three professional references with contact information. Please send your application by e-mail to [email protected], and include in the subject line your name and “Immigrant Community Lawyer.” Please let us know how you heard about this position.