Overview

NEIGHBORHOOD DEFENDER SERVICE OF HARLEM

Litigation Assistant, Family Defense Practice

The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (NDS) is a community-based, client-centered, holistic public defense office located in Harlem, providing criminal, civil, and family court representation to residents of Northern Manhattan who cannot afford to hire a lawyer. NDS clients are represented by multidisciplinary teams including attorneys, advocates, team administrators, investigators and social workers. NDS is seeking multiple litigation assistants to join the Bronx and Manhattan Teams of our Family Defense Practice starting July 2024.

The Family Defense Practice at NDS represents parents in family policing cases (sometimes called “child welfare” cases) filed by the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) in Manhattan and the Bronx as well as related family court cases, including custody, visitation, and termination of parental rights proceedings. Through our holistic approach to representation, the Family Defense Practice provides parents with the help they need—both inside and outside of court—to keep their families safe and stable. Parents are represented not only by a high-quality attorney, but also social workers, administrative staff, and client advocates. NDS is committed to advancing due process rights for parents by fighting unwarranted state intervention in their lives and advocating for related systemic change. The litigation assistant is an essential part of a client’s interdisciplinary team and will work closely with the Early Defense team to intake clients and will provide administrative support to attorneys, social workers, and client advocates during the pendency of Article 10 and related family court cases.

Responsibilities

• Work as part of the interdisciplinary team, including attorneys and other non-attorney advocates
• Communicate with Early Defense team about and conduct intake for clients who walk into, call, email, or are otherwise referred our practice seeking advice and representation during an ACS investigation or for clearance of their State Central Registry records
• Provide litigation, administrative, and research support to the attorney team members including, but not limited to:
• • Frequent phone contact with clients and their families, legal and service providers, the court, and attorneys
  • Assisting in the preparation, filing and service of legal papers and subpoenas
  • Reviewing discovery, video and documents received from ACS
  • Meet with clients and attend court appearances as needed
  • Enter data regarding clients and cases promptly, accurately and completely into the case management system
• Conduct the team’s investigative work, including:
  • Identifying, locating, and interviewing witnesses
  • Visiting, photographing, and diagramming locations
  • Obtaining documents, reports, and other materials from a variety of sources
  • Preparing investigative reports and trial exhibits, including multimedia presentations
  • Document investigative work in the case management system
• Provide logistical and administrative support to attorneys and non-attorney advocates;

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or two years of related administrative experience
• Excellent interpersonal, analytical, writing, and communication skills
• Ability to work cooperatively in a team setting
• Strong organizational skills in order to work independently, think creatively, and triage to manage a high caseload and multi-task in a very fast-paced environment
• A demonstrated commitment to parents’ rights, indigent defense, social justice issues and/or the Bronx or Harlem communities
• Ability to learn new skills and willingness to be coached and trained
• Openness and ability to adapt and respond to changes in the environment
• Energy, enthusiasm and ingenuity to gather and develop information from a broad spectrum of sources, ranging from community residents to City agencies
• Proficiency with online platforms such as Microsoft 365/Microsoft Teams/Microsoft Office Suite
• Must be willing to work in-person in Harlem and/or family court satellite offices in Lower Manhattan or the South Bronx;
• Lived experience with family court, the family policing system, and/or other systems impacting NDS’ clients strongly preferred
• Bilingual Spanish/English candidates preferred
• Experience using Westlaw or other legal research tools preferred
• Experience using a case or data management system preferred
• Experience with Egnyte, NYS Criminal Inquiry System, UCMS, E-Courts/WebFamily, defenderDATA a plus
• New York Process Server License, or able to become licensed preferred

Compensation

Compensation is commensurate with experience and is in adherence to the NDS compensation scale. For this position, the salary range for 1-5 years of directly relevant experience is $55,904.13 to $61,003.80. Full medical and dental benefits, as well as other benefits, are provided. The salary, benefits, and employment policies relevant to this position are governed by the CBA between NDS and the NDS Union, part of ALAA UAW 2325.

SALARY RANGE BASED ON RELEVANT EXPERIENCE

1 – 5 Years

$55,904.13 - 61,003.80

6 – 10 Years

$61,841.31 - 68,002.33

11 – 15 Years

$69,402.03 - 75,481.08

16 Years

$76,868.18 (about $1k for each additional year)

How to Apply

Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and writing sample in a single PDF through NDS’s website at neighborhooddefender.org/careers. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. Candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At NDS we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

The Neighborhood Defender Service is committed to creating a diverse environment that reflects the community we serve. NDS is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. NDS encourages people with incarcerated loved ones, formerly incarcerated people, people of color, women, queer, transgender, gender non-conforming, and gender fluid people to apply.

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