Supervising Attorney – Housing Unit

About South Coastal Counties Legal Services : South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc. (SCCLS) is the leading legal services program for Southeastern Massachusetts, with 80 staff across 5 offices.

We provide high quality legal services to advance equity and opportunity for our clients in housing, public benefits, family law, education, consumer, elder law, and immigration.

Under new leadership, SCCLS is in a period of substantial growth and innovation.

Do not pass up this chance, apply quickly if your experience and skills match what is in the following description.

About Brockton and the Brockton Office of SCCLS : This position is located in the Brockton office of SCCLS. Brockton enjoys easy access by car and commuter rail from both the Metro Boston area and Southeastern Mass.

The city has over 100,000 residents. It is a majority non-white city and has a vibrant community which includes many people from Cape Verde and Haiti.

Both the poverty rate and the children’s poverty rate are considerably higher than the state average. The Brockton office is a new office in the heart of Brockton, embedded in the community, with many social service agencies and the court only blocks away.

This position is a rare opportunity to be part of a team in a brand new office, with the support and backup of a larger organization, including SCCLS’s subsidiary, The Justice Center of Southeast Massachusetts, which is located in the same building and has been practicing for many years.

The office intends to apply a trauma informed lens to holistic representation and to be collaborative, with our community partners and across the organization.

At present, this is a hybrid position.

About this position :

SCCLS seeks to hire a Supervising Attorney to help develop and lead its Housing team in delivering high quality representation and systemic advocacy.

This is a leadership position that will involve supporting and mentoring casehandlers in the Brockton office and along with another Supervising Attorney, other SCCLS offices.

This position also includes engaging in outreach and community education; engaging with the statewide network of advocates representing clients experiencing housing instability;

and assisting with the timely preparation of grant reports;.

We seek attorneys committed to seeking racial and economic justice for low-income communities through the provision of high-quality client centered legal representation.

This is an excellent opportunity to join an organization of supportive, creative colleagues who work hard to provide life-changing legal representation for the most vulnerable persons in our communities.

Duties and Responsibilities :

• Develop and implement an articulated vision for housing law representation, including emergency shelter, (collaborating with the Managing Attorney and additional Supervising Housing Attorney) that includes high quality direct legal representation and addressing underlying systemic issues;
• maintain a small and strategic caseload;
• Supervise overall work of housing unit advocacy staff to develop housing law expertise; assist in developing / revising standards of practice and ensure adherence to program and case handling standards, funder requirements and the highest professional standards using regular case review and other supervision standards and practices to develop the skills of the advocacy staff and ensure their professional development;
• Effectively engage with the organization’s leadership team, advocacy staff, community groups and organizations, and the statewide justice community to develop and manage strategic initiatives, community needs assessments, and to respond to emerging trends and changing policies affecting clients with housing issues;
• Develop, support, and oversee the litigation, systemic and policy advocacy of the housing law team, in collaboration with the Managing Attorney, additional Supervising Housing Attorney and the statewide housing advocacy community, to advance special projects that systemically advance housing justice needs;
• Work with appropriate staff to pursue new funding opportunities, prepare grant applications and reports, and monitor compliance;

other responsibilities as assigned by the Executive Director

Qualifications :

Admitted in MA or eligible for admission; minimum 5 years of legal practice with substantive expertise in housing law issues;

understanding or experience with intersecting systems affecting client communities

Significant experience with advocacy in a variety of forums including federal, state, and appellate courts, administrative agencies and / or legislative bodies;

ability and will to lead and advance the housing law practice

Strong leadership and mentoring skills and a leadership style that inspires and encourages professional growth in others and collaboration;

demonstrated ability to supervise across differences

• Demonstrated ability to identify and respond to emerging issues and policies affecting familial and economic stability in particular for low-income families;
• Ability to foster inclusivity, equity and humility when working with clients, colleagues and in supervising staff at the intersection of multiple identities, including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, immigration status, religion, physical and mental disability, and / or limited English proficiency
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills;
• Capacity to facilitate groups and meetings equitably with a framework that embraces race equity principles
• Commitment to race equity, anti-racism and economic justice in the workplace and in providing legal services; prior racial justice and / or systemic focused experience required;
• Ability to engage effectively in person and remotely with people from diverse cultures, with diverse opinions and values, including with staff, volunteers, students, community members and funders;
• Fluency in a second language which reflects our client communities (Spanish, Portuguese, Cape Verdean Creole, Haitian Creole, Vietnamese, Khmer) desirable;

Compensation and Benefits :

Salary is based on a collective bargaining agreement scale enhanced for supervisory role, includes yearly standard increases, multi-lingual annual increment for demonstrated language skills.

This position is not part of the collective bargaining unit. Starting Benefits package : health and dental with supplemental coverage, life insurance, disability, flexible spending account, 403(b), loan forgiveness.

Generous paid leave including sick, vacation, personal and holidays.

Apply :

Submit letter of interest, resume and legal writing sample by email to : [email protected] with Subject Line : Supv Atty Housing.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

South Coastal Counties Legal Services and its subsidiary are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate on the basis of age, class, color, disability, ethnicity, faith, gender, national origin, race, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.

We welcome applicants from a broad range of backgrounds and experiences. We strive to foster a healthy, inclusive environment where all staff, clients, and community members are valued, empowered and recognized.

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