Senior Attorney, Fossil Fuels Program

Earthjustice seeks an experienced Senior Attorney to join the Fossil Fuels Program. We use the power of the law to challenge the onslaught of new oil and gas infrastructure development that threatens climate, communities, and the environment. This position will focus on oil and gas infrastructure and related projects in the U.S. Gulf region, particularly Texas. The attorney in this position will be located in Texas in our Houston office or from their home office in the state. 

Earthjustice is the nation’s leading environmental law organization. Wielding the power of law, Earthjustice partners with our clients to take on the most critical fights of our time — fights to protect the incredible biodiversity and wild places of the planet; to avert climate disaster by transitioning society away from fossil fuels toward clean energy; to safeguard the right of all people to a healthy environment. We are here because the earth needs a good lawyer.

Founded in 1971, Earthjustice has a distinguished track record of achieving significant, lasting environmental protections. We achieve this by hiring people who share a passion for justice and a healthy environment. Our headquarters are in San Francisco with offices in Anchorage, Bozeman, Chicago, Denver, Honolulu, Houston, Juneau, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Seattle, Tallahassee and Washington, D.C.

At a time when we desperately need to reduce greenhouse emissions, the oil and gas industry is aggressively working to expand fossil fuel infrastructure, trying to lock us into decades of future oil and gas use and directly harming communities already hardest hit by climate change. Earthjustice’s Fossil Fuels Program uses litigation, administrative advocacy, and partnership to advance an end to U.S. oil and gas extraction and production primarily by stopping new oil and gas infrastructure (e.g., petrochemical facilities, export terminals and pipelines). For more information about the program’s work, visit https://earthjustice.org/about/offices/fossil-fuels.

Responsibilities: 

• Lead complex cases and the full range of litigation tasks, including factual investigation, legal research, discovery, briefing, witness preparation, trials, and oral advocacy.
• Develop cutting-edge legal theories and strategies.
• Work with clients, other attorneys, and partners to investigate, develop, and litigate cases.
• Work with our media and policy and legislation teams, as well as clients and partners, to leverage legal advocacy to obtain positive change and results.
• Train and mentor junior attorneys, including building their litigation skills in the course of legal advocacy.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with a diverse range of clients and other partner organizations.
• Develop and lead litigation campaigns and strategically integrate legal, advocacy, communication, and organizing strategies to achieve campaign goals.
• Engage in activities, including work with partners, funders, the media, and communities, that enhance the organization’s reputation and the attorney’s role as an “ambassador” of the organization.

Qualifications: 

• Juris Doctorate (JD) degree.
• Admitted or willing to seek admission to the Texas bar.
• At least six years of legal experience, including substantial litigation experience.
• Excellent research, analytic, writing, and communication skills required; trial skills a plus.
• Experience working with environmental law statutes. Experience working with communities and issues surrounding environmental health and oil and gas infrastructure, strongly preferred.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to build relationships and work collaboratively with a diverse set of clients and partner organizations.
• Ability to manage a litigation docket effectively, lead a litigation team, and work independently and collaboratively with colleagues and partner organizations.
• Experience mentoring and supervising others.
• Contributes towards an equitable and inclusive work culture that encourages partnership, active listening, and integrating diverse perspectives.
• Supports Earthjustice’s core values of partnership, inclusion, justice and excellence.
• Commitment to public interest work and a passion for the role of Earthjustice and its mission, including a desire to fight for the right of all to a healthy environment.

We offer a competitive salary and excellent benefits that are comprehensive and competitive. We also offer a congenial, flexible, hybrid work environment and a casual dress code. As a 501(c)(3) organization, Earthjustice is a qualifying employer for purposes of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program.

Salary depends on experience and location.

Salary range in Texas is $144,400+ depending on location and experience. 

For litigators and advocates committed to saving the planet and the people who depend on it, Senior Attorney at Earthjustice is the best job on the planet. Learn more about our Senor Attorney careers and work online here: https://earthjustice.org/about/jobs/senior-attorney 

To Apply: 

Applicants should submit the following via Jobvite:

• Resume
• One- or two-page cover letter that addresses (1) what draws you to the Program mission; and (2) any experience you have working on environmental, environmental justice, and/or oil and gas issues.
• Writing sample, preferably a legal brief or memorandum that primarily reflects your work.

Preference will be given to candidates who apply by September 15, 2025. After that, applications may be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.  

Please reach out to jobs@earthjustice.org if you are having technical difficulties submitting your Application. No phone calls, drop-ins, or hard copies. Earthjustice only accepts resumes submitted for positions that are currently open. Unsolicited resumes or resumes for posted positions that are not submitted via the on-line application process (where available), will not be reviewed or retained.

Earthjustice is driven by a passion for justice, partnership, inclusion and excellence. Our core values lead us to seek a broad range of perspectives and backgrounds to achieve our mission and to maintain an inclusive environment where all staff are valued and respected. As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to employment practices that ensure that employees and applicants for employment are provided with equal opportunities without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information or any other factor that is not related to the position.

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