Staff Attorney

About NYLAG:

Founded in 1990, NYLAG is a leading civil legal services organization combatting economic, racial, and social injustice by advocating for people experiencing poverty or in crisis. Our services include comprehensive, free civil legal services, financial empowerment, impact litigation, policy advocacy, and community partnerships. NYLAG exists because wealth should not determine who has access to justice. We aim to disrupt systemic racism by serving individuals and families whose legal and financial crises are often rooted in racial inequality. NYLAG goes to where the need is, providing services in more than 150 community sites (e.g., courts, hospitals, libraries) and on our Mobile Legal Help Center. NYLAG’s staff of 400 impacted the lives of nearly 129,000 people last year.

Job description

Applicants must be prepared to handle a high volume of cases and to interact with an under-represented client population in a sensitive and professional manner. Applicants must have excellent analytical skills to assess whether clients have a legal basis for appeal based on the evidence. Applicants should demonstrate a clear commitment to public service and have strong writing and oral advocacy skills. The successful candidate will work closely with other unit staff and will receive both on-the-job and more formal training. The successful candidate will primarily handle cases that fall within the scope of NYLAG’s state-funded Disability Advocacy Project housed within the Public Benefits Unit.

Duties and Responsibilities

The successful candidate will handle cases in which New Yorkers who receive public benefits have inappropriately had SSA disability benefits denied, terminated, or recouped. Specific responsibilities include: conducting intake interviews with individuals denied SSA disability benefits; obtaining and reviewing medical and other records; researching federal laws, regulations, and procedures; and representing clients at the local office, at administrative law hearings, and on appeal. A successful candidate must demonstrate the ability to work independently on a significant case load and to be a primary case handler.

Qualifications

A JD and bar passage is required. We will accept applications from applicants who have passed the bar but have not yet been sworn in and from applicants who have taken the July 2026 bar and are awaiting results. Applicants with high Spanish proficiency (i.e. capable of conducting a client interview in the language) preferred but not required.

To apply, please send both a resume and a cover letter in a single pdf. Incomplete applications will not be considered. We will ask for a writing sample and references prior to an interview. To start on or soon after December 28, 2026.

NYLAG’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

NYLAG is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. People of color, women, people with disabilities, immigrants, veterans, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, and those with lived experiences in the communities we serve are strongly encouraged to apply.

Employment type:

☒ Full-time

Professional Level:

☒ Entry Level

☒ Professional

Salary Range: NYLAG is a unionized workplace, and salaries are set pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement and are not negotiable on an individual basis. The salary range for this position is $90,262 to $100,532. The law graduate salary is $87,994.

Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, 401k, life insurance, long term disability, commuter benefits, flexible spending accounts (FSA) for Medical and Dependent care.

Application Instructions: Please save resume and cover letter on one pdf.

NYLAG is committed to a hybrid work policy for staff whose work does not require their full-time presence in the office. NYLAG’s current policy is that most staff are required to work in NYLAG’s offices or do other in-person work at least two days each week. This policy is subject to change.

Medical, dental, vision, 401k, life insurance, long term disability, commuter benefits, flexible spending accounts (FSA) for Medical and Dependent care.