Legal Aid Deputy Litigation Director

Description:

A Public Interest Law Firm, the free civil Legal Aid organization serving the low-income and elderly residents of central and western Massachusetts, seeks an experienced attorney to serve as its Deputy Litigation Director. CLA's advocacy team handles over 8,000 cases a year in a wide variety of areas, including housing, domestic relations, public benefits, employment, re-entry, and education. CLA is a fiscally sound, administratively strong agency supported by a dedicated staff, management team, and Board of Directors. CLA has over 150 staff working across multiple offices.
The Deputy Litigation Director will be a part of CLA's management team and will:

• Help the Litigation Director coordinate, support, and supervise major litigation and appeals, and co-counsel or otherwise participate directly in those efforts;
• Help identify systemic issues that affect CLA's clients, and help develop litigation and/or other advocacy strategies to address them;
• Work with other supervisory staff to help develop the litigation skills of CLA's advocates;
• Review and edit advocates' written advocacy, including submissions to courts and agencies;
• Help advocates prepare for oral arguments, including participating in moots;
• Help support CLA's DEI advocacy subcommittee that strives to advance and build capacity for racial justice advocacy;
• Engender a culture of raising and pursuing attorney fee-shifting claims; and
• Help develop and maintain a litigation docket that summarizes potential and pending litigation and applicable statutes of limitations.

Qualifications:

• Licensed to practice law in Massachusetts or eligible for admission to the bar at the time of hiring.
• At least five years of litigation experience, preferably significant experience litigating complex civil cases in state and federal court, both at the trial and appellate levels.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, attention to detail, and an ability to work with frequent deadlines.
• History of creative and high-impact advocacy and substantive expertise in legal issues affecting low-income people.
• Substantial experience mentoring and training other advocates.
• Ability to facilitate collaboration and build and sustain productive and respectful working relationships with others.
• Prior experience with low-income populations and a demonstrated ability to relate effectively to a diverse clientele and staff are preferred.

---