The Center for HIV Law and Policy (CHLP) is a national legal and policy resource and strategy center for people living with HIV and their advocates. CHLP’s mission is to reduce HIV’s impact on vulnerable and marginalized communities and to secure the human rights of people affected by HIV. We support and increase the HIV advocacy power and expertise of attorneys, community members and service providers, and advance policy initiatives that are grounded in social justice, science and the public health. We do this by providing high-quality legal and policy materials in an accessible web-based resource bank, cultivating an interdisciplinary network of attorneys, experts and activists, and promoting advocacy on critical HIV legal, health and human rights issues.

Two of our current major initiatives focus on discriminatory policies in the U.S. legal system. The Positive Justice Project is a national coalition spearheaded by CHLP and organized to end criminal laws targeting people living with HIV. Teen SENSE advocates for written policies guaranteeing LGBT-inclusive/affirming sexual health care and sexual health literacy programming in juvenile detention, foster care and other state-operated youth facilities.

Summary of Position

The Deputy Director works closely and collaboratively with the Executive Director on strategic planning and organizational management and development, oversees the supervision of staff, and helps to ensure that the legal and policy programs and strategies of CHLP serve its mission, goals and high standards of service, accuracy and excellence. 

The Deputy Director is responsible for ensuring the implementation of all legal activities and cases, including legal policy and advocacy work; and oversees the professional development of staff.  While maintaining a limited docket of policy/case work, the Deputy Director also supports the Executive Director on development/fundraising work and ensuring organizational sustainability.

Key Responsibilities:

• Playing a leadership role in the organization’s long-term strategic planning process
• Working with the Executive Director and staff to advance, promote and execute CHLP’s work streams and to ensure that work meets consistently high standards
• Monitoring the progress of legal and policy work, and ensuring that work priorities and commitments of CHLP are developed and implemented on a reasonable timeframe and according to schedule
• Ensuring new strategic legal cases and policy advocacy initiatives are identified, selected, developed and implemented
• Working with staff to ensure high quality results for strategic case and advocacy work that improve the lives of people affected by HIV and related discrimination
• Ensuring the review and completion of CHLP publications such as CHLP’s manuals and charts on HIV and STI-related criminal laws and prosecutions
• Assisting other legal staff and consultants as requested by the Executive Director
• Reviewing, guiding (and drafting as needed) legal briefs and policy analysis
• Developing and ensuring a progressive system for staff performance evaluation and feedback
• Staying abreast of major developments in HIV jurisprudence and policy issues
• Conducting or contributing to trainings and presentations offered by CHLP (internally or externally)
• Relationship-building and exploring collaborations with legal, civil rights, human rights, and immigrants rights organizations to strengthen connections with people of color, low-income individuals, immigrants, and other marginalized communities at risk for HIV
• Recruiting law firms for pro bono assistance and to participate in the HIV Legal Network
• In collaboration with the Executive Director, building and engaging CHLP’s Advisory Board
• Representing CHLP in court, government and advocacy meetings, conferences, presentations, networking and fundraising events, and other engagements that will bring more visibility and resources to CHLP and the people we serve

To Apply:

Send a cover letter, resume’ and salary needs to Catherine Hanssens, Executive Director, at chanssens@hivlawandpolicy.org

Deadline for Applications/Interviews:

Interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis and applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

The Center for HIV Law and Policy is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to advancing fairness, equality, and diversity in both its work and its workplace.  We strongly encourage applications from all communities, particularly people of color; people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds; individuals with disabilities, including those living with HIV; and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons. 

The Center for HIV Law and Policy is a project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, a not for profit 501(c)(3) organization founded by the Fund for the City of New York.