POSITION DESCRIPTION
The Rochester office of LawNY® seeks to fill an immediate opening for a full time Staff
Attorney in its Elder Law Unit. The attorney will work with clients in the following areas:
Estate Planning and Administration; Power of Attorney and Advance Medical Directive
Planning; Medicaid Planning and Advocacy; Social Security Administration Advocacy;
Housing and Nursing Home Advocacy; Elder Abuse; VA Benefits and Appeals; Consumer
Law; and other legal matters critical to aging adults. The ideal candidate will also assist with
and manage new client intakes, very occasionally conduct client home visits, oversee the
signing of estate planning documents, develop relationships with local funders and
stakeholders, and conduct outreach and capacity building presentations. We encourage
applicants with a wide range of substantive legal experience to apply. We expect those who
fill this position will grow and adapt their practice to the needs of the community and the
organization. The candidate must have the caring, patience, and emotional maturity to help
low-income people overcome crisis situations.
Staff Attorneys at LawNY® provide comprehensive legal services to eligible clients and the
ideal candidate should have a strong understanding of how civil legal issues affecting low-
income communities intersect with social and economic justice. Staff Attorneys play a
critical role in realizing LawNY®’s vision of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Every Staff
Attorney is expected to actively engage in learning and becoming increasingly skilled in
practice that supports this vision.
COMPENSATION
Salary is dependent on experience and based on a pay scale with annual increments. The
beginning salary for a Staff Attorney with no experience is $58,000 and the salary for a Staff
Attorney with ten years of experience is $72,400. LawNY is a qualifying employer for the Public Service Loan
Forgiveness program(PSLF).
LawNY® provides an excellent package of fringe benefits including 94% employer paid
health insurance with significant HSA contributions, 100% employer paid dental and
disability insurance, vision coverage, and $50,000 automatic life insurance as well as
generous leave provisions including, in the first year of employment, 20 days of vacation
plus 13.5 holidays and two floating holidays. Employees also receive 12 sick days and
five personal days per year. New parents receive 20 days of paid new parent leave.
LawNY® is committed to providing a work-life balance to their employees. We
encourage and support a 35 hour work week to ensure our employees have this
balance. We also offer a remote work policy where new staff are able to work from
home up to 3 days per week during their 6 month probationary period and, after, up to 5
days per week with manager approval, as their workload permits.
ORGANIZATION INFORMATION
Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. (LawNY®) is a not-for-profit law firm that
provides free civil legal services to low-income clients in a 14 county area of Western New
York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier. LawNY® has seven fully staffed field offices
in Bath, Elmira, Geneva, Ithaca, Jamestown, Olean and Rochester, satellite offices in
Lakeville and Lyons, and a business office in Rochester.
LawNY® has been providing high quality legal representation for 54 years, and today has
over 180 employees, including attorneys, paralegals, and a legal support team who work
closely across areas of specialization to bring a holistic approach to addressing legal issues
affecting our clients and community.
LawNY® is committed to equitable inclusion across race, gender, sexual orientation, gender
identity, age, ability, sex, religion, economic circumstances, ethnicity, national origin,
and culture. We are increasingly committed to creating a law firm where race equity,
diversity and cultural competency are integral components of our work, from client
advocacy to internal operations.
Research shows that women and people from under-represented groups often apply to
jobs only if they meet 100% of the desired competencies. We encourage you to apply
even if you do not believe you meet all the desired competencies.
QUALIFICATIONS These are the basic requirements for the position.
● Juris Doctorate or Equivalent
● Admitted to practice and in good standing in New York State, eligible for
admission without examination, or willing to take the next available Bar
examination.
● Demonstrated commitment of service to low-income people.
RESPONSIBILITIES These are the most significant responsibilities and primary functions of
the position.
● Maintain a full-time caseload representing eligible clients
● Develop and maintain specialized knowledge in a broad range of legal issues
affecting older members of our communities.
● Develop and maintain the specialized skills necessary to draft and oversee the
signing of Wills, Powers of Attorney, and Health Care Proxy Documents for
elder law clients.
● Become VA accredited in order to represent clients in VA Service-Connected
Appeals before the Board of Veteran’s Appeals.
● Maintain connections with local veteran services organizations and agencies.
● Provide legal services to low income clients and client groups regarding these
matters including advice, negotiation, litigation and administrative advocacy.
● Interact respectfully with clients and other individuals from a wide range of
backgrounds, with an awareness of the importance of cultural competence and
humility.
● Collaborate with other LawNY® advocates, human services providers, non-profit
organizations and community groups as well as the courts, administrative
tribunals and the private bar to address legal problems within our community,
including providing community legal education.
● Cooperate in all grant reporting requirements, program reporting, timekeeping,
file maintenance, case closing and compliance review.
ADDITIONAL TRAITS AND SKILLS These are the traits, attributes, attitudes, and skills that speak
to the candidate’s ability to succeed in the position. While no one candidate will possess all of the
qualities listed, the ideal candidate will have many of these qualities. LawNY® encourages each
candidate to think about their own personal knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as professional
skills and experience in relation to this list.
● Litigation and advocacy experience in state and/or federal court and/or
administrative forums within at least one other area of poverty law, especially elder
law, landlord-tenant, foreclosure, bankruptcy, homelessness prevention, fair
housing, and/or government benefits.
● Experience incorporating an anti-racist and anti-oppressive lens into legal practice.
● An understanding of the concepts of structural and institutional racism and their
impact on underserved and underrepresented communities.
● Strong interpersonal skills, including a commitment to providing trauma-informed
services.
● Excellent use of Google Drive/GSuite, Word, and Excel; database programs such as
Lexisnexis and Westlaw
● Lived experience with our client communities.
● True fluency in a language other than English that is spoken by our clients.
● Passion for social justice and commitment to the mission of LawNY.
APPLICATION PROCESS
To apply, submit your cover letter, resume, and three professional references, with
current email address and phone number, through LawNY®’s BambooHR platform,
found here and at www.lawny.org/Employment.When outlining work experience on a
resume, candidates are requested to label each position as full-time or part-time and
describe unpaid volunteer/internships as such.
To promote social justice and achieve our mission, LawNY® is committed to maintaining a
diverse staff and creating an inclusive and respectful workplace. In your cover letter, please
also include an explanation of how you think that your lived and/or professional experience
or background has prepared you to contribute to support a strong commitment to diversity
and inclusion at LawNY®.
Questions or Accommodations? Contact Michelle Grillone at [email protected]
Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. (LawNY®) is an equal opportunity employer.
LawNY® strongly encourages applications from Black, Indigenous and People of Color,
women, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with disabilities, and persons from other
underrepresented groups whose background may contribute to working in and sustaining
an environment that enables staff and clients to feel empowered, valued, respected, and
safe. LawNY® welcomes applications regardless of race, color, religion, veteran status,
sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, age, veteran status,
disability, genetic information or any other consideration protected by law.
This position is considered Exempt pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act.
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