Neighborhood Legal Services is a not-for-profit public interest law firm providing free civil legal assistance to low-income individuals. Its mission is to seek equitable justice by providing access to legal advice, representation, and education to those in our community who, due to financial vulnerability, disability, discrimination, or abuse, require protection and advancement of their civil legal rights.  It is the largest non-profit provider of civil legal services in Western New York.   Neighborhood Legal Services provides counsel for housing, eviction prevention, family/divorce, public benefits, disability advocacy, student loans, and health insurance.

Neighborhood Legal Services (NLS), the largest provider of civil legal services in western New York, is seeking a staff attorney for the Family Law Unit. The staff attorney will advocate for individuals in need of representation in the Supreme and Family Courts of Erie County and the surrounding counties, in connection with matrimonial, child custody and support, domestic violence, and related family law matters.

The staff attorney will be responsible for caseload management, legal research and writing, client contact, court appearances, trials and hearings, community outreach, and daily engagement with prospective clients and the community partners of NLS.

Essential Responsibilities / Functions:

• Develop a substantive knowledge of the areas of family law.

• Provide a spectrum of legal assistance to those applicants effected by domestic violence and experiencing poverty, from advice and counsel by telephone, brief service assistance, and full representation through trial.

• Identify and address systemic problems that affect the rights of persons within the family law realm and attempt to develop plans to address these challenges through affirmative advocacy, impact litigation, and policy work.

• Collaborate and coordinate with NLS staff and community partners to ensure effective referrals and holistic service delivery.

• Conduct community outreach, education, and training

• Develop relationships and engage in collaborations with a range of public and private community partners, including governmental agencies, courts, and community-based organizations, to ensure integrative services and to address systemic barriers facing our client community

• Demonstrate cultural competency to work with low-income clients across the spectrum of diversity, including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, immigrant status, religious identity, and physical and mental disabilities.

• Meet regularly and communicate effectively with support staff, supervisors, and members of other NLS units to maintain and review efficient case management.

Core Competencies

• Strong personal work ethic and ability to organize time, manage diverse activities, and meet critical deadlines with minimal supervision.

• Excellent writing, editing, and proofreading skills, with the ability to be detail-oriented.

• Strong interpersonal skills and an ability to work collaboratively with a dynamic and multi-sector team.

• Curious and self-directed with an ability to anticipate client and healthcare partner needs.

• Cultural humility in working with low-income clients across the spectrum of diversity

including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, immigrant status, religious identity, physical and mental disabilities, and limited English proficiency; and

• Familiarity with the diverse communities is a plus.

Qualifications

• J.D. and New York State Bar Membership (may be pending)

• Previous experience working with low-income and/or underserved communities preferred

• Second language fluency preferred

• Legal services background, or knowledge of general civil legal work;

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• Work in a shared office environment, including working at the workstation, and attending meetings

• Traveling to meetings and hearings off-site;

• Use of computer and other office machines such as fax, photocopiers, and telephones; and

• Ability to work in the evenings and weekends as required to serve clients.

Salary and Benefits

Salary is based on bar admission and years of experience. (Steps 1 through 22) Step 1 of the salary scale correlates to the first year of admission to the bar of any state, and date of commencement of the practice of law in that state. Each progressive step equals an additional year of experience.

Prior credited experience is calculated from the date of admission to the bar and the date of commencement of the practice of law in that state. If the Employee did not begin practicing law within six (6) months of being admitted, the prior experience shall be calculated on the date they began practicing law.

Current salary steps include but are not limited to:

· Step 1 - $ 71,000.00

· Step 5 - $ 78,156.78

· Step 10 - $ 90,338.62

· Step 15 - $101,873.70

· Step 22 - $120,913.76

Full-time position with a 35-hour work week and reduced summer hours.

NLS offers a comprehensive benefits package to its employees. This includes health, dental, and vision insurance, a generous PTO policy that includes: 3 weeks of vacation time, 12 paid holidays, plus a week of PTO between Christmas and New Year's; additionally, employees have access to sick and personal leave. NLS also provides life insurance, a pension plan, HRA and Flexible Spending Accounts, paid memberships, and professional development.

How To Apply: To apply, please go to https://workforcenow.adp.com or NLS.ORG/Careers You can also email resumes and cover letters to jobs@NLS.org No phone calls please.