The Criminal Appeals Bureau (CAB) of The Legal Aid Society is the largest post-conviction public defender in New York City, annually providing holistic, client-centered representation to over 1,000 people with misdemeanor, felony, and homicide convictions. We represent low-income people in all five boroughs who are challenging their criminal convictions on appeal or in other post-conviction proceedings, such as 440 motions, Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act resentencing applications, and Sex Offender Registration Act hearings and appeals.

CAB has an opening for a Supervising Paralegal to assist with the management of the Bureau and, in particular, the Managing Attorney's Office (MAO). MAO oversees CAB support staff and supports all CAB clients before they are assigned to a staff attorney. It is responsible for handling procedural aspects of the appellate practice and communicating with courts, clients, and attorneys to ensure that records are complete and cases progress efficiently. MAO attorneys and paralegals are integral to CAB's mission of mitigating the long-term devastating impact of mass incarceration on our communities.

The Supervising Paralegal will oversee paralegals and support staff, checking in with them, troubleshooting issues, and providing feedback. The Supervising Paralegal will also be responsible for, among other things, opening new cases; ensuring that cases advance through the record collection, screening, and assignment process; coordinating paralegals to pick-up and copy court files; and managing our Unassigned Client Visit Project, through which paralegals visit incarcerated clients not yet assigned a staff attorney.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supervises paralegals and support staff, providing training and support through regular check-ins
• Reviews cases that have been screened by the MAO paralegals and ensures case is advanced to the next step (e.g., requesting missing minutes, drafting an administrative motion, advancing for attorney screening)
• Reviews motions drafted by MAO staff and drafts more complicated motions
• Coordinates with courts and MAO staff to ensure records are copied and scanned
• Communicates with court personnel to resolve problems that arise
• Plans and oversees unassigned incarcerated client visits
• Helps create and update procedural manuals
• Uses discretion and sound judgment to help troubleshoot issues and resolve non-routine matters
• Other duties as assigned

• Bachelor's Degree and prior paralegal experience, or the equivalent, required
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent computer skills, including strong proficiency with Microsoft Office programs, particularly Excel, and a PDF program (including ability to bookmark and paginate PDFs)
• Excellent organizational skills with ability to multi-task, manage a large workload, and pay strong attention to detail
• High degree of professionalism
• Highly motivated with a willingness to work as a team and adapt to the changing needs of the practice
• Ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and think critically
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
• Ability to interact effectively and independently with courts and related criminal justice agencies, and with Criminal Defense Practice and Criminal Appeals Bureau attorneys, paralegals, and other support staff
• Experience in and/or commitment to advocacy on behalf of low-income people and people of color required
• Some knowledge of New York criminal law and criminal procedures preferred
• Proficiency in language(s) other than English is desirable, but not required
• A minimum two-year commitment is required

SALARY TRANSPARENCY

The posting reflects the range of potential salaries for the role. The specific salary offers will be dependent on candidate qualifications, including collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range/ Salary: $67,136 to $91,470

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society believes in attracting and retaining exceptional talent committed to serving our clients. We offer a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Salaries for our unionized jobs are governed by our Collective Bargaining Agreement. Please visit our Careers page for additional information. Salary and benefits information will be available to applicants, when and if an offer is made.

Click here to read more about the benefits of working at The Legal Aid Society

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

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society is committed to a work culture of zealous advocacy, respect, diversity and inclusion, client-oriented defense, access to justice and excellent representation. We are dedicated to building a strong professional relationship with each of our clients, to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us.

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. We do not accept paper submissions. Please visit our Careers Page to review all current job postings, and instructions on the application process. For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email jobpostquestions@legal-aid.org.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer, The Legal Aid Society prohibits discriminatory employment actions against and treatment of its employees and applicants for employment based on actual or perceived race or color, size (including bone structure, body size, height, shape, and weight), religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (one's internal deeply-held sense of one's gender which may be the same or different from one's sex assigned at birth); gender expression (the representation of gender as expressed through, for example, one's name, choice of pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, or body characteristics; gender expression may not conform to traditional gender-based stereotypes assigned to specific gender identities), disability, marital status, relationship and family structure (including domestic partnerships, polyamorous families and individuals, chosen family, platonic co-parents, and multigenerational families), genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, credit history, unemployment status, caregiver status, salary history, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Please submit these documents as a single combined PDF when you apply via the LAS (Legal Aid Society) Recruitment Portal.

• Cover letter
• Resume