Staff Attorney (Disability Advocacy Program), Hybrid

ORGANIZATION INFORMATION

Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. ® (LawNY®) is a not-for-profit law firm that provides free civil legal services to low-income clients in a 14 county area of Western New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier. LawNY® has seven fully staffed field offices in Bath, Elmira, Geneva, Ithaca, Jamestown, Olean and Rochester, satellite offices in Lakeville and Lyons, and a business office in Rochester. 

LawNY® has been providing high quality legal representation for 54 years, and today has over 180 employees, including attorneys, paralegals, and a legal support team who work closely across areas of specialization to bring a holistic approach to addressing legal issues affecting our clients and community. While our services are always expanding, our core priorities remain intact. 

LawNY® is committed to equitable inclusion across race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ability, sex, religion, economic circumstances, ethnicity, national origin, and culture. We are increasingly committed to creating a law firm where race equity, diversity and cultural competency are integral components of our work, from client advocacy to internal operations.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The Bath office of Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. ® has an immediate opening for a full-time Staff Attorney in our Disability Advocacy Program (DAP). The staff attorney’s primary responsibility will be to represent claimants who have been denied Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and/or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. This work will include administrative appeals within the Social Security Administration’s appeals process, as well as litigation in federal court.  Our objective is to have the position filled immediately.

We expect those who fill this position will grow and adapt their practice to the needs of the community and the organization. The candidate must have the caring, patience, and emotional maturity to help low-income people overcome crisis situations.

Staff Attorneys at LawNY® provide comprehensive legal services to eligible clients and the ideal candidate should have a strong understanding of how civil legal issues affecting low-income communities intersect with social and economic justice. Staff Attorneys play a critical role in realizing LawNY®’s vision of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Every Staff Attorney is expected to actively engage in learning and becoming increasingly skilled in practice that supports this vision.

RESPONSIBILITIES These are the most significant responsibilities and primary functions of the position.

• Maintain a full-time caseload representing low-income, disabled clients at all levels of SSA’s administrative appeals process to include representation at field offices, at the Reconsideration appeal level, at Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) hearings, and at the Appeals Council, as well as in federal court on appeal to the U.S. District Court.
• Develop specialized knowledge of SSI and SSDI law, administrative law, and federal court practice, as it relates to claims for SSI/SSDI disability benefits.  
• Collaborate with other LawNY® advocates, paralegals and support staff; human services providers; non-profit and community organizations; and client or other advocacy groups to address poverty-related legal issues, including providing community legal education.
• Coordinate with referral sources and assist with grant reporting requirements.
• Supervise case work, legal research, and client communications assigned to support staff, paralegals, interns and volunteers.
• Interact respectfully with clients from a wide range of backgrounds, with an awareness of the importance of cultural competence and humility.
• Contribute to a safe and healthy work environment for fellow employees.
• Cooperate in all grant reporting requirements, program reporting, timekeeping, file maintenance, case closing and compliance review.
• Maintain a high level of professional competence through attendance of training sessions, seminars and conferences and individual efforts to keep abreast of current developments in the area of poverty law and the application of an equity lens to client service.

ADDITIONAL TRAITS AND SKILLS These are the traits, attributes, attitudes, and skills that speak to the candidate’s ability to succeed in the position. While no one candidate will possess all of the qualities listed, the ideal candidate will have many of these qualities. LawNY® encourages each candidate to think about their own personal knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as professional skills and experience in relation to this list.

• Experience incorporating an anti-racist and anti-oppressive lens into legal practice.
• An understanding of the concepts of structural and institutional racism and their impact on underserved and underrepresented communities.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including a commitment to providing trauma-informed services.
• Lived experience with our client communities.
• True fluency in a language other than English that is spoken by our clients.

COMPENSATION

Salary is dependent on experience and based on a pay scale with annual increments.  The beginning salary for a Staff Attorney is $58,000 and the salary for a Staff Attorney with five years of experience is $64,000. LawNY® staff may also qualify for public interest law school loan forgiveness programs.

LawNY® provides an excellent package of fringe benefits including 94% employer paid health insurance with significant HSA contributions, 100% employer paid dental and disability insurance, vision coverage, and $50,000 automatic life insurance as well as generous leave provisions including, in the first year of employment, 20 days of vacation plus 13.5 holidays and two floating holidays.  Employees also receive 12 sick days and five personal days per year. New parents receive 20 days of paid new parent leave.

LawNY® is committed to providing a work-life balance to their employees.  We encourage and support a 35 hour work week to ensure our employees have this balance. We also offer a remote work policy where new staff are able to work from home up to 3 days per week during their 6 month probationary period with manager approval, as their case load permits. This increases to 5 days per week once successfully finished with a probationary period with manager approval, as their case load permits.