This study investigates whether the N-terminal CCHC zinc finger motif is necessary and sufficient for the formation of BCL11B dimers, using fluorescence microscopy and Förster resonance energy transfer-assisted fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACSFRET). The role of the CCHC motif in homodimer assembly was further investigated using affinity purification followed by mass spectrometry (AP-MS). Functional studies investigated the role of dimerization in the induction of cell cycle arrest and protection against DNA damage-induced apoptosis.