Wisconsin Innocence Project Staff Attorney
About the role
The University of Wisconsin Law School seeks a Staff Attorney for the Wisconsin Innocence Project (WIP), a nationally recognized innocence and postconviction clinic where law students, under faculty supervision, represent incarcerated individuals with credible claims of actual innocence and wrongful conviction. This grant-funded position supports the Criminal Justice Forensic Assistance Program, which aims to strengthen the accuracy, reliability, and effectiveness of Wisconsin’s criminal justice system through post-conviction forensic case review, analysis, and litigation. The role is a terminal (fixed-term) academic staff appointment, initially for one year with possible extension up to three years based on performance, funding, and department need; after the third year it may convert to a renewable academic staff appointment contingent on continued funding.
Responsibilities
- Carry a full caseload of grant-eligible cases
- Investigate post-conviction claims of innocence, including reviewing trial and appellate records, engaging with experts, interviewing witnesses, and requesting records
- Conduct forensic case review and assess the reliability, validity, and significance of forensic evidence presented in criminal cases
- Identify, develop, and litigate claims involving disputed, emerging, or unreliable forensic evidence
- Work with forensic experts, laboratories, and other scientific professionals in the investigation and litigation of postconviction claims
- Litigate post-conviction claims in state and federal court through written and oral advocacy, including evidentiary hearings and expert witness litigation
- Supervise and mentor law students in all aspects of postconviction investigation and litigation, including case assessment, legal research, factual investigation, drafting, and client representation
- Work with legal team to craft investigation and litigation strategies
- Assist in developing training materials and educational programming related to forensic science and wrongful conviction issues
- Teach or co-teach clinical courses or other classes
- Ensure compliance with grant, reporting, and programmatic requirements
Requirements
- Multiple years of experience in criminal legal practice
- Strong research, writing, and analytic skills
- Strong advocacy skills
- Client-centered approach to legal representation and a demonstrated commitment to indigent defense
- Valid driver’s license and ability to drive and travel extensively throughout Wisconsin
- Admission to the Wisconsin Bar or immediate eligibility to apply to the Wisconsin Bar
- J.D. required
Qualifications
- Experience litigating postconviction matters, including claims of wrongful conviction and actual innocence
- Experience handling cases involving forensic science issues, expert witnesses, or postconviction forensic testing
- Demonstrated knowledge of forensic disciplines and forensic reliability issues, including DNA evidence, pattern-comparison disciplines, digital evidence, forensic pathology, false confessions, eyewitness identification, or other evidentiary issues that commonly arise in wrongful conviction litigation
- Prior supervision of law students or other law school teaching experience
Pay
Minimum salary $80,000; starting salary depends on experience and qualifications. This is a grant-funded, four-year position. The appointment is initially for one year, extendable up to three years based on satisfactory performance, available funding, and department need. An evaluation period during the first 12 months is required. After the third year, the position may become a renewable academic staff appointment contingent on funding and department need. Continuation beyond the four-year grant period is not guaranteed and depends on funding availability.
Benefits
- Generous paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick leave)
- Competitively priced health, dental, vision, and life insurance
- Tax-advantaged savings accounts
- Participation in the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) pension fund