FAIR HOUSING CENTER OF SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN · 22 hours ago
Director of Legal Advocacy & Enforcement
Kalamazoo, MI
Full-time
Hybrid
Lead/Staff, Director/Executive
$55K/yr - $62K/yr
2+ years expThe Fair Housing Center of Southwest Michigan (FHCSWM) is a nonprofit fair housing organization dedicated to eliminating housing discrimination. The Director of Legal Advocacy & Enforcement will lead the enforcement program, focusing on legal advocacy, compliance, and coordination with attorneys while ensuring investigations meet legal standards.
Individual and Family Services
Responsibilities
Draft, review, and respond to legal correspondence, including reasonable accommodation/modification requests
Prepare and file administrative complaints with external enforcement agencies
Evaluate evidence from testing and investigations to determine appropriate enforcement actions
Advise Executive Director on enforcement options and compliance strategies
Design and oversee fair housing testing and investigative projects (rental, sales, lending, insurance, accessibility)
Develop investigation strategies, assign, monitor, and debrief testers
Maintain testing methodologies and case documentation to ensure accuracy and legal sufficiency
Provide functional direction and project guidance to enforcement staff while the Executive Director retains formal supervisory authority
Facilitate team meetings to review investigations and case progress
Recruit, train, and onboard testers and enforcement staff; step in to coordinate testing when needed
Provide guidance and information to clients to help them understand their fair housing rights, procedural steps, and options for resolving housing discrimination complaints
Draft client communications summarizing investigation results and next steps
Represent FHCSWM in meetings, coalitions, events, and professional trainings
Identify emerging discrimination patterns and develop targeted testing or enforcement projects
Support systemic investigations and special enforcement initiatives
Coordinate with cooperating attorneys and help develop strategies for pursuing fair housing litigation and administrative enforcement
Provide training, guidance, and support to cooperating attorneys as needed
Qualification
Required
Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school
Minimum of 2 years of legal experience, preferably in civil rights, housing, public interest, or administrative law
Strong legal research, writing, analytical, and advocacy skills
Experience supervising staff or managing complex projects
Commitment to fair housing and civil rights
Ability to manage multiple cases, projects, and investigations in a nonprofit environment
Preferred
Active admission to the State Bar of Michigan
Experience with administrative complaints or investigations
Familiarity with fair housing and civil rights enforcement agencies
Experience working with clients facing housing instability or discrimination
Interest in long-term career growth in fair housing advocacy
Spanish language proficiency a plus
Benefits
Health, dental, and vision insurance
A retirement plan with employer 401(k) match
Paid time off
Holidays
Company
FAIR HOUSING CENTER OF SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN
Kalamazoo, Michigan
2-10 employeesFunding
Current Stage
Early StageCompany data provided by crunchbase