Director of Legal Research & Writing and Moot Court

The Director of Legal Research & Writing and Moot Court (“Director”) is a faculty member (Lecturer) at UC Law SF and holds the titles of LRW & Moot Court Director and Lecturer. The Director reports to the Senior Assistant Dean for LRW & Moot Court, and together they oversee the legal writing curriculum and the Legal Research & Writing and Moot Court Department (the “Program”). The Department classes include Legal Research & Writing 1, Legal Research & Writing 2, Advanced Legal Writing, Appellate Advocacy, and related programs.

Core job responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Directing and overseeing the Department and Program, including helping with the management of personnel, budgets, research platform relationships, and events.
• Teaching 1L Legal Research & Writing classes.
• Overseeing and managing the legal writing curriculum, including:
  • Developing and improving the legal writing curriculum, including preparing and updating the common syllabus used by faculty who staff the 1L legal writing classes, preparing the Student Handbook, and providing the teaching materials that may be used in all Legal Research & Writing classes.
  • Chairing the Legal Writing Curriculum Committee established by the Provost & Academic Dean, and otherwise contributing to faculty and cross-departmental discussions regarding development of students’ legal writing skills.
  • Onboarding and mentoring legal writing faculty, including a faculty orientation each term, sampling and reviewing new faculty feedback to students, etc.
  • Recruiting, hiring, training, and overseeing Research and Teaching Assistants for the Department and Program classes.
  • Assisting with the recruitment of judges and volunteers to help with oral argument practices, classes, and judging.
  • Organizing or presenting co-curricular programs such as student workshops.
• Managing, overseeing, and helping to staff the Legal Writing Resource Center, a 1-1 writing advising center staffed by Program faculty.
• Assisting with Moot Court, an upper division team competition experience.
• Supporting the community-building facets of the Program.
• Engaging in professional networking and development, including involvement in legal writing associations like ALWD, LWI, and AALS.

Many of the elements of the Program are already staffed by dedicated and experienced faculty and staff whom the Director, in partnership with the Senior Assistant Dean, oversees and supports.

This is a year-round appointment, meaning that while classroom instruction is limited to the fall and spring terms and while summer teaching is not required, the position involves work over the summer.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The compensation is $115,000 - $145,000, depending on experience with legal writing teaching and program administration. The initial appointment term is up to five years, and the contract is renewable. This position qualifies for the full University of California benefits package, which includes primary retirement benefits, comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage, and a variety of voluntary supplemental benefit plans to meet the incumbent’s individual needs.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Candidates must have a J.D. degree from an ABA-accredited law school and be admitted or eligible to practice law, preferably in California.

The ideal candidate is someone who enjoys working in a supportive, collaborative environment, and who has the following knowledge, skills, and experience:

• Demonstrated academic achievement in law school.
• Prior teaching experience in law school.
• Insight into pedagogy.
• Ability to engage with and inspire a diverse student population.

THE HIRING PROCESS

Applications will be considered on a rolling basis.

UC Hastings is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply. UC Hastings prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, gender transition status, sex- or gender-stereotyping, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer-related or genetic characteristics), genetic information (including family medical history), ancestry, marital status, citizenship, or service in the uniformed services, including protected veterans.

Federal law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. Please contact Human Resources if you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a job. Examples of reasonable accommodation include making a change to the application process, providing documents in an alternate format, using a sign language interpreter, or using specialized equipment.