Supervising Attorney (SSI Disability Rights Advocacy)
BayLegal’s Alameda County SSI Disability Rights Advocacy team includes a Managing Attorney, 3 Supervising Attorneys, and 14 Staff Attorneys. We work closely with community partners, including our funders at Alameda County Behavioral Healthcare and Alameda County Social Services Agency, primary care and behavioral healthcare providers, and case managers at community based organizations, in order to ensure that our clients have access to healthcare, public benefits, housing services, and other services.
Position: BayLegal seeks an experienced public benefits attorney with a strong commitment to social justice and an interest in mentoring and supervising, to be a Supervising Attorney in our SSI Disability Rights Advocacy team in Alameda County. The Supervising Attorney will be responsible for supervising the legal work of a team of attorneys, ensuring high quality legal services for clients with SSI and SSDI, CAPI, and other public benefits matters. This position is based in our Oakland office and may involve traveling throughout the county and potentially the Bay Area as necessary to best serve our low-income clients. See COVID-19 Temporary Remote work below.
As a Supervising Attorney you will have the opportunity to:
- Learn and advocate for the diverse legal needs of underserved and vulnerable client populations in Alameda county and the broader Bay Area to reduce homelessness, enhance stability and address social injustice;
- Provide day‐to‐day legal supervision, mentorship, and support of staff attorneys and advocates;
- Conduct training, evaluation and professional development of team staff;
- Participate and help lead Disability Rights Team annual planning, periodic reviews of priorities, and responses to emerging issues in the client community and alignment with firmwide priorities and responses;
- Participate in local, state and federal meetings and policy advocacy to further our clients’ interests;
- Work with the Managing Attorney and other Supervising Attorneys to engage in project management and ensure compliance with grants and contracts;
- Represent individual clients in disability rights cases, maintaining a small case load;
- Develop, support and engage in collaborations with a range of public and private community partners, including governmental agencies, courts, and community-based organizations, to ensure integrated services and address systemic barriers facing BayLegal's client community;
- Work with BayLegal's development, grants and contracts, and communications team to promote the importance of civil legal services in addressing poverty and social justice, BayLegal's mission and resource development; and
- Engage in other tasks and projects that further BayLegal's mission and operations as a non-profit.
- Humility in working with colleagues and clients across the spectrum of diversity, including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio‐economic status, immigrant status, religious identity, physical and mental disabilities, and/or limited English proficiency.
- Membership in good standing in the California State Bar;
- Five or more years practice as a licensed attorney;
- Direct service experience, specifically with public benefits and clients with disabilities;
- Legal supervision experience strongly preferred;
- Experience representing claimants in federal District Court preferred;
- Strong personal work ethic and ability to organize time, manage diverse activities, and meet critical deadlines;
- Excellent writing, editing, and proof‐reading skills, with ability to be detail‐oriented;
- Strong interpersonal skills and an ability to work collaboratively with a dynamic team and recognize, address and resolve interpersonal conflicts;
- Ability to work and communicate clearly, concisely and effectively with colleagues, partners and stakeholders, including public presentations;
- Ability to develop and articulate a clear vision of priorities and inspire others to maximum effectiveness;
- Ability to develop and implement effective training and mentorship programs for new staff; and
- Ability to take decisive action and ensure accountability.
Temporary COVID-19 remote work: Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, all BayLegal employees are currently working remotely. While BayLegal has implemented detailed health and safety protocols to minimize risk of exposure and has an evolving plan for reopening our local offices, we anticipate remaining primarily remote at least throughout the rest of 2020. All employees are expected to be able to primarily work remotely until BayLegal determines it is safe to reopen offices. All employees are issued BayLegal computers and provided appropriate supplies. BayLegal has implemented and continues to explore additional technologies to make working remotely as efficient and connected as possible. All employees receive a flat-rate monthly amount to reimburse for work-related use of personal IT equipment, including internet, and home. Due to the COVID-19 crisis and its impact on personal lives, BayLegal is open to providing flexibility regarding work schedules and part-time or full-time employment to the extent feasible for the position.
BayLegal thrives on our diversity and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a culturally diverse workplace and strongly encourage women, persons of color, LGBTQ individuals, veterans, persons with disabilities, and persons from other underrepresented groups to apply. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Please email the following to our Human Resources Department jobs@baylegal.org : (1) cover letter including response to question below (no page limit), (2) resume, (3) references, and (4) writing sample. Please reference Supervising Attorney - Disability Rights Advocacy team in the subject of the email.
As part of your cover letter, please address the following:
BayLegal's clients are low- and very low-income members of our communities. They include persons of color, LGBTQ individuals, working poor, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and persons from other underrepresented groups. BayLegal is committed to enhancing the provision of our services to all clients, increasing positive client outcomes, and creating an inclusive and respectful workplace in which differences are acknowledged and valued. BayLegal promotes and supports policies that enable us to work effectively in cross-cultural situations with our clients, coworkers, and the community.
How do you think your personal background or experiences, professional or otherwise, have prepared you to: (1) serve our diverse client base effectively, (2) work effectively with colleagues from different backgrounds than your own, (3) acknowledge the systematic barriers that our clients face, and (4) contribute to our efforts to fight for racial justice? Feel free to think broadly about your response to this question, provide examples, and apply various aspects of your life and personal experiences.