Paralegal Casehandler, Housing Justice Tenant Defense (Queens) - Kew Gardens, NY

The Legal Aid Society's Civil Practice is seeking a Paralegal Casehandler at one or more of the following locations: Queens Housing Justice- Tenant Defense Unit. The Paralegal Casehandler works on their own cases as well as with the Housing Staff Attorneys to resolve benefits and advocacy issues, including, but not limited to obtaining rent arrears and ongoing rental assistance through appropriate programs, agency advocacy, representation of clients at administrative hearings, and outreach and training for affected client communities and service providers. The Paralegal Casehandler is on the front lines of assisting individuals and families to avoid imminent eviction.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

• Conduct intake/client interviews, provide advice and direct assistance, and assess requests for services
• Represent clients at administrative hearings at HRA or other appropriate forums
• Obtain rent arrears and ongoing rental assistance through FHEPS and other programs
• Handle a high volume of individual cases and respond to the needs of community-based organizations
• Work with staff attorneys and supervising attorneys to resolve the benefits issues involved with housing practice cases
• Prepare motion documents including client affidavits/affirmations
• Conduct advocacy in eviction cases and termination hearings
• Develop community education materials and conduct trainings for clients and other advocates, as well as conduct trainings and community outreach
• Maintain case records
• Conduct virtual, courthouse-based, and off-site intake as needed, including during evening hours
• Conduct policy advocacy on behalf of clients
• Other duties as assigned

QUALIFICATIONS

Required qualifications:

• Eligible candidates must have at least one of the following:
• A bachelor's degree (strongly preferred)
• A paralegal certificate from an ABA accredited paralegal program
• At minimum a high school diploma / GED and 4 years of legal work experience
• 4 years of combined higher education and legal work experience
• Excellent written, oral advocacy, and computer skills
• Excellent organizational skills with ability to multi-task and manage a large workload
• Ability to work independently as well as in a team
• Ability to coordinate and collaborate successfully with other groups and organizations
• Commitment to advocacy on behalf of low-income people and immigrants

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience assisting people in crisis is desirable, but not required
• In Queens, proficiency in languages other than English, especially Spanish, Mandarin, French Creole, Russian and/or Bengali is desirable, but not required

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The salary range represents a good faith estimate of the range we expect to pay for this role. The actual salary offered may vary depending on many factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range: $62,400 - $95,555

The Legal Aid Society offers a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Click here to read more about benefits.

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

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 via the career portal. We do not accept emailed applications. Submit the following documents as a combined PDF:

• Cover Letter
• Resume

For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email jobpostquestions@legal-aid.org.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

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.

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

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 (people), to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us and our ability to build strong relationships with our colleagues. Every member of our community is expected to continuously learn about the dynamic, evolving, and emerging field of knowledge of identity, bias, and systemic forms of oppression and participate in productive efforts to dismantling bias in all forms.