Immigration Staff Attorney

Mission:

The mission of Bread for the City is to help Washington, DC residents living with low income to develop the power to determine the future of their own communities. We provide food, clothing, medical care, and legal and social services to reduce the burden of poverty. We seek justice through community organizing and public advocacy. We work to uproot racism, a major cause of poverty. We are committed to treating our clients with the dignity and respect that all people deserve. 

Bread for the City Legal Clinic seeks to ensure better access to justice in our nation’s capital. The Legal Clinic offers front-line civil legal services in primarily four areas of law: housing, family, immigration, and public benefits. Our Immigration practice provides direct legal representation, brief legal services, and advice to DC residents with immigration-related issues.

Position Description:

Bread for the City is seeking a full-time attorney with 1-3 years of experience for our Immigration practice. Specifically, we seek an attorney to work in our Immigrant Justice Project, providing community outreach, legal intake and screening, advice, brief services, and full legal representation to immigrant District residents. Our Project focus is two-part: one, we provide full representation to survivors of intimate partner and family violence in humanitarian-based immigration petitions, including VAWA self-petitions, T/U visa petitions, and SIJS petitions. Second, in conjunction with our medical clinic and community partners, we provide brief services to immigrant residents who need assistance in obtaining or replacing identification documents, including Division of Motor Vehicles, country of origin and US-government identification, and employment authorization. Additionally, our practice has recently begun expanding into other areas of immigration law practice, including asylum and deportation defense, in response to the growing needs of our community. 

The attorney will conduct advocacy, education, and other outreach activities, including participating in our medical-legal partnership, working directly with medical and social services staff to support Bread patients with tangential immigration issues. Additionally, once relevant experience is acquired, the attorney will train and mentor pro bono attorneys, particularly in limited-service asylum assistance.

Our Ideal Candidate Would Possess the Following Knowledge, Experience, Skills, and Abilities: 

• Member of the DC Bar or eligible to practice under DC Court of Appeals Rule 49(c);
• Strong organizational, research, and oral and written communication skills;
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice and racial equity and/or willingness to learn and carry out Bread for the City's commitments in these areas;
• High degree of flexibility and adaptability;
• Creative problem-solver in individual work and team projects, bringing humor and compassion;
• Ability to work with other staff and interact with a wide variety of people, including volunteers, in a professional and collaborative manner;
• Flexibility to join our hybrid-work environment, a blend of in-person and remote work;
• Comfortable working in an open work environment, with no private offices for staff, and remotely from home;
• Familiarity with Google Organization & Productivity Tools (Gmail, Google Docs, Calendar), Salesforce, and/or ability to learn new technology systems;
• Prior experience in a legal services or other public interest setting highly desirable; 
• Litigation experience and ability to perform effectively in court is a plus; 
• 1-3 years of experience representing noncitizens in immigration applications before federal immigration agencies is strongly preferred;
• Bilingual (Spanish/English) skills are strongly preferred but not required; and
• Must be fully vaccinated and boosted against Covid-19, unless exempted.

Compensation:

Bread for the City offers a generous benefits package, which can be reviewed at https://breadforthecity.org/work-with-us/. Attorney salaries start at $77,000, for those admitted to the DC Bar or those who have passed the DC bar or another state bar exam and can practice under Rule 49(c). Lateral attorneys receive an additional $1000 for every year of paid legal experience for which a J.D. is required and at least 32 hours per week worked, capped at $3,000 (or 3 years). Attorneys with specific bilingual language skills may receive an additional $2500 based on the level of proficiency. Also, the DC Bar Foundation offers a Loan Repayment Assistance Program to qualified Bread for the City attorneys, providing renewable one-year, interest-free, forgivable loans. For more information, see https:/dcbarfoundation.org/lrap/.

Bread for the City is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, family responsibility, physical or mental disability, medical condition, status as a veteran, or any other category protected by applicable federal, state, or local law, except where a bona fide occupational qualification applies.  

To Apply:

You must complete an application through Bread for the City's ADP portal. Click here to review available openings and click on "Immigration Staff Attorney" position. Select "apply" at the top right-hand corner to register for a login and apply for the position. Please upload a resume and cover letter through our ADP online application process, as you may not be able to upload documents through a 3rd party job site. Please ensure that your cover letter is thoughtfully tailored and speaks to not only your qualifications for the position but also to your commitment to public interest work. Only those candidates selected for interviews will be contacted. No phone calls, please.

Benefits:

Please visit https://breadforthecity.org/work-with-us/ and scroll down to review our employee health benefits and health insurance plans.