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. Our practice includes direct appeals of judgment convictions as well as collateral litigation such as 440 motions, Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act resentencing applications, and Sex Offender Registration Act hearings and appeals.

CAB is seeking an experienced and talented Litigation Paralegal to work full-time within the Parole Advocacy Project (PAP). PAP is a collaborative project of paralegals, social workers, and attorneys that provides comprehensive advocacy to our clients convicted of felonies who must appear before the Board of Parole. The PAP Litigation Paralegal will carry their own caseload of clients appearing before the parole board, and will assist attorneys, social workers, and sometimes other paralegals with their caseloads as needed.

The parole preparation process includes regular communication with clients, both by phone and through visits to facilities throughout New York State. The work requires a recognition of the traumas inflicted on people who have been incarcerated for many years, and a desire to listen and to amplify their stories. Preparation for each client's parole board appearance will include record requests, outreach to family and community contacts, reentry planning, and preparing a comprehensive parole packet that includes long-form written advocacy. It also includes conducting multiple mock interviews with the client.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide advice and direct assistance to clients preparing for parole hearings
• Review and assess a wide range of institutional records, including programmatic, disciplinary, medical, and mental health records
• Establish relationships with family and community members who wish to provide support to our client
• Provide written advocacy for each client's parole hearing in the form of a parole packet, including letters of support from family and community members, comprehensive review of institutional records, and Letters of Reasonable Assurance from various reentry organizations to ensure each client's reentry needs will be met upon release
• Assist clients with completion of a reentry plan and personal statement
• Have weekly or bi-weekly phone calls with each client in the months leading up to the parole hearing, and meet with clients in prisons across New York State as necessary
• Conduct mock parole interviews with each client
• Participate in community outreach efforts to form strong working relationships with reentry organizations that can provide material and ongoing support to our clients upon release
• Assist attorneys and social workers with their parole hearing caseloads as needed, particularly regarding interview preparation, and assist with weekly PAP case conferencing meetings
• Keep detailed case notes and maintain electronic and physical document files
• Assist in the administration and tracking of the project's work
• Other duties as assigned.

• Experience advocating on behalf of low-income individuals and people of color a must
• Some knowledge of New York criminal law and criminal procedure strongly desired
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent computer skills, including proficiency with Microsoft Office programs, particularly Excel, and a PDF program
• Excellent organizational skills with ability to multi-task, manage a large workload, pay strong attention to detail, and think critically
• High degree of professionalism
• Highly motivated with an ability to work independently and collaboratively and adapt to the changing needs of the practice
• 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.
• Proficiency in a language or languages other than English is desirable, but not required.
• Paralegal certificate from ABA-accredited paralegal program or bachelor's degree is desirable, but not required.
• Must be able to make a minimum two-year commitment to the role.

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: $54,975 to $78,522

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