Immigrant Defenders Law Center (“ImmDef”) is a next-generation, social justice law firm that provides high-quality representation and legal services to immigrants in Southern California and beyond. ImmDef was founded with the belief that no immigrant should be forced to face an unjust immigration system alone and our universal representation programs are a first step towards that goal. Learn more about us at www.immdef.org.

ImmDef represents thousands of adults, children and families annually who have multi-faceted, complex and urgent legal needs as they face our unjust immigration system. ImmDef is currently seeking full-time paralegals to join our team of fearless advocates providing creative and zealous representation to our clients. Paralegals will be joining the largest non-profit, universal representation model deportation defense team in the state of California. The position may be based at ImmDef's downtown Los Angeles or Santa Ana office.

Our staff work collaboratively within our team of managing and directing attorneys, staff attorneys, paralegals, administrative support staff and case managers to provide client-centered, holistic representation. This is a rewarding and exciting position where the successful applicant will be engaged in cutting edge immigration litigation for individual clients with an overarching organizational goal of fighting for a more just immigration system.

Our paralegals play an integral role on ImmDef’s legal services team and are primarily responsible for providing direct support to attorneys on all aspects of our deportation defense representation.

Essential Functions

• Assist attorneys with providing zealous, high-quality representation to people facing deportation within a dedicated, universal representation model legal team;
• Serve as point of contact for clients when attorney is not available;
• Conduct intake interviews with new clients and gather information necessary for immigration relief screenings;
• Collaborate with attorneys for effective case planning, development and management;
• Complete immigration forms with a high level of factual accuracy and attention to detail;
• Complete Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, records requests and other fact and document gathering tasks to support removal defense cases;
• Interview clients and family members in order to prepare declarations, letters of support and other documents to support relief from removal;
• Assist in the administrative and substantive preparation of client application packages for bond, relief from removal, and immigration benefits;
• Under attorney supervision, prepare motions, briefs, cover letters and other substantive court filings;
• Submit electronic and in-court filings;
• Maintain accurate digital and paper files according to ImmDef protocols;
• Consistently and accurately enter all client and case development information into our internal case management system;
• Conduct country conditions, legal, and factual research as directed by attorneys;
• Provide interpretation, translation of documents and communication assistance for clients as needed;
• Accurately and timely submit all case data in order to comply with ImmDef’s contractual obligations;
• Complete other tasks as assigned by attorneys or management team.

Required Education and Experience

• To be classified as a paralegal in California, you must have one of the following:
  • A paralegal certificate from a school approved by the American Bar Association (ABA).
  • The completion of a minimum of 24 semester hours in paralegal studies from a state-accredited school, or
  • A bachelor’s degree or higher in any subject AND a minimum of one year of experience working under an attorney with a minimum of three years of experience in California law.
• Experience working at a private immigration, other law practice or public interest law firm is helpful;
• Strong writing, research, and organizational skills required;
• Enthusiasm for working at a mission driven organization and passion for social justice for immigrants required;
• Commitment to working in a diverse professional environment.
• DACA Recipients encouraged to apply!

Preferred Education and Experience

• Experience with deportation defense, immigration law, family law and guardianship, or criminal law is a plus but not required;
• Experience working with children and youth, incarcerated persons, vulnerable populations or persons suffering from mental competency issues is a plus;
• Experience with family, dependency, criminal and probate court is a plus;
• Experience with Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and Asylum cases is a plus;
• Demonstrated ability to work within a high-volume, busy law office is a plus.

Level of Language Proficiency

• Spanish proficiency is required and will be tested at time of interview.

We require COVID-19 vaccinations or weekly testing to be considered.

Applicants who submit a Cover Letter will get priority. ImmDef may use this job posting to recruit paralegals to work within several programs. If you have a preference as to which program you would like to be considered for, please indicate this in your cover letter. You can learn more about our programs at www.immdef.org.

We encourage all qualified applicants to apply for a position fighting for our immigrant communities!

Immigrant Defenders Law Center is an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer. We value diversity in the workplace and strongly encourage applications from all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, ethnic group identification, citizenship, marital or familial status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, medical condition, military and veteran status, gender identity or expression, genetic information, arrest or conviction record, or any other protected characteristic.

Due to the large number of applicants, we are unable to respond to every applicant and will only contact those who are invited to interview for the position.

Benefits:

This position is part of the ImmDef employee union bargaining unit.

Schedule:

• ImmDef’s standard work schedule is 35 hours per week, or 70 hours per pay period.
• After completing their introductory period, staff may opt into ImmDef's flexible scheduling options including hybrid and compressed schedules that allow staff to take up to one day off per week without needing to use paid time off.
• Hybrid Work Schedule: Staff in non-exempt positions at ImmDef are expected to be at an ImmDef worksite a minimum of 4 days per week, with 1 day per week available to work remotely.

Holidays and Paid Time Off :

• 13 paid holidays
• 1-Week paid winter break between Christmas and New Years
• 15 vacation days per year
• 15 Sick Days per year

Health, Dental and Vision Insurance:

• ImmDef provides health coverage on the first of the month following 30 days on the job.
• We cover 100% of premiums for our base dental and vision plans for our staff members and 75% of base plan dental and vision premiums for their dependents. ImmDef also covers 94% of the base plan medical premiums for our staff and 69% of the base plan medical premiums for their dependents.

FSA and Dependent Care FSA:

• ImmDef offers FSA plans to help offset the costs of eligible health care expenses for you, your spouse, and your eligible dependents using pre-tax dollars
• We also offer Dependent Care FSA to pay for eligible dependent care services, such as preschool, summer day camp, before or after school programs, and child or adult daycare.
• Eligible for Parental Leave which includes six (6) weeks of ImmDef paid leave.

401(k) Retirement Savings Plan & Employer Matching:

• ImmDef staff are eligible to enroll in our 401(k) plans immediately upon hire, contributing pre-tax dollars towards their retirement goals
• After six months on staff, ImmDef will match 100% of contributions up to 3% of the employee’s salary

Public Service Loan Forgiveness:

• As a 501(c)3, full-time ImmDef staff with qualifying student loans are eligible for the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Parking and Public Transportation Stipends:

• Staff members assigned to an office without free on-site parking are eligible to receive a parking stipend of up to $105 per month in actual accrued parking or transportation costs.
• Staff in all offices are eligible to receive a public transportation stipend of up to $100 per month in actual accrued public transportation costs.