IMMIGRANT RIGHTS ATTORNEY
Central Islip, NY - Full time, Exempt position
Empire Justice Center, a highly respected, statewide legal services organization, is seeking an Immigrant Rights Attorney to join our team. The Immigrant Rights Attorney
will
be a critical member of our growing Immigration Practice and will work on the Liberty Defense Project, a
recently created initiative funded by the State of New York.
The Immigrant Rights Attorney in the Long Island office will work as a part of a multifaceted
team of attorneys and paralegals who provide supportive advocacy and legal services in
immigration, public benefits, family law, and housing. Empire Justice Center participates in
various coalitions to enhance the rights and protections for immigrants on Long Island. Our advocacy efforts are informed by the direct experiences of our clients. The Immigrants Rights
Attorney will be one source of information and inspiration for these ongoing efforts.
The Immigrant Rights Attorney will provide legal counseling and representation for immigrants
facing deportation, and direct representation in other immigration law matters to mostly Spanish speaking immigrants on Long Island. The attorney will be based in our Central Islip
office and will serve Nassau and Suffolk County residents.
Primary responsibilities will include:
- Providing direct
representation to immigrants in:
- Removal proceedings, including administrative appeals
- Naturalization and Adjustment of
status, including
administrative appeals
- U Visa petitions and Violence
Against Women Act
(VAWA) self-petitions, including administrative
appeals
- Asylum applications, both
affirmative
and defensive
- Special Immigrant Juvenile
Status application and related
Family Court proceedings
- Preparing
and presenting
monthly Know Your Rights trainings to immigrants and community groups across Long
Island
- Rapidly responding to
enforcement
actions on
Long Island
with legal advice, referrals and in
appropriate cases, representation of the immigrant and/or impacted
family members
Candidates for this position will:
- Be admitted to
practice law
in New York
or have passed the necessary licensing examinations and have applied
for admission to practice;
- Have at
least one year relevant legal experience;
experience
representing immigrants as part of
a law school legal clinic
or other setting
may be counted
towards this requirement;
- Possess excellent legal writing and analytical
skills,
able to
meet tight deadlines,
and capacity to work both
independently
and as part
of a team
- Be experienced
in interviewing and counseling
clients, preferably
in both English and Spanish
- Be willing and able
to travel
to serve clients in
a geographically wide-spread area
Bi-lingual in Spanish strongly desired.
Salary and Benefits
Salary is commensurate with experience and based on the organization's salary
scale. With five
(5) years' experience the starting salary could be $59,000, depending on experience.
Empire Justice Center offers a generous benefits package, including health insurance, pension
and
life insurance, vacation, holiday, personal and sick time. We are an organization that supports and encourages a work/life balance.
Empire Justice Center is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and desires a diverse work force. People of color, women, persons with disabilities, persons who are elderly, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender are welcomed and encouraged to apply.
Applications will be accepted
until the position is filled.
If
interested e-mail a cover letter, resume, legal writing
sample and contact
information for three professional references aware of this application to employment@empirejustice.org. Please
include Immigrant Rights Attorney, First/Last
Name to the subject line of the email. No phone calls or
hard copies please. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Immigrant
Rights Attorney
employment@empirejustice.org |