Description

Who We Are

Children’s Law Center is a mission-driven organization focused on providing high-quality legal services to children and families in DC.  As an organization, we envision a world in which all children have a strong foundation of family, health and education and are free from poverty, trauma, racism and other forms of oppression. Our mission is to do this work together with DC children and families, Children’s Law Center uses the law to solve children’s urgent problems today, improve the systems that will affect their lives tomorrow and strengthen our community so that change endures.  A key part of our mission is to challenge and reduce ways in which racism and other biases – structural and interpersonal – prevent each of us, our organization and the systems in which we work from providing children a strong foundation from which to thrive.   

Our greatest assets are our people.  We recognize that people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives fuel our ability to provide the best outcomes for our clients and our community. Staff members at Children’s Law Center advance the organization’s mission through their leadership, result-oriented mindset and commitment to cultural humility.  We are looking for individuals who like to be challenged to grow both personally and professionally and value the opportunity to make a difference in their community.  Children's Law Center's continued success depends on recruiting and retaining individuals who possess and exemplify these attributes. 

Program Description

Special Legal Projects is expanding Children’s Law Center's legal tools to include other forms of innovative healthy housing advocacy and collaborations, impact litigation and new approaches to working toward a future where every child can grow up with a strong foundation of family, health and education and live in a world free from poverty, trauma, racism and other forms of oppression. Special Legal Projects includes a team working on systemic change through impact litigation and partnerships as well as a Brief Service team working to provide client-centered, timely, fair, respectful and compassionate intakes to all community members.

Job Summary

The Bilingual (English/Spanish) Community Paralegal will provide critical support to the Special Legal Projects team in systemic work and brief service work. They will collaborate with attorneys doing systemic work such as impact litigation, filing amicus briefs and leveraging other tools to support systemic change for Children’s Law Center’s clients. This role will provide support in systemic litigation, including being a key point of contact for clients, gathering and maintaining client information, drafting client communications, conducting research and gathering, maintaining and analyzing evidence and case documents. The Bilingual Community Paralegal may also conduct client and related witness interviews and draft statements and declarations. This role will be responsible for coordinating with organizers in whole building housing conditions cases, including coordinating tenant meetings. This Bilingual Community Paralegal role requires some hours outside of the regular office hours for the purposes of tenant meetings and outreach but not on a weekly basis.

The Bilingual Community Paralegal may also assist in research, filing, cite checking, fact-gathering and proofreading appeals and amicus briefs related to education, housing and other potential issues managed by the Special Legal Projects Program in collaboration with the Appellate Program.

Role Responsibilities

Systemic Litigation and Other Systemic Support

• Gather information about potential clients in systemic litigation through interviews, research and analysis of documents.
• Working with attorneys to analyze and synthesize information in support of case development.
• Assist with canvassing at buildings or other community outreach sites in DC.
• Assist with client outreach, including texts, emails and distribution of gift cards after client events.
• Assist with development of client-facing educational and/or informational materials, including translation of materials.
• Communicate with systemic clients about ongoing case matters.
• Review files for individual clients in systemic litigation matters to assess trends in systemic litigation.
• Conduct intakes and assess clients for suitability for impact litigation.
• Interview declarants and draft declarations.
• Maintain files for systemic cases the case management system and in SharePoint or other shared file systems with co-counsel.
• Work with organizers and other community advocates in systemic litigation.
• Attend relevant meetings to take notes to support litigation.
• Support filings for case through checking citations, proofreading and assistance with filing.
• Support with scheduling and coordination with pro bono attorneys as needed.
• Support program development by assisting in creating and documenting processes and systems.
• Assess information and data to assist with development of impact litigation cases.
• Assist with FOIA requests related to impact litigation.
• Work with program leadership on developing project management system for cases.
• Process and manage requests from the media.

Brief Service Work

• Support Brief Service Attorneys through assistance with drafting educational evaluation requests, ghostwritten demand letters or other similar client assistance letters in the areas of housing, education, family law and public benefits.
• Support Brief Service Attorneys through other client assistance tasks, such as records requests, calls to the Social Security Administration, follow up with government agencies or other similar tasks to assist clients in solving essential problems.

Other duties as assigned.

Organizational Competencies

• Cultural Humility – an openness to self-reflection and to understanding and respecting other cultural experiences and points of view and viewing individuals as experts in their own culture and experiences.
• Giving and Receiving Feedback – the ability to be self-reflective, give and receive appreciative, coaching, constructive, interpersonal and evaluative feedback.
• Conflict Management – a process which is designed to guide individuals and groups from the moment of conflict to the implementation of an identified solution. This process incorporates skills and techniques, including recognizing points of conflict, identifying the facts and feelings involved to get to the root of the issue, investigating equitable solutions, implementing and evaluating solutions and supporting and guiding others throughout the process.

Salary and Benefits

The salary for this position ranges from $55,000-$65,000 annually based on relevant experience. Children’s Law Center offers a generous benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, and short- and long-term disability insurance; employer-provided retirement contributions; flexible spending plans; and vacation, sick, holiday, family and medical leave. You can find more details about Children’s Law Center’s comprehensive benefits package at https://childrenslawcenter.org/get-involved/careers/employee-benefits/.

Children’s Law Center is a 501(c)(3) organization. Employees with federal student loan debt can apply for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. For more information, go to https:/dcbarfoundation.org/lrap/.

Application Instructions

To apply, please submit a resume via CLC's careers page (https://childrenslawcenter.org/get-involved/careers/).

Children’s Law Center is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment. If you believe that you need accommodation to search for, or apply for, one of our positions please send an email to Jobs@ChildrensLawCenter.org. In your email, please include the accommodation you are requesting and the job title you are applying for. It may take up to three business days to receive a response to your request.

Hybrid Working Conditions

Children’s Law Center is currently operating on a hybrid work schedule.  Employees are required to work in-person from Children’s Law Center’s office a minimum of two days per week.  The hybrid work schedule is subject to change based on organizational needs and/or best practices for health and safety.  Hybrid work expectations may vary depending upon role responsibilities.

Work Authorization

Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S.  Children’s Law Center is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Background Checks

Candidates who receive a conditional offer of employment will be subject to a background check.

EEO

Children’s Law Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunities for all applicants and existing employees. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to ancestry, age, color, disability, genetic information, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, military or veteran status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law, ordinance, or regulation. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire. We invite you to visit our website to learn more about our company and our career opportunities (https://childrenslawcenter.org/get-involved/careers/).

Our Commitment

Children’s Law Center is dedicated to building a world that is inclusive in approach and has equal opportunities and equitable outcomes for all. Our organization is committed to developing and supporting a robustly diverse, equitable, inclusive and anti-racist community, where all members can create and feel a sense of belonging. Through our collective deliberate efforts, we work toward racial and social justice for children and families in DC. 

Requirements

Required Skills and Experience

• 3-6 years’ experience as a paralegal or in related roles providing administrative support in a legal setting.
• Experience managing a high-volume caseload, including efficient management of client files.
• Experience with children and families with limited financial resources through work or lived experience.
• Excellent attention to detail, organizational, time management and problem-solving skills.
• Strong analytical and writing skills.
• Proven ability to handle competing priorities and deadlines strategically in a fast-paced and changing environment.
• Excellent interpersonal skills demonstrated by the ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, in a variety of settings.
• Proficiency using Microsoft Office suite of applications, specifically Word, Outlook, PowerPoint and Excel, with the ability to learn new software applications.
• Fluency in Spanish with the ability to provide services to and communicate (both verbally and in writing) with clients in both English and Spanish.

Preferred Qualifications

• A demonstrated commitment to social, economic and racial justice.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively with others.
• Excellent professional judgment and ability to maintain confidential information.
• Experience interviewing others and/or in customer service.
• Experience with project management.
• Excellent time management skills with the ability to work independently and collaboratively on multiple projects.
• Strong editing and research (legal and factual) skills.
• Paralegal certificate or degree from an ABA-approved program preferred.
• Experience with community organizing or outreach is a plus.
• Experience working with court rules, court operating procedures and electronic filing systems a plus.