Legal Director

PEN America, a nonprofit organization working at the intersection of literature and human rights, seeks a motivated senior attorney with experience developing and litigating First Amendment and related free expression cases to serve as Legal Director. The Legal Director will play a leading role in developing PEN America’s legal advocacy program, working in collaboration with program team leaders to create and implement strategic goals.

They will direct and oversee PEN America’s use of litigation as an important advocacy tool, particularly where the organization has a unique value‑add and can have impact. They will direct the litigation docket, while also advising and counseling the organization on the laws and policies relevant to its broader free expression work. The Legal Director will supervise a small staff, currently consisting of one staff attorney, with the potential to add a legal fellow.

This is a full‑time position based at PEN America’s New York City headquarters and reports to the Chief Program Officer, Free Expression.

The Legal Director will work closely with the organization’s program staff, especially the free expression programs department, to defend freedom of expression through legal advocacy, advancing the program teams’ work to defend the rights to read, write, and learn, and lifting the voices of the organization’s core constituencies, including literary writers, journalists, librarians, scholars, and educators. The organization has dedicated, but still limited, resources to support its emerging legal advocacy program.

PEN America defends writers and protects free expression in the United States and abroad. It is the leading organization fighting book bans in the U.S., which includes generating foundational research and tracking relied upon by experts, policy‑makers, and journalists throughout the country. In furtherance of its goals, PEN America wishes to expand and carefully target its legal advocacy across the country.

PEN America, a membership organization of writers, has already participated in litigation in state and federal courts, at times as a plaintiff, other times as an amicus, as well as in an expert capacity. To a lesser degree, it also has been involved in federal, state and local executive and regulatory proceedings. It has also lobbied in Congress and in state legislatures on issues affecting book bans and higher education.

Lawyers on PEN America’s staff have worked closely with outside counsel in bringing and prosecuting litigation. The organization also has an active amicus practice to ensure its perspective and deep research in areas involving censorship, such as book bans and higher education gag orders, can inform and influence significant cases. It has also filed amicus briefs and otherwise worked to defend the rights and values of cultural expression and international cultural exchange, consistent with the principles set forth in the PEN Charter, including bringing the organization’s expertise to bear in cases where immigration laws and regulations are used to restrict and censor the unhampered exchange of ideas across borders.

The Legal Director and staff attorney at times will draft amicus briefs in‑house, sometimes work with pro‑bono outside counsel, and at times join as a co‑signatory on briefs drafted by other organizations. PEN America’s 2025 legal docket can be found here, including information regarding two book federal ban cases in Florida and Tennessee respectively, in which the organization is a plaintiff.

In this role, the Legal Director can expect to lead work that is impactful on a national level. The Legal Director will also lead in coordinating relationships with outside counsel and other organizations and individuals who may become involved with PEN America’s legal advocacy; they will also coordinate any relationships with broader coalitions advancing similar agendas through the courts. They will serve as the most senior internal legal resource for PEN America staff on free expression matters, which may include providing training and other resources, and providing pre‑publication review of relevant materials.

They will assist the…