HOUSING PARALEGAL
Legal Assistance to the Elderly (LAE) seeks an enthusiastic and compassionate paralegal to join the eviction defense team at Legal Assistance the Elderly! We provide a vital service, aggressively representing elderly tenants and tenants with disabilities who are threatened with losing their homes. The work is intense, fast-paced, and demanding but very rewarding. You will work with a very experienced team of supporting attorneys as they represent clients throughout their cases, beginning with intake and pre-trial motions, through discovery and at trial.
For over 40 years, LAE has provided free legal advice and representation to San Francisco’s seniors and adults with disabilities. Our mission is to protect and advance the right of San Francisco’s seniors and adults with disabilities to be housed, healthy, financially stable, and safe. Our primary practice areas are Eviction Defense/Housing Preservation (tenants only), Income Support, Health Law, Financial and Physical Elder Abuse Prevention, Debt Collection Defense, Foreclosure Prevention, End of Life Planning, and Conservatorship Defense. LAE is a friendly and collaborative work environment.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
• Bachelor’s degree and/or paralegal certificate ideal; minimum associate degree required
• Administrative experience, including proficient to intermediate skills with Microsoft Office and other common computer programs.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interviewing skills
• Well-organized, highly motivated, and creative problem-solver
• Able to work independently and in a team-oriented environment
• Able to work on several projects simultaneously, and handle high volume of activity
• Patient, flexible & kind
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice
• Must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (including all recommended boosters) unless the applicant has a valid medical reason for not being fully vaccinated or a sincerely held religious belief preventing vaccination
HIGHLY DESIRABLE
• Fluency in English and Cantonese, Mandarin or Spanish
• Two or more years of experience working as a paralegal
• Knowledge of landlord tenant law
• Knowledge of legal issues related to poverty and/or aging
• Experience working with elderly, disabled or homeless individuals or those experiencing a crisis
• Experience with Salesforce
DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES
General Purpose: To provide litigation and programmatic support to the Housing Team
Litigation Support
• Draft correspondence and other documents
• Conduct legal research and factual investigations
• File documents via e-filing and in person at SF Superior Court, or where necessary
• Ensure service of legal documents and correspondence
• Assist in responding to and propounding discovery
• Under attorney supervision, prepare responsive pleadings, ex parte applications, motions, and other necessary pleadings
• Provide deposition and trial support
• Work with attorneys and other LAE staff to train and supervise volunteers and interns
• Participate in regular skills-based training sessions
• Attend weekly program meetings, staff meetings, and relevant supervision meetings
• Present completed intakes at weekly case review meetings
• Perform other duties as assigned
Client Services
• Conduct intake interviews with new clients and obtain necessary documentation
• As needed, visit clients in their homes, in skilled nursing facilities, and in hospital
• Follow-up with clients
• Record and update client demographic information in database
• Maintain accurate computerized client files and other documentation
• Manage data entry for support program evaluation and outcomes tracking
WORKING CONDITIONS
The position requires working with individuals during moments of extreme stress and instability. The position also requires the provision of culturally sensitive and empathetic services. Some evening and weekend work is required, though infrequently. Furthermore, because of the nature of the intake work, the employee is expected to be in the office during normal business hours and to communicate with staff regarding whereabouts when out of office during work hours. After a probationary period, some work from home is permitted depending on client and team needs.
UNION MEMBERSHIP
After successful completion of a probationary period (90 days), membership in the National Organization of Legal Services Workers becomes a condition of employment.
COMPENSATION
We offer a family-friendly environment, and compensation based on competitive public interest salaries along with a generous benefits package. The salary based on Union Scale starting at $69,000 to $79,000 (placement on scale is primarily determined by years of related experience). There is a salary stipend for fluency in a second language that is regularly used in LAE’s legal practice and an additional stipend after two years working at LAE. LAE’s benefits package includes 100% employer covered medical, dental, and life insurance for employees and dependent children and up 75% for spouses; LAE student debt reimbursement program; employer paid CA Bar license and/or social work license fees; 401k retirement plan with annual LAE contribution; and a Staff Wellness Fund. LAE has a generous paid leave policy which includes: sick leave; parental leave; compensation time, 19 holidays each year; and vacation (starting at 17 days and increasing with additional years of employment).
TO APPLY: Please fill out our application; if you're having problems with the application format, please follow the following instructions:
E-MAIL RESUME AND COVER LETTER TO: hiring@laesf.org
SUBJECT: [Your Name] Housing Paralegal
If you find that you meet many of the qualifications in the job description, we encourage you to apply and explain in your cover letter why your experience would make you a good fit for the position. We recognize that organizations may miss out on strong applicants who screen themselves out of the process because they do not meet every qualification and that disproportionately impacts people from historically marginalized backgrounds. We know that our greatest strengths come from the people who make up our team and a welcoming, inclusive and culturally diverse staff allows us to best serve our community. We look forward to your application.
LAE seeks to fill all positions with people who share our values, including our organizational commitment to diversity. We encourage all interested individuals to apply—especially people of color; women; people from low-income backgrounds; people with disabilities; people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender non-conforming, non-binary; or anyone belonging to any other federal or state protected category. We believe that all persons are entitled to equal employment opportunity, and are committed to not discriminating on any basis prohibited by applicable law.
APPLICATIONS WILL BE CONSIDERED UNTIL THE POSITION IS FILLED. THOSE SELECTED FOR AN INTERVIEW WILL BE NOTIFIED