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Executive Director

Description: 

Legal Aid of Nebraska is seeking an Executive Director to lead a well-respected, fiscally strong, private non-profit law firm that provides free civil legal services to low-income and elderly persons throughout Nebraska.

About the Position

Legal Aid of Nebraska (Legal Aid) seeks an experienced leader who is passionate about its mission “to promote Justice, Dignity, Hope and Self-sufficiency through quality civil legal aid for those who have no where else to turn.”  This leader will work throughout Nebraska with a diverse and dedicated Board of Directors, an active management team, and an experienced and committed staff.  The next Executive Director of Legal Aid will have the opportunity to build on the solid foundation of this nationally and locally recognized law firm, furthering its role providing free civil legal representation, resource referral, community development and education to low-income and elderly Nebraskans.

High priority roles and responsibilities for the new Executive Director include:

• Overseeing and working cooperatively with the management team to implement Legal Aid’s recently-adopted Strategic Plan; to develop innovative delivery techniques, expand into new substantive areas, and continue efforts to make Legal Aid a law firm at which people will make their career.
• Developing new and maintaining existing resources to support the program’s work.
• Working with the management team to develop innovative strategic and business partnerships, such as the program’s Medical-Legal Partnership.
• Maintaining the fiscal and operational strength of Legal Aid by meeting Legal Services Corporation compliance regulations and other funder requirements
• Nurturing effective relationships between Legal Aid and client, human services, business and political communities.
• Leading experienced, dedicated and motivated staff, and working cooperatively with an experienced management team.
• Ensuring Legal Aid’s capacity to address rural and urban needs, core work and special projects, throughout Nebraska.
• Serving as a public voice for Legal Aid and Nebraska’s low income, elderly, rancher, farmer, Native American, Hispanic and migrant populations.
• Articulating a vision for Legal Aid, and its importance to Nebraska.

Requirements: 

The successful Executive Director candidate will:

• Be a licensed attorney.
• Be passionate about the mission of Legal Aid and demonstrate a commitment to providing legal services to low-income persons.
• Possess the highest ethical standards.
• Possess excellent communication skills.
• Have management and resource development expertise.
• Be a successful leader within an organization and in the community, preferably with a legal aid program.
• Possess management experience, including supervision of staff, oversight of financial reporting, development of budgets, compliance with grant and contract requirements, and engagement with a Board of Directors.
• Have the skills and willingness to develop relationships throughout Nebraska’s communities.
• Value diversity and be culturally competent.
• Preferably have knowledge of ranch/farm, rural and urban issues.
• Be accessible and open to everyone in the law firm, on the Board and in the community.
• Demonstrate strategic thinking.
• Be creative, flexible and able to motivate.
• Eagerly travel throughout Nebraska.

To Apply: 

Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.  In order to receive full consideration, however, candidates are urged to submit their materials before October 31st.  Interested candidates should submit a letter expressing in detail why they are interested in the position of Executive Director of Legal Aid of Nebraska, as well as what they believe they can contribute to the future of Legal Aid and its client community.  The letter should be accompanied by a current resume and names and contact information for three references.

Materials should be submitted electronically to eric@mielegalaid.org in Microsoft Word format.

Legal Aid of Nebraska is being assisted in the search by Eric Mittelstadt, Deputy Director at Utah Legal Services and MIE Board Member, 801-573-3636.  Candidates with questions about the position or process are encouraged to contact him.

Additional Information:

Legal Aid of Nebraska is the only non-profit law firm in the state that provides free civil legal services to low-income people.  Its mission is to promote justice, dignity, hope and self-sufficiency through quality civil legal aid for those who have nowhere else to turn.  In 2013, Legal Aid celebrated 50 years of outstanding advocacy.

Legal Aid has a budget of $6.1 million; offices in Omaha, Lincoln, Grand Island, Bancroft, North Platte, Norfolk Scottsbluff and a satellite office in Lexington; and 74 staff members.

More than 319,000 Nebraskans qualify for services for Legal Aid – over one-sixth of the state’s population. As statistics from Legal Aid’s client base demonstrate, many low-income people are working, cobbling together multiple sources of income and doing their best to make ends meet.

People in poverty are particularly vulnerable and in need of assistance for their legal and social problems:
• 18% of Nebraska’s children live in poverty
• 8% of Nebraska’s seniors live in poverty
• 13.3% of Nebraska’s women live in poverty
• 5.3% of the Nebraska population lives in extreme poverty

It is estimated that in a given year, half of all households experience some kind of legal dispute, suggesting that there potentially exist approximately 64,000 legal disputes among people who qualify for help in Nebraska. Meanwhile, it is not realistic to expect that this population can adequately address their own legal needs nor afford a lawyer to assist them.

In 2013, Legal Aid assisted a total of 11,061 clients, an 8% increase from the number of clients assisted in 2012. When taking into account the clients’ household members, Legal Aid helped 29,402 people residing in 88 of Nebraska’s 93 counties. Based on intake numbers, Legal Aid was successful in providing some kind of assistance – advice, brief services, or extensive services – to approximately 73% of the people who requested help. Despite the fact that the number of people served has been steadily increasing, resource limitations stand in the way of full access to justice for low-income Nebraskans.

Civil legal troubles act as barriers to self-sufficiency. We can help clients overcome these barriers through specialized programs that strengthen our community. A few examples include:

• AccessLine®: This toll-free hotline is available statewide for legal assistance.
• ElderAccessLine®: Provides free help with no income eligibility restriction for Nebraskans age 60 and over.
• Spanish AccessLine®: Bilingual staff answer the legal issues of new Americans from Central and South America.
• Native American AccessLine®: This toll-free hotline is available statewide for Native Americans seeking legal assistance.
• Rural Response Hotline: This is the longest-running rural hotline in the country and is available for statewide legal assistance for farmers and ranchers.
• Farm/Ranch Program: Provides legal assistance, estate planning, counseling and referrals.
• Elder Law:  Provides legal education, advice and direct representation, help with wills, durable powers of attorney and health care directives. 
• Native American Program: Defends the rights of Native Americans in tribal court.
• Medical-Legal Partnership: A joint medical-legal collaboration resolves legal problems that interfere with the success of medical treatment.
• Breast Cancer Legal Hotline: Provides legal assistance to breast cancer patients and survivors.
• Access to Justice Self Help Center: Omaha and Lincoln feature the only walk-in legal services clinics in the state for self-represented litigants.
• Migrant Worker Program:  Delivers civil legal services to migrant farmworkers.
• Low-Income Tax Clinics:  Informs low-income taxpayers about their tax rights and responsibilities, and provides advice and representation on controversies with the IRS.
• Nebraska Housing Assistance Project: Help clients find housing security.
• Domestic Violence Representation Project:  Aids victims of intimate partner violence in severing legal ties with abusers (protection orders, divorce/legal separation, custody/child support, bankruptcy and other actions arising from the abusive situation).
• Juvenile Court Project:  Helps abused and neglected children in Lancaster County find protection in Juvenile Court.
• Private Attorney Involvement:  Private attorneys assist clients at a reduced rate in counties more than one hour’s driving distance from a Legal Aid office.

And there is much more Legal Aid can do.  It is currently implementing a newly established 5-year Strategic Plan to innovate, evolve and strengthen access to fair and equal justice.  The goal is to move Legal Aid from its current status as one of the nation’s truly outstanding firms to a new, even higher level of performance.

Information

Submission Deadline: 
October 31, 2014
Organization Information: 
Legal Aid of Nebraska
209 S. 19th Street 2nd Floor
Omaha, NE 68102
United States
Phone: 402-348-1069