Staff Attorney - Medical Legal Partnership - Santa Fe, New Mexico

Staff Attorney - Medical Legal Partnership

Santa Fe, New Mexico

New Mexico Legal Aid seeks a Staff Attorney for our Medical Legal Partnership

New Mexico Legal Aid (NMLA) provides civil legal services to low income New Mexicans for a variety of legal issues including domestic violence/family law, consumer protection, housing, and benefits. NMLA has locations throughout the state including Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Gallup, Roswell, Silver City, Clovis, Hobbs, Las Vegas, Taos, and Santa Ana.

New Mexico Legal Aid has a Medical-Legal Partnership with Christus St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe and seeks an attorney to provide legal services to the patient referrals from the hospital. The position will be in the Santa Fe office and the attorney will report to the managing attorney there, but will spend significant time in the hospital. The hospital will provide a confidential office space for the attorney to use.

For this position, the Staff Attorney will handle a wide range of cases for patients referred by the hospital. Some work may extend to family members of the patients. The concept is to relieve stress on patients caused by social determinants of health that have legal roots or to remove legal barriers to release from the hospital.

This will include legal services such as:

• Cessation of benefits
• Loss of housing
• Consumer debt
• Collection or other threats to economic security
• Advance directives
• Decisional capacity

The attorney will be responsible for:

• Providing Legal advice.
• Preparation of paperwork.
• Representation in court and administrative proceedings.
• Conducting legal education to hospital staff.
• Assistance in the preparation of reports.
• Potential participation in hospital board meetings to present reports on accomplishments.
• Being in local bar and community activities.

NMLA handles a wide range of creative, challenging and complex work. We are looking for highly motivated candidates who are passionate about and strongly committed to helping NMLA better serve our client communities.

Requirements:

• Two to three years of experience as a licensed attorney preferred
• Admission to practice in New Mexico required or ability to qualify for a limited license.
• Must be able to effectively use computer technology and remote communications systems, including shared on-line workspaces and web meeting and video conferencing software, to effectively collaborate and co-counsel with staff located in multiple offices.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks, manage a caseload and build collaborative relationships within the staff and the community.
• Proficiency in Spanish is a plus.

Applicants will be subject to a background search. Please do not let this deter you from applying. NMLA is committed to a strong workforce and recognizes that persons with marks on their record may qualify.

NMLA employees enjoy:

• Being unionized.
• A great work environment.
• Great benefits including generous leave.
• Competitive salary.

The position is part of a collective bargaining agreement negotiated by the union. Pay is determined by years of experience and set by a union scale outlined in the CBA (click here to view the salary scale). NMLA provides comprehensive benefits, holiday and leave packages. For information about NMLA's generous benefits, and what it is like to work at NMLA click here.

Provide a current resume and a cover letter that explains your interest in this position and the mission of NMLA by clicking here to apply. Your application will not be considered unless we receive both of these documents. As an alternative you can email the applicant packet to jobs@nmlegalaid.org.

Salary: DOE, NMLA is an EEO Employer. Application Deadline: Until filled. Resumes reviewed on a rolling basis.