Legal Assistant

LEGAL ASSISTANT

King County, Washington

At-Home Office

Full-time, Non-Exempt

Spanish Fluency Required

POSITION SUMMARY:

LCYC seeks a collaborative and well-organized team player, committed to social justice and anti-racism, to join us as instrumental support to furthering our mission and expanding access to justice for young people in Washington.

We are looking for a highly motivated, detail-oriented, confident, flexible, independent, organized person with strong interpersonal skills to support our team. The position includes comprehensive and interesting work tied to every aspect of LCYC’s holistic direct legal services work including: intakes with youth, opening and closing cases, data collecting and reporting, youth support, scheduling meetings, drafting letters and pleadings, legal research and attending team meetings. This individual will work with different teams as needed and will support attorneys in their work advocating for the youth.

The assistant may help young people on a wide range of civil legal issues, mostly focused on assisting the Youth Homelessness Program in King County with intake and attorney support. It may include assisting youth in dependencies, orders of protection, minor guardianship, housing access, eviction prevention, record-sealing, legal financial obligations, name and gender marker changes, emancipations, and public benefits. Applicants do not need existing expertise in these legal areas, but they do need to arrive at LCYC with a commitment to continual learning and ability to pivot as needed. Fluency in Spanish for this position is required.

The person in this position will most likely experience secondary trauma. They will work with youth that have endured significant trauma and will need to work sensitively with their stories. Additionally, they will be supporting multiple attorneys that have demanding caseloads, and the practice may be in different counties, languages and types of matters. A plan on how to manage this trauma is highly desirable. However, we are part of a team, supporting one another and figuring out complex situations as they appear.

LCYC is a virtual non-profit and does not have a shared office space. All staff work from home. This position works mostly in King County and will provide support statewide to multiple attorneys working in many counties.

COMMITMENT TO INCLUSIVITY, EQUITY AND REPRESENTATION:

LCYC is an equal opportunity employer committed to having a diverse staff and board reflective of the communities we serve. We strongly encourage applications from people of color, those with lived experience, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and other underrepresented and historically marginalized groups. LCYC particularly values lived experience in our practice areas of child welfare, juvenile justice, youth and family immigration, and youth homelessness.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:

This is a full-time non-exempt position that requires a willingness to work some evenings and weekends, as well as occasional travel within the state.

The hourly range for the position is $31.25 - $39.13 (for 0-5 years’ experience).

Supportive benefits include but are not limited to Paid Time Off (“PTO”), Paid Sick Safe Time (“PSST”), medical, dental, and disability insurance, 403(b) plan, and paid home office needs such as laptop computer, cell phone, stand-up desk, and printer.

Travel for work is compensated at the Federal reimbursement rate.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• 2-5 years experience as a legal assistant or equivalent.

• Demonstrated commitment to LCYC’s mission of protecting the interest and safety of youth in Washington by advancing their legal rights.

• Commitment to and demonstrated interest in engaging in culturally competent relationships and applying an anti-racist lens to program operations, community partnerships, and supporting young people.

• Must physically live in Washington state and be able to travel within and around King county

• Must be trustworthy and hold the confidence of staff and clients.

• Detail oriented, able to learn quickly, strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

• Demonstrated interest and ability in working with youth and families of diverse racial, cultural, socio-economic backgrounds and inspire their confidence.

• Willingness and ability to learn and utilize case management and software systems necessary for a remote office environment, following LCYC’s standards of practice.

• Highly organized with ability to prioritize and simultaneously maintain multiple projects.

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills by phone, email, and in-person. Ability to communicate in a developmentally appropriate manner with youth.

• High level of professionalism and the ability to maintain confidentiality.

• Ability to follow instructions, follow through with assignments and anticipate issues that may arise.

• Demonstrated Intermediate skills in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Internet navigation.

• Ability to be flexible and adaptable, adjusting to the needs of LCYC, youth and community.

• Ability to work independently and be self-motivated.

• Ability to track time, data and outcomes, and produce reports.

• Ability to be transparent and own one’s mistakes and learn from past mistakes.

• Ability to adapt to a fast paced, ever-changing environment and carry a positive attitude.

• Ability to maintain composure in stressful situations, such as competing deadlines and communicating with clients in crisis.

• Understands the effects of vicarious trauma and the importance of work balance and boundaries to support well-being.

• Committed to continual learning and responsive to feedback.

• Fluency in Spanish is required.

JOB DUTIES:

The Legal Assistant will take on a range of duties including, but not limited to the list below. The position will adapt to the needs of the organization and the community.

Anti-Racism and being part of a team

• Move forward with LCYC in our ongoing work to become an anti-racist organization.

• Regularly participate in all staff meetings, trainings, and identity group conversations on equity, systemic racism, and anti-racism.

• Participate in weekly team meetings, general staff monthly meetings and an annual retreat with all LCYC staff, some of which may be in person.

Data

• Track time and pertinent case data in LCYC’s case management system, following LCYC’s standards of practice.

• Manage intakes: Open cases, run conflict checks, upload forms, provide information to assigned attorney and coordinate with supervising attorneys.

• Monitor case management system to verify that all fields are completed correctly. If not, work with attorneys to close out cases with complete data.

• Collaborate to increase efficiency in data review, analysis, and reporting.

Scheduling and Communications

• Schedule meetings, work with staff to set agendas and provide notes.

• Support all attorneys in scheduling meetings with clients. Communicate with clients regarding scheduling and provide attorney support.

• Answer the intake line and direct the caller appropriately.

• Monitor the intake email and respond with resources, information, or direct to the referral form.

Youth and Young Adult Supports

• Manage direct referrals from youth and conduct brief intakes.

• Work with partners and attorneys as needed to reach or reconnect with young people.

• Build awareness of legal and nonlegal community resources by updating resource lists and data regularly.

• Participate in trainings to continually improve the advocacy provided to the youth LCYC serves.

Attorney Support

• Draft pleadings, releases of information, letters, etc.

• Direct contact with clients, courts and outside professionals.

• Draft letters and be main contact in some communications.

• Provide basic research and synthesize facts.

• Support attorneys in multiple counties on a wide-range of legal issues.

• Research and learn how to file in multiple courts in multiple counties.

• File legal documents in multiple counties and pull documents in court files as needed.

ABOUT LCYC:

LCYC protects the interests and safety of youth in Washington by advancing their legal rights. We accomplish our mission through direct legal representation, strong community partnerships, and systemic advocacy. We have four program areas: child welfare, juvenile court, youth and family immigration, and youth homelessness.

LCYC provides community-based, holistic legal advocacy to expand access to justice for young people in Washington. LCYC was created and continues to evolve in response to the community’s needs. We meet youth where they are—geographically, developmentally, emotionally, culturally, and linguistically. We collaborate with the youth, family members, educators, service providers, and other community partners to ensure that the legal and non-legal needs of the youth are met.

LCYC empowers youth by helping them understand and engage in complex legal systems that impact their lives and their families. We help youth understand and assess legal issues, options, potential consequences, and opportunities, before the youth determines the path forward.

LCYC is a team of supportive, creative, risk-taking, and flexible attorneys seeking to disrupt the status quo. We are committed to continual learning. An essential part of that learning must be centered on anti-racism within ourselves, our organization, and the systems we encounter as advocates for young people. We are willing to fail forward, make mistakes and learn, and embrace change.

TO APPLY:

Before submitting your application, please check LCYC’s website (https://lcycwa.org/careers) to make sure that this position is still open. Please submit a letter of interest, resume, and list of three references to LCYC’s Director of Legal Services, Chach Duarte White (she/her/ella) via email at chach@lcycwa.org.

For your application to be considered, please include a response to the following question in your cover letter:

For your application to be considered, include a response to the following question in your cover

letter:

• How do you think your personal background or experiences, professional or otherwise,

have prepared you to contribute to our commitment to anti-racism and equity internally

and externally?

Applications will be reviewed upon receipt. We hope to hire as soon as possible. The position will be left open until filled.