Staff Attorney (Senior Law Project)
Position: Full-time Staff Attorney – Indianapolis Branch Office & Senior Law Project
Indiana Legal Services, Inc. (ILS) is a statewide, not-for-profit organization that provides free legal services to eligible clients in civil cases through eight branch offices. ILS is funded by the Legal Services Corporation, Indiana Civil Legal Aid Fund, United Ways, Area Agencies on Aging, and approximately 20 additional funding sources.
Staff attorneys provide substantive legal advice and representation to low-income, eligible clients. They may focus on specific areas of practice or be generalists, depending on client and office needs. They also may assist with community legal education and work with community groups as assigned.
The staff attorney will be part of
- The Senior Law Project: a team providing legal assistance to seniors on elder law issues, estate and life planning, public benefits including Medicaid and Medicare, housing, consumer, and family law issues for clients in 20 Central Indiana counties.
- The Financial Stability Team: a team providing legal assistance to individuals with issues in consumer protection, debt defense, bankruptcy, foreclosure prevention, driver’s license and expungement.
The attorney will represent individual clients through advice, limited scope, and extended representation while also identifying broader issues that affect the client population. The position also includes performing outreach and community legal education at senior centers and other locations in the service area.
This position in the Indianapolis office reports to the Senior Law Project Directing Attorney and the Indianapolis Financial Stability Team Directing Attorney.
Responsibilities:
- Provide high quality legal representation in administrative, state, and federal court proceedings and high-quality advice, limited service, and negotiation, as appropriate.
- Develop specialized expertise in areas of poverty law and learn to recognize issues and develop major litigation on issues of importance to clients.
- Develop and maintain positive relationships with local and state bar associations and community agencies that serve or work on issues affecting ILS’s clients.
- Provide community education through presentations and publications, participating in workshops and with media, and by providing resources to community groups.
- Supervise law students, volunteers, and others, as assigned.
- Foster collegiality and teamwork within ILS, including sharing work product and expertise.
- Comply with all LSC and grant requirements and all ILS policies and procedures.
Compensation: Salary is commensurate with experience (starting salary for new admittee with no relevant experience is $49,362). ILS offers an excellent fringe benefits package including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, Rx), disability insurance, life insurance, a 401k plan, a flex benefit plan, and generous vacation and sick leave. The attorney may be eligible for the ILS loan repayment assistance program (LRAP) as well as the Indiana Bar Foundation LRAP, LSC LRAP, College Cost Reduction Access Act and Higher Education Opportunity Act LRAP. Some reimbursement for moving expenses may be negotiated for long-distance moves.
The position will remain open until filled. Preference may be given to early applicants.
Equal Employment Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer
Minorities, women, persons with disabilities and persons with Spanish-speaking ability are urged to apply.
Qualifications:
- Dedicated to the mission of ILS, which is to use the law to fight poverty, empower clients, and improve access to justice.
- Licensed to practice law in Indiana or able promptly to become licensed.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
- Ability to travel as needed to be perform job responsibilities throughout assigned service area.
- Ability to establish and maintain excellent relationships with diverse populations.
Preferred for this position:
- Experience working with lower income and elderly populations;
- Familiarity with benefits available to seniors including Medicaid;
- Administrative and court litigation experience;
- Second language;
- Supervisory experience.
To Apply: Please send a resume, list of 3 references with email addresses and telephone numbers, law school transcript and legal writing sample to Dennis Frick and Cheryl Koch-Martinez, Indiana Legal Services, 151 N. Delaware St. Suite 1800, Indianapolis, IN 46204, dennis.frick@ilsi.net and cheryl.koch-martinez@ilsi.net.