DIRECTOR OF LITIGATION

Communities Resist (“CoRe”) seeks a Director of Litigation to join a team combating gentrification, displacement, social disenfranchisement, and structural injustice through affirmative litigation before housing, state, and federal courts as well as administrative agencies.

CoRe is a legal services organization for housing and community justice that serves primarily Brooklyn and Queens. CoRe has spent years working together with neighborhood organizations and organizers in representing hundreds of tenants and tenant associations toward enforcing their right to social citizenship by struggling, resisting, and enduring against any attempts to deny working communities, largely of color, their agency.

The Director of Litigation is the person primarily responsible for the development,

expansion and supervision of housing work under relevant federal, state and city statutes and

regulations, with a focus on CoRe’s priority neighborhoods.

Director of Litigation responsibilities include:

● Director of Litigation is a managerial position, and will participate in management

meetings and assist in other managerial or administrative responsibilities as appropriate.

● Developing and promulgating litigation strategy and structure.

● Establishing on-boarding, training, and continuing legal education for staff attorneys.

● Directly supervising and/or serving as a resource for staff attorneys litigating housing

claims before federal, state and city courts and administrative agencies.

● Building and maintaining a personal caseload of complex or impact-oriented housing

matters for litigation before federal, state and city courts and administrative agencies.

● Working with existing community partners (CBOs, elected officials, coalitions) to

improve community education on tenants’ rights and intake/development of housing

matters.

● Developing new community partnerships as necessary to expand CoRe’s legal services.

● Programming and leading community education events.

● Co-counselling, as appropriate, matters with staff attorneys.

● Ensuring that direct supervisees conduct their representation competently and ethically,

and in compliance with CoRe’s recordkeeping and reporting policies.

● Assigning new tenant association matters to staff attorneys and assisting with managing

the caseloads of direct supervisees.

● Assisting with the training of new and continuing staff attorneys as necessary.

Applicants must have the following qualifications:

● Admission to the bar of the State of New York or eligible for admission.

● A minimum of five years of experience litigating housing cases in state, federal and local

courts, or other substantially similar experience.

● Cultural competence demonstrated through present or past residence in, or employment at

organizations serving, our clients’ communities.

● Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate with individuals from diverse

backgrounds and local organizations.

● Excellent legal writing, litigation and advocacy skills.

● Excellent interpersonal skills.

● Ability to work independently with strong motivation, to supervise a caseload, track case

data, and to meet deadlines.

● Computer proficiency sufficient to independently review and generate materials relevant to

the position as well as track client information in our database, prepare reports for grantors,

attend meetings, and perform tasks related to the work such as timekeeping and case notes.

● Willingness, desire, and ability to attend evening meetings and events.

CoRe is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be afforded equal employment opportunities without discrimination because of race, religion/creed, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, military status, predisposing genetic characteristics, victim of domestic violence status or marital status.

To apply, forward a cover letter with your resume to:

Angela Piguave, CFOO

Communities Resist

E-mail: apiguave@communitiesresist.org

Please put ‘Director of Litigation’ in the subject line.