Senior Staff Attorney, Criminal Defense Practice

The Center for Family Representation’s (CFR) Criminal Defense practice represents parents involved in the family regulation system in Manhattan, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island who are also facing concurrent criminal charges in Criminal and Supreme Courts.

Under the supervision and guidance of CFR’s Attorney in Charge of Criminal Defense, the Criminal Defense Senior Staff Attorney’s primary responsibility will be to represent clients on their concurrent criminal cases, in all of the boroughs in which CFR has a Family Defense Practice. This position will have additional professional development opportunities, including supervision of staff attorneys and interns, and could also include increased training opportunities and responsibilities, recruitment and management of CFR’s legal internships, working with supervisors and executive staff on strategic planning, policy work, overall management and improvement of the practice. All senior staff are expected to demonstrate an aptitude for productive problem-solving, a commitment to CFR’s current DEI work, and a desire to contribute to the stewardship of CFR; this includes the ability to positively and productively contribute to the work culture at CFR in communications and work with staff at all levels, including progressive discipline where necessary. Senior Staff may supervise one to two attorneys, so prior supervisory experience, even if informal, is preferred.

The candidate should expect to:

Represent CFR clients on retained “take over” misdemeanor and felony cases;

Coordinate voluntary surrenders with NYPD and be able to appear in Criminal Court for the client’s arraignment, including the possibility of a night court arraignment appearance

• Supervise one to two staff attorneys in CFR’s Criminal Defense Practice

Support CFR Criminal Defense team as needed;

Support CFR’s Attorney in Charge of Criminal Defense with other projects including policy and communications advocacy;

Collaborate with CFR’s practice areas, including, but not limited to Immigration, Youth Defense and Family Defense practices areas;

Stay abreast of rapidly changing criminal laws and procedures;

Respond to all inquiries sent to CFR’s Criminal Defense practice on designated “on-call” days;

Conduct community education, training and outreach, and promote the work of CFR and

CFR’s Criminal Defense practice;

Promptly maintain data in our case management system and client legal notes; and

Assist with the continued growth and improvement of CFR’s Criminal Defense practice.

Qualifications

Candidates for Criminal Defense Senior Staff Attorney should have at least five to seven years experience, including substantial criminal law litigation and felony jury trial experience; strong client counseling skills; the ability to model best practices; and a willingness and aptitude for taking on an additional leadership and managerial role at CFR. Candidates for senior staff also need to be well organized in order to work efficiently and effectively beyond their own caseload and will be expected to work collaboratively with staff from the Family Defense, Immigration, Civil Legal Services and Youth Defense Practice. This is the ideal position for a professional who enjoys taking initiative and developing best practices in a new program and who enjoys the exhilaration and challenges of a growing endeavor.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate strong interpersonal and communication skills, an ability to work as part of a team and a desire to share in both the exhilaration and challenges of a growing endeavor. Candidates bilingual in Spanish or French are strongly encouraged to apply.

Salary Range: $106,100 (L5) - $130,100 (L15)

Apply

Interested internal candidates should apply via Paycom. Candidates should apply through CFR’s Career Portal.

In lieu of a cover letter, applicants should respond, in 500 words or less, to the following prompt:

1. CFR’s Core Purpose is to ensure that every family has an equal and meaningful opportunity to stay together, by empowering parents to work through their challenges and build a positive future for their children. What role should a criminal defense Senior Staff Attorney play in helping CFR to meet this purpose?

Spanish and/ or French fluency appreciated