Legal Aid Society

Staff Attorney, Immigration Law Unit

Legal Aid Society • $86K — $157K *
Legal & Accounting
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Admission to NYS Bar preferred; any state bar admission acceptable if qualified for federal immigration law.
  • Minimum 4 years' experience in immigration law.
  • Experience across a variety of immigration legal matters, both affirmative and defensive.
  • Commitment to representing marginalized communities.
  • Strong writing, analytical, oral advocacy, and organizational skills.
  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively on an interdisciplinary team.
  • Experience coordinating with pro bono attorneys and volunteers.

Responsibilities

  • Ensure accountability and maintain practice standards.
  • Assist with clinic workflows for effective application submissions.
  • Prepare immigration applications for clinic participants.
  • Provide individualized consultations for clinic clients.
  • Conduct presentations for clinic participants and community partners.
  • Assist in training clinic volunteers.
  • Identify legal trends and communicate findings with ILU and LAS staff.

Benefits

  • Health insurance coverage.
  • Paid vacation days.
  • Disability and life insurance offerings.
  • Participation in Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs.
  • Potential loan repayment assistance for New York state residents.
Full Job Description
The Legal Aid Society's Civil Practice is seeking a Staff Attorney to join the Legal Clinics team within its Immigration Law Unit (ILU). This position will assist in ILU's limited scope legal clinic and community education work, including helping legal clinic clients and working with clinic volunteers and other community-based organizational partners. In collaboration with other team members and other ILU and LAS staff, the staff attorney will also help develop training materials and client-focused resources.

The ideal candidate will have wide-ranging immigration legal experience, be a talented leader with a deep commitment to public interest practice and be able to build strong relationships with stakeholders

in the legal, court, and service communities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES
  • Ensure accountability and maintenance of practice standards
  • Assist with clinic workflows and ensure quality of application submissions
  • Prepare immigration applications or other submissions for clinic participants
  • Provide individualized consultations to clinic participants
  • Conduct presentations to clinic participants and other community-based organizational partners
  • Assist in training clinic volunteers
  • Identify legal trends and share relevant findings with ILU and LAS staff
  • Train and present on immigration legal topics related to legal clinic work, as needed
  • Help with community outreach events, as needed
  • Help develop best practices to share with other providers
  • Work with ILU and other Civil Practice administrative staff to ensure that ILU case matters are timely updated with data required for grants management
  • Foster and encourage teamwork and communication
  • Represent the Civil Practice and Legal Aid in the community
  • Other duties as assigned


Professional Development and other duties as assigned
  • Participate in continuous professional development
  • Continuously learn about forms of bias in the workplace and demonstrate affirmative behaviors that support an inclusive work environment
  • Other duties as assigned


QUALIFICATIONS

Required qualifications:
  • Admission to NYS Bar preferred, but will consider those who are admitted to any state bar and qualified to practice federal immigration law
  • At least 4 years of experience in immigration law
  • Experience in a wide variety of immigration legal matters, both affirmative and defensive
  • Demonstrated commitment to representing or working with individuals from marginalized communities.
  • Excellent writing, analytical, oral advocacy, and organizational skills
  • Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively on an interdisciplinary team and manage a high volume of cases
  • Ability to work with pro bono attorneys, law student interns, and volunteers


Preferred qualifications:
  • Proficiency in Spanish or French is desirable, but not required
  • Experience working in a legal clinic model is desirable, but not required


SALARY AND BENEFITS

The salary range represents a good faith estimate of the range we expect to pay for this role. The actual salary offered may vary depending on many factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range: $86,520 - $157,075

The Legal Aid Society offers a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Click here to read more about benefits.

Higher Education and Loan Forgiveness

The Legal Aid Society is a qualified employer for the purposes of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness. This position allows an employee to take advantage of PSLF and other State and Federal loan forgiveness programs. Additionally, employees who are New York residents may be eligible for assistance from New York state to assist with loan repayments, depending on years of practice. To learn more, click the links below.

studentaid.gov

hesc.ny.gov/loan-forgiveness-programs

WORK AUTHORIZATION

All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer without sponsorship for a work visa or permit. We are currently unable to sponsor employment visas or permits. (However, for citizens of Canada and Mexico, LAS will provide a letter documenting employment status that is needed to obtain a TN visa.)

HOW TO APPLY

All applications must be completed online via the career portal. We do not accept emailed applications. Submit the following documents as a combined PDF:
  • Cover Letter
  • Resume




About Legal Aid Society

The Legal Aid Society is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to low-income individuals and families in New York City. The organization was founded in 1876 and has since grown to become the largest provider of legal services in the United States. The Legal Aid Society provides a wide range of legal services, including representation in criminal and civil cases, assistance with housing and immigration issues, and advocacy for children and families. The organization has more than 1,200 staff members and over 2,000 pro bono attorneys who volunteer their time to help those in need.
Learn more about Legal Aid Society

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