Paralegal Casehandler, Disability Advocacy Project (DAP)

The Legal Aid Society's Government Benefits Practice includes our Disability Advocacy Project ("DAP"). DAP staff provide representation, legal assistance, legal advocacy, and education to clients with disabilities who need income and related supports from city, state, and federal programs especially federal disability benefits from the Social Security Administration. These benefits allow low-income individuals with disabilities and their families access to food, housing, and basic necessities. Defending our client community's right to these benefits is crucial to our clients' ability to live with dignity and to maintaining the diversity that defines New York City.

Subject to continued funding and staffing priorities, The Legal Aid Society's Civil Practice is hiring a Paralegal Casehandler for the Disability Advocacy Project (DAP) unit of the Brooklyn Neighborhood Office to provide legal assistance to clients with disabilities seeking to obtain and maintain benefits from the Social Security Administration. While the primary responsibility is handling individual cases, there may also be opportunities to contribute to administrative and legislative advocacy and litigation in the pursuit of disability rights/justice. The candidate will be supervised by the Attorney-in-Charge of our Brooklyn Neighborhood Office and the Director of the Government Benefits/DAP Practice. The Paralegal Casehandler will also assist with outreach and community training. The Paralegal Casehandler may be required to work in more than one community or borough depending on changing client needs and priorities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Primary Responsibilities

• Represent low-income clients with disabilities in administrative hearings and administrative appeals of the denial, reduction, and termination of benefits
• Provide advice and assistance to clients
• Interview and assess client requests for services
• Provide brief service on behalf of clients
• Advocate with various agencies regarding government benefits
• Conduct factual and legal research
• Organize and manage electronic and paper litigation files
• Assist with telephone hotlines
• Work collaboratively with external partners
• Conduct community education, training, and outreach
• Conduct off-site intake, including during evening hours as needed
• Assist with litigation tasks

Professional Development and other duties as assigned

• Participate in continuous professional development
• Continuously learn about forms of bias in the workplace and demonstrate affirmative behaviors that support an inclusive work environment
• Other duties as assigned

QUALIFICATIONS

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or paralegal certificate from an ABA-accredited paralegal program is strongly preferred; candidates with 4+ years of applicable legal work experience or an equivalent combination of education and applicable legal work experience will also be considered
• Commitment and ability to advocate on behalf of low-income people with disabilities
• Highly self-motivated and able to work independently
• Demonstrated ability to accurately and quickly gather data, compile information, and keep accurate records
• Excellent organizational skills
• Excellent computer skills including Office 365 and all Microsoft Office programs, especially Microsoft Excel (pivot tables, etc.), and demonstrated ability to work with databases
• Excellent judgment, including theability to handle sensitive or confidential information

Preferred qualifications:

• Proficiency in Spanish

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The salary range represents a good faith estimate of the range we expect to pay for this role. The actual salary offered may vary depending on many factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range: $60,033 - $91,932

The Legal Aid Society offers a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Click here to read more about benefits.

Higher Education and Loan Forgiveness

The Legal Aid Society is a qualified employer for the purposes of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness. This position allows an employee to take advantage of PSLF and other State and Federal loan forgiveness programs. Additionally, employees who are New York residents may be eligible for assistance from New York state to assist with loan repayments, depending on years of practice. To learn more, click the links below.

studentaid.gov

hesc.ny.gov/loan-forgiveness-programs

WORK AUTHORIZATION

All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer without sponsorship for a work visa or permit. We are currently unable to sponsor employment visas or permits. (However, for citizens of Canada and Mexico, LAS will provide a letter documenting employment status that is needed to obtain a TN visa.)

HOW TO APPLY

All applications must be completed online via the career portal. We do not accept emailed applications. Submit the following documents as a combined PDF:

• Cover Letter
• Resume

For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email jobpostquestions@legal-aid.org.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

As an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer, The Legal Aid Society prohibits discriminatory employment actions against and treatment of its employees and applicants for employment based on actual or perceived race or color, size (including bone structure, body size, height, shape, and weight), religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (one's internal deeply-held sense of one's gender which may be the same or different from one's sex assigned at birth); gender expression (the representation of gender as expressed through, for example, one's name, choice of pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, or body characteristics; gender expression may not conform to traditional gender-based stereotypes assigned to specific gender identities), disability, marital status, relationship and family structure (including domestic partnerships, polyamorous families and individuals, chosen family, platonic co-parents, and multigenerational families), genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, credit history, unemployment status, caregiver status, salary history, or any other characteristic protected by law.

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

The Legal Aid Society is committed to a work culture of zealous advocacy, respect, diversity and inclusion, client-oriented defense, access to justice and excellent representation. We are dedicated to building a strong professional relationship with each of our clients (people), to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us and our ability to build strong relationships with our colleagues. Every member of our community is expected to continuously learn about the dynamic, evolving, and emerging field of knowledge of identity, bias, and systemic forms of oppression and participate in productive efforts to dismantling bias in all forms.