ABOUT PUBLIC COUNSEL
Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy. Founded on and strengthened by a pro bono legal service model, our staff and volunteers seek justice through direct legal services, promote healthy and resilient communities through education and outreach, and support community-led efforts to transform unjust systems through litigation and policy advocacy in and beyond Los Angeles.
Public Counsel operates eight legal projects: Children’s Rights, Community Development, Consumer Rights & Economic Justice, Homelessness Prevention, Immigrants’ Rights, Veterans’ Rights, the Gender Justice Project, and our impact litigation project, Opportunity Under Law.
Public Counsel has a full-time staff of over 150. We are committed to building a diverse staff and encourage applications from people of color, people with disabilities, and people of all gender identities, gender expressions, and sexualities.
ABOUT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
Public Counsel’s Community Development Project (CDP) strives to build healthy, inclusive, economically stable communities through the delivery of pro bono legal services to community-based coalitions, nonprofits, and small businesses in Los Angeles County.
CDP also supports community led advocacy groups and community based organizations in their efforts to advance racial and economic justice and build power in low-income communities and communities of color. CDP assists these groups in their efforts to maintain a strong voice in the development of their communities by providing legal assistance and policy support. Further, CDP advocates for the creation and preservation of affordable and supportive housing and provides transactional legal services to nonprofits that assist lower income people and neighborhoods and to qualifying entrepreneurs that meet our income requirements.
Since 2011, CDP has worked directly with low-income street vendors and community based organizations working with street vendors to advance economic inclusion and opportunity. Our work has contributed to groundbreaking policy victories, such as Senate Bills 946 and 972, which decriminalized street vending, established standards for local regulations across California, and updated the state’s retail food code to make it easier for food vendors to obtain health permits, as well as the legalization of street vending in Los Angeles and other cities across L.A. County. We have also provided trainings, seminars, and legal clinics to help vendors understand their rights, navigate permitting procedures, and address citations.
JOB SUMMARY
The Staff Attorney must be passionate about achieving justice and overcoming barriers facing low-income communities and communities of color, a creative and zealous lawyer and a team-player, and committed to achieving lasting results through a movement lawyering model. The Staff Attorney will be responsible for providing legal assistance to low-income street vendors and micro-entrepreneurs, advancing and supporting inclusive vending and small business policies, and participating in state and local coalitions. The Staff Attorney will also support our housing justice work through participation in policy advocacy and impact litigation.
Specifically, the Staff Attorney will:
ABOUT PUBLIC COUNSEL
Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy…
Public Counsel offers a competitive benefits package including:
Generous paid time off (per year):
Additional benefits:
· 37.5 hour work week for all full-time employees
Public Counsel offers a competitive benefits package including:
HOW TO APPLY
We value lived experiences and experiences working with clients across a range of settings. Please consider discussing such experiences in your cover letter, especially if they are not reflected in your resume.
PUBLIC COUNSEL VACCINATION POLICY AND COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
Public Counsel requires vaccination against COVID-19 for all employees, including new hires. Pursuant to federal and state laws, Public Counsel will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities or sincerely held religious beliefs, unless doing so would pose an undue hardship.
Public Counsel is generally office-based, but remote work has been permitted during the pandemic. All employees with Public Counsel are required to work in the office at least one day per week, at the discretion of the head of department. This policy is subject to redesign by leadership. Public Counsel will work in a manner consistent with public health and local and state emergency orders.
PUBLIC COUNSEL EEO POLICY
Public Counsel is an Equal Opportunity Employer that does not discriminate against employees or prospective employees on the basis of union membership or activity, race, religious creed, religious observance, ethnicity, color, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information or predisposition, military service, military and veteran status, pregnancy, child birth and related medical conditions, marital and family status, national origin, ancestry, age, medical conditions as defined by state or federal law, or disability, or any other basis prohibited by law.
All qualified applicants with criminal histories will be considered in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring.
Our leadership team is dedicated to this policy with respect to recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, transfer, training, compensation, benefits, employee activities discipline, discharge and general treatment during employment.
HOW TO APPLY
We value lived experiences and experiences working with clients across a range of settings. Please consider discussing such experiences in your cover letter…