Project Coordinator | Federal Pro Se Legal Assistance Project – S.D.N.Y.
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Job Description
Job Posting: Project Coordinator | Federal Pro Se Legal Assistance Project
Department: City Bar Justice Center
Reports to: Director, FedPro-SDNY
FLSA: Non-Exempt
The City Bar Justice Center (CBJC) seeks an enthusiastic and organized individual to join the three-person project coordinator team with our Federal Pro Se Legal Assistance Project operating in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (FedPro-SDNY). One project coordinator (similar to paralegal) position is available now for a candidate committed to expanding access to justice.
FedPro-SDNY is an innovative initiative providing free, limited-scope legal assistance to “pro se” individuals – i.e., those representing themselves, including incarcerated individuals – while litigating civil cases in the Southern District, mostly in the areas of civil and prisoner rights, employment discrimination, contracts/warranties, and consumer/finance matters, and a range of other claims touching on core individual rights and the protection of livelihoods. Working closely with a tight-knit FedPro-SDNY team, project coordinators assist with litigant intake and case management, help to determine which litigants can be helped by the Project, and liaise with law student interns, volunteer attorneys and a social work team to support litigants served by FedPro-SDNY.
The City Bar Justice Center annually provides high-quality, free civil legal services benefiting over 27,000 New Yorkers who lack the resources to hire private counsel. CBJC also relies on partnerships with our affiliate, the New York City Bar Association, as well as with law firms, corporate legal departments, solo practitioners, law schools, the courts, and other stakeholders. In the past year, over 2,200 pro bono attorneys donated services to support clinics and client matter work drawn from CBJC’s dozen civil legal services projects.
This role works closely with and under the supervision of the FedPro-SDNY Director and Associate Director to handle the following areas of responsibility, among others:
This is a Local 153, Office and Professional Employees International Union position, with a starting annualized salary of at least $51,250 based on a 35-hour workweek (with higher salaries dependent on skills and prior experience), and other benefits and employment terms and conditions determined by a collective bargaining agreement. The City Bar’s competitive benefits package includes generous paid time off (vacation, personal, sick time, holidays, day off for volunteer work, extra time off in the summer), choice of medical plans (some offered at almost no cost to employee), dental, vision, 401K, life insurance, commuter benefits, Employee Assistance Program, short-term/long-term disability insurance, employee discounts, and more!
Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States. We are not able to sponsor visas for this position.
To apply: Please send a cover letter detailing your interest in this specific position, a resume, and three professional business references.
The City Bar Justice Center is a proud equal opportunity employer, and we particularly encourage applications from candidates belonging to communities historically under-represented in the legal profession. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds and unique experiences to apply. We welcome diversity of all kinds. It is our policy to ensure equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, creed, age, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, gender (including gender identity), sexual orientation, disability, arrest or conviction record, pregnancy, credit history, salary history, caregiver status, marital status, partnership status, or status as a victim of domestic violence, stalking and sex offenses, religion, sex, genetic information, military status, unemployment status or any other characteristic as protected by law. With regard to the Americans with Disabilities Act and other related laws, the organization will endeavor to make reasonable accommodations for persons due to their religious beliefs, disability, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition or because the individual was a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking.
Department: City Bar Justice Center
Reports to: Director, FedPro-SDNY
FLSA: Non-Exempt
The City Bar Justice Center (CBJC) seeks an enthusiastic and organized individual to join the three-person project coordinator team with our Federal Pro Se Legal Assistance Project operating in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (FedPro-SDNY). One project coordinator (similar to paralegal) position is available now for a candidate committed to expanding access to justice.
FedPro-SDNY is an innovative initiative providing free, limited-scope legal assistance to “pro se” individuals – i.e., those representing themselves, including incarcerated individuals – while litigating civil cases in the Southern District, mostly in the areas of civil and prisoner rights, employment discrimination, contracts/warranties, and consumer/finance matters, and a range of other claims touching on core individual rights and the protection of livelihoods. Working closely with a tight-knit FedPro-SDNY team, project coordinators assist with litigant intake and case management, help to determine which litigants can be helped by the Project, and liaise with law student interns, volunteer attorneys and a social work team to support litigants served by FedPro-SDNY.
The City Bar Justice Center annually provides high-quality, free civil legal services benefiting over 27,000 New Yorkers who lack the resources to hire private counsel. CBJC also relies on partnerships with our affiliate, the New York City Bar Association, as well as with law firms, corporate legal departments, solo practitioners, law schools, the courts, and other stakeholders. In the past year, over 2,200 pro bono attorneys donated services to support clinics and client matter work drawn from CBJC’s dozen civil legal services projects.
This role works closely with and under the supervision of the FedPro-SDNY Director and Associate Director to handle the following areas of responsibility, among others:
- Serve as the first point of contact for pro se litigants seeking legal assistance, including interviewing and screening litigants for eligibility for FedPro-SDNY services by phone, email, and/or in person at FedPro-SDNY’s lower Manhattan courthouse office, while providing caring follow-up to the pro se litigants, who typically seek our assistance at vulnerable moments in their lives.
- Carefully maintain case, program/activity, and volunteer records and databases, and run and analyze statistical and other reports.
- Provide administrative help by answering phones and scheduling litigant and volunteer meetings and organizing virtual and in-person training programs, events, and legal clinics.
- Liaise with attorney volunteers from large firms, corporate legal departments, and solo practices. Assist in preparing grant applications and reports, and in designing and writing program content such as blogs, reports, legal informational resources, presentations and social media posts.
- As needed, provide general administrative support, including with new FedPro-SDNY programming and with other CBJC projects.
- Bachelor’s degree or substantially equivalent work experience in a professional setting.
- Minimum 6 months of work experience (relevant internships acceptable).
- Strong data entry, organizational and project management skills; high attention to detail; excellent verbal and written communication skills; comfortable communicating both by telephone and in direct contact with the public; self-starter with a record showing (or a demonstrable capacity for) consistent professional timeliness and reliability.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office 365, and the ability to quickly learn and effectively use LegalServer and other technology.
- A curiosity to learn about various federal laws and civil litigation procedure.
- A team player with an ability to interact respectfully with people of different backgrounds and perspectives on the justice system, including litigants, fellow staff members, volunteer attorneys, and court staff and other government employees, and desire and capacity to engage with members of the public in a respectful and sensitive way, many of whom suspect institutions and the legal profession, and some of whom experience legal problems compounded by mental health struggles.
- Demonstrated enthusiasm for public interest legal work, serving those who struggle with a lack of resources, and providing legal assistance to historically underserved communities.
- Professional working proficiency in Spanish or another non-English language a plus, but not required.
This is a Local 153, Office and Professional Employees International Union position, with a starting annualized salary of at least $51,250 based on a 35-hour workweek (with higher salaries dependent on skills and prior experience), and other benefits and employment terms and conditions determined by a collective bargaining agreement. The City Bar’s competitive benefits package includes generous paid time off (vacation, personal, sick time, holidays, day off for volunteer work, extra time off in the summer), choice of medical plans (some offered at almost no cost to employee), dental, vision, 401K, life insurance, commuter benefits, Employee Assistance Program, short-term/long-term disability insurance, employee discounts, and more!
Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States. We are not able to sponsor visas for this position.
To apply: Please send a cover letter detailing your interest in this specific position, a resume, and three professional business references.
The City Bar Justice Center is a proud equal opportunity employer, and we particularly encourage applications from candidates belonging to communities historically under-represented in the legal profession. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds and unique experiences to apply. We welcome diversity of all kinds. It is our policy to ensure equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, creed, age, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, gender (including gender identity), sexual orientation, disability, arrest or conviction record, pregnancy, credit history, salary history, caregiver status, marital status, partnership status, or status as a victim of domestic violence, stalking and sex offenses, religion, sex, genetic information, military status, unemployment status or any other characteristic as protected by law. With regard to the Americans with Disabilities Act and other related laws, the organization will endeavor to make reasonable accommodations for persons due to their religious beliefs, disability, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition or because the individual was a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking.
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