PartTime Immigration Associate Attorney

Part-Time Immigration Associate Attorney (20-30 hours / week)

If your skills, experience, and qualifications match those in this job overview, do not delay your application.

Are you passionate about immigrants’ rights and being part of a thriving tight-knit team of like-minded and like-hearted people?

Do you want the freedom to work remotely, but still go to court and USCIS as needed? Maybe you've worked at a non-profit, as a solo, at a big office, and / or tried it all, realizing now that a flexible and supportive work environment is your priority so you can channel all your energy into helping clients within a diverse caseload?

Are you a communicative advocate who loves using your skills and training in collaboration with your amazing coworkers to provide not just good, but excellent service to clients in such a way they feel deeply supported?

We are a Berkeley-based immigration law office with a small, supportive team specializing in family-based immigration, naturalization, acquired / derived citizenship, consular processing, removal defense, asylum, U visas, waivers, naturalization, and Federal Court litigation.

Our team members trust and support each other. We welcome each person’s feedback and value a balance between owning our caseloads and tasks and working collaboratively.

We appreciate and value each team member and each role in our office, from assistant to attorney. Our team members are positive problem solvers who use creativity and passion to bring new ideas to constantly improve our systems and procedures so we can be our best for our clients.

We understand that working with clients who have endured trauma and are facing enormous challenges takes an emotional toll.

So, we often let off steam by, when appropriate, being goofy and interjecting a lot of humor! We also promote identifying ways to not only take good care of ourselves but one another.

We hold periodic group trauma training with licensed professionals. We believe in creating and following proven systems and we are goal-oriented.

We aim to work in a focused manner so that we can all enjoy life outside of work hours. Attorneys on our team are trusted to create their own schedule within certain parameters and provided certain goals are met.

Summary of who we are looking for :

Our associate is a bilingual attorney fluent in both written and spoken Spanish. Our associate is driven and can manage their caseload impeccably.

They love communicating with team members and clients. They take time to get to know each client as a whole person, making sure they feel heard and supported.

Our associate understands how key this partnership is to ensure our clients reach their goals within an extremely flawed and ever-changing immigration legal system.

They take the time to formulate a strategic plan at the outset of the case and will constantly monitor changes to laws and policies to improve the plan as needed.

Our associate will clearly communicate the strategy to both the client and the rest of the legal team so everyone is on the same page at each step of what can often be an outrageously long process.

Our associate has strong oral and written communication skills, understanding the importance of focusing on the audience (USCIS, IJ at EOIR) and the objectives.

They can communicate effectively with clients, team members, adjudicators, colleagues, and judges alike. Our associate is confident and can do the research and work independently, but also knows when to seek a second opinion or collaborate with a trusted colleague to ensure the best course is taken for our client when working on a complex, new, or novel issue.

Our associate understands the value of delegating to others and creating a team approach.

Responsibilities :

• Client-Focused Tasks :
• Prepare for and represent clients in Immigration Court as well as before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Department of State (DOS).
• Engage with our legal team to share legal strategy on each case so the team can be in alignment with the client’s interest, the team’s interest in moving clients forward, and the office’s interest in making sure our clients have an excellent experience and feel well cared for along the way.
• Communicate and convey advice to clients about their options based on current laws and procedures and the process using plain language so they fully understand all options and can make the most informed decision for themselves and their families.
• Oversee forms drafted and evidence gathered by the legal team, tracking our office's systems and checklists, and providing feedback and guidance to create stronger work products and streamlined processes.
• Confer with other attorneys in the office and trusted colleagues outside the office with advocacy and professionalism.
• Maintain an organized pinned note (ongoing memorandum) in addition to clear case notes and key information in the dashboard in our office’s case management software throughout the case to appropriately apprise team members and the client of the status of the case and several steps planned so everyone understands and is on the same page.
• Maintain and manage an independent caseload and provide case support to the lead attorney and other attorneys.
• Administrative / Team / Financial Tasks :
• Engage with the team to create a collaborative culture. This will include contributing and participating in team training, team building, and other growth opportunities.
• Track hourly casework in a diligent, descriptive way that clearly details the actions taken on the case and conveys forward movement.
• Meet hourly casework goals and coordinate with team members on their hourly casework goals, and on the status of clients’ trust accounts in relation to the timing and nature of work to be completed to ensure the office avoids outstanding balances.
• Marketing and Community Relations Tasks :
• Enjoy finding ways to give back to the community, including volunteer opportunities and speaking engagements that can help provide vital information about immigration to those who need it.
• Feel excited about the possibility of occasionally participating in podcasts, audio recordings, videos, or live streams to help provide valuable information to clients and the community while also getting the word out about our office.
• Engage in different forms of networking on a regular basis to cultivate relationships in the community and among colleagues.
• Engage in social media in a positive and supporting role to the office and to amplify our office’s mission and dedication to immigrants’ rights and to our clients.
• Other Duties :
• Create efficiencies by developing and improving the office’s systems including the policies and procedures, examples, templates, scripts, diagrams, workflows, and videos.
• Analyze statistical information to better understand how we can improve our services and the time we spend working on clients’ matters.

Qualifications :

• A minimum of 4+ years as an attorney in immigration law (willing to consider exceptional candidates who have 4+ years of experience combined between immigration and other areas of law).
• Fluency in Spanish, both written and spoken.
• Excellent communication skills verbal and written.
• Superb understanding of not only the law but also hold an innate ability to draw out clients’ unique experiences and help them tell their story within the framework of the law.
• Empathy and natural warmth.
• Desire to grow as an immigration attorney and as a human being.
• Impeccable organizational skills and ability to lead and delegate.
• A love of problem-solving and employing creativity to innovate and develop new strategies to better serve our clients and to streamline how our team works together.
• The ability to multi-task, prioritize effectively, and adhere to deadlines.
• Resiliency and the ability to adapt within the ever-changing world of immigration laws and procedures, scheduling priorities, etc.
• Strong attention to detail, including grammar, spelling, and formatting.
• Comfort using case management software, Microsoft Word, Adobe, and other programs standard to day-to-day work in the office.
• Excellent knowledge of legal research techniques and databases.

Please provide the following with your application :

• Your resume
• Writing sample

Compensation : $45,000 - $65,000 for 20 hours / week (depending on experience and considering the possibility of earning within the bonus structure).

$67,500 - $97,500 for 30 hours / week (depending on experience and considering the possibility of earning within the bonus structure).

Compensation : $67,500 - $97,500 yearly DOE + possibility of earning within bonus structure.

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