Supervising Attorney: Housing Justice

TakeRoot Justice seeks applicants for the position of Supervising Attorney on our Housing Justice team.

About TakeRoot Justice’s Housing Justice Team:

We are a diverse team of 15 attorneys and advocates working with community organizers, tenant associations, and coalitions across New York City to help tenants fight harassment, obtain repairs, and resist the pressures of gentrification and displacement.

We are committed to our mission of dismantling racial, economic, and social oppression. TakeRoot Justice encourages applications from people with diverse backgrounds including women, people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ people, people from low-income backgrounds, and people with personal experience with the criminal justice system. We strongly encourage applicants with lived experience in the communities we serve.

Our legal strategies typically center affirmative litigation on behalf of tenant associations (e.g. rent strikes, 7-A and HP proceedings, intervention in bankruptcy and foreclosure cases, and rent overcharge claims). We also defend tenants against eviction and from attacks on their right to organize.

Our non-litigation work includes developing campaign strategies in collaboration with community organizers, training organizers and community leaders on tenants’ rights issues, drafting legislation and policy proposals, lobbying elected officials, participating in tenant meetings, and conducting legal clinics.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The Supervising Attorney will work with the Housing Director and the Supervising Paralegal/Advocacy Coordinator to supervise and manage the Housing Justice Team.

Primary responsibilities include:

• Supervision of attorneys, paralegals, volunteers, and interns on the Housing Justice Team, including regular and as-needed one-to-one check-ins and consults, in-person support during court appearances, review of written work, keeping the team abreast of developments in the fields of tenant law and the housing movement, and collecting and developing resource materials
• Supporting and participating in TakeRoot’s legal assistance to community groups and their members, including affirmative litigation behalf of tenant associations (e.g. HP actions, rent strikes and 7-A proceedings), and individual eviction defense
• Training and mentoring staff to ensure professional development and competency in the work being performed
  • Monitoring the performance of work within the practice area to ensure compliance with contract and grant requirements and best outcomes for clients and partner groups.
• Participating in TakeRoot’s management team together with other practice-area managers and the Executive Director
• Providing training to community groups and their members on tenants’ rights issues
• Participating in legislative and/or regulatory advocacy with partner organizations
• Coordination of and participation in legal clinics and workshops
• Developing and maintaining, together with staff, relationships with community-based partners throughout New York City

Qualifications:

• J.D. from an accredited law school and admission to the New York State Bar (or eligibility for reciprocal admission)
• At least five years of relevant experience in housing law and/or provision of direct legal services
• Eagerness to work with a diverse client base on individual and group litigation
• Demonstrated commitment to economic and racial justice and the housing justice movement in New York City
• Professional and/or personal experience working with diverse communities and across lines of difference
• Commitment to working in partnership with community organizers and developing creative lawyering strategies to support tenant organizing
• Excellent writing, research, analytical and communication skills
• Commitment to the supervisor’s own growth and learning
• Demonstrated ability to critically examine how power and privilege shape our legal work, our clients’ experiences, and our relationships with one another, and experience developing and applying strategies to address those dynamics

The Ideal Candidate Will Have:

• Experience in a supervisory, management or other leadership role
• Substantial experience litigating in affirmative and defensive landlord-tenant matters in the New York City and State courts
• Experience with legislative and/or regulatory advocacy
• Experience with community organizing or working in support of organizing campaigns
• Professional competency in a second language that is used by our client communities, including Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Russian, Arabic, or Bangla
• Experience working in a unionized workplace

Not sure you meet 100% of our criteria? Research shows that men apply for jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, yet women and other people who are systematically marginalized tend to apply only if they meet every requirement. If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply.

Expected salary range: $90,990 to $104,050 depending on experience and qualifications.

TakeRoot provides comprehensive benefits, remote work opportunities, and a generous vacation & leave package.

TakeRoot provides comprehensive benefits, remote work opportunities, and a generous vacation & leave package.

Professional competency in a second language that is used by our client communities, including Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Russian, Arabic, or Bangla desired.