Family Law Legal Services Attorney

The mission of Bread for the City is to help Washington, DC residents living with low income to develop the power to determine the future of their own communities. We provide food, clothing, medical care, and legal and social services to reduce the burden of poverty. We seek justice through community organizing and public advocacy. We work to uproot racism, a major cause of poverty. We are committed to treating our clients with the dignity and respect that all people deserve.

Bread for the City Legal Clinic seeks to ensure better access to justice in our nation’s capital. The Legal Clinic offers front-line civil legal services primarily in the areas of housing, family, immigration, and public benefits law. Our Family Law practice includes providing legal help in Civil Protection Order, custody, paternity, child support and divorce matters, as well as in immigration cases, such as VAWA self-petition, U visa, and SIJS matters. Our Family Law Unit is a dedicated team of attorneys with many years of experience in family law and civil legal services.

Position Description:

Bread for the City is seeking a full-time attorney with 1-3 years’ experience for our Family Law practice. Specifically, we seek an attorney to work in our Child Support Community Legal Services Project. Prior to the public health emergency, the attorney staffed a legal services office based at the Parentage and Support Branch of DC Superior Court in order to provide immediate, same-day advice and representation to custodial and noncustodial parents in paternity and child support cases. The attorney retained many of those cases for continued representation. Currently, the court is holding only remote hearings, and we are not operating out of the courthouse office. The attorney has been working remotely staffing a Child Support Resource Center hotline two days per week. In addition to child support and paternity matters, the attorney may also handle a small caseload of other family law cases. In addition, the attorney will conduct advocacy, education and other outreach activities.

Qualifications:

• Member of the DC Bar or eligible to practice under DC Court of Appeals Rule 49(c)(9) (2020 graduates will not be considered unless they have passed the DC Bar exam or are eligible to waive in);
• Strong organizational, research, and oral and written communication skills;
• Litigation experience;
• Ability to perform effectively in court with little time for preparation;
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice and racial equity and/or willingness to learn and carry out Bread for the City's commitments in these areas;
• High degree of flexibility;
• Sense of humor;
• Ability to work with other staff and interact with a wide variety of people, including volunteers, in a professional and collaborative manner;
• Comfortable working in an open work environment, with no private offices for staff;
• Familiarity with Google Organization & Productivity Tools (Gmail, Google Docs,  Calendar) and/or ability to learn new technology systems; 
• Prior experience in a legal services or other public interest setting highly desirable;
• Some knowledge or experience in child support law a plus; and
• Bilingual (Spanish/English) skills preferred but not required.

Compensation:

Bread for the City offers competitive non-profit salaries based on experience and a generous benefits package. Also, the DC Bar Foundation offers a Loan Repayment Assistance Program to qualified Bread for the City attorneys, providing renewable one-year, interest-free, forgivable loans, of up to $12,000 per year. For more information, see https:/dcbarfoundation.org/lrap/. Attorney salaries start at $58,000, for those admitted to the DC Bar or those who have passed the DC bar or another state bar exam and are able to practice under Rule 49(c)(9)(B) or 49(c)(9)(C). Lateral attorneys receive an additional $1,000 for every year of paid legal experience for which a JD is required and at least 32 hours per week worked, capped at $3,000 (or 3 years).

Bread for the City is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, family responsibility, physical or mental disability, medical condition, status as a veteran, or any other category protected by applicable federal, state, or local law, except where a bona fide occupational qualification applies.