The Clinical Fellow will work within Suffolk University Law School’s nationally recognized Legal Innovation and Technology Lab (LIT Lab) on a constellation of initiatives aimed at helping courts throughout the country create user-friendly online forms and resources for self-represented litigants. Specifically, the Clinical Fellow will help build and support the community of stakeholders working on the LIT Lab’s Document Assembly Line, CourtFormsOnline.org, and e-filing initiatives. This is a non-technical project management and Community-facing role housed within a technical legal team. Suffolk’s LIT Lab, where the Clinical Fellow will be embedded, provides Legal Tech and data science consulting services to organizational clients, while also engaging in independent research and product development. The LIT Lab simultaneously serves as an experiential education program and enrolls and works with a broad range of law students each semester.
Responsibilities:
- Facilitating communication between courts, judges, court clerks, legal aid organizations, nonprofits, and the LIT Lab’s software developers;
- Playing a project management role within the team and its initiatives;
- Gathering process and electronic filing requirements from court clerks and other court staff in multiple states so that our online tools can work effectively within their systems;
- Navigating bureaucratic structures and building organizational relationships and buy-in for the LIT Lab’s projects;
- Organizing trainings on the document automation tools that the LIT Lab uses and creates, including Docassemble. Prior experience with this type of technology is preferred but not required;
- Creating outreach materials, including emails, web content, and blog posts;
- Helping to build web applications (“apps”) that allow self-represented litigants more easily complete court documents (called guided interviews or interactive legal applications). This involves low-code software development. Some beginner coding skills are preferred but not required.
Qualifications:
- Strategic thinker with strong communication skills, active listening skills, and the ability to work on a team to achieve shared goals and complete projects.
- Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree
- At least 2 years of experience working in a legal aid organization, government agency or office, civil court system, or non-governmental organization as a project manager, lawyer, technology liaison, or other role that involved engagement with the mission of the office
- Organizational and project management skills
- Experience and comfort working with and learning new technologies
- Experience with or commitment to working with low-income populations and diverse stakeholders
- Authorization to work in the United States
The following skills and experience are preferred, but not required:
- JD degree
- Experience or interest in teaching or mentoring
- Experience authoring interactive legal applications in Docassemble or other document automation platforms, such as HotDocs, Xpress Docs, or A2J Author
- Experience with Agile project management tools and techniques, such as Kanban
- Legal research and writing, or other professional writing experience
Hours and Duration: This position will begin as soon as possible. The Developer position is a full-time position for 1 year with the possibility of renewal for up to 3 years. The salary is competitive and dependent on qualifications and experience. The position includes full benefits.
This position is fully remote, but the Clinical Fellow will be required to work onsite at the Suffolk University campus in Boston at least twice for 2-3 days. Periodic travel to other partner organizations may also be required. Travel expenses will be paid.
Application: All applicants should submit the following through Jobvite, accessible here.
Cover Letter
Resume or CV
List of three references
List of past document automation projects (optional)