Staff Attorney or Senior Attorney

Position Summary

The Youth Law Center (YLC) is excited to announce that we’re seeking a full-time Staff Attorney or Senior Attorney to help drive our work on behalf of youth in the foster care and juvenile justice systems. Candidates for this position should have some prior advocacy experience with youth-serving systems and a current California bar license or willingness to obtain California licensure. (Note that YLC is an eligible legal aid organization in California, for applicants who may wish to seek permission from the California State Bar to practice in the state as a Registered Legal Aid Attorney (RLAA) in lieu of full bar admission.)

The Attorney will join a collaborative team of other attorneys and advocates working to advance YLC’s broader advocacy agenda. The portfolio of work for this position will be shaped by organizational priorities and the successful candidate’s prior experience and expertise, and may include work related to education, mental health and behavioral health access, public benefits, housing, healthy transitions to adulthood, and other issues affecting systems-impacted youth.

A significant area of focus may include systems reform and policy advocacy addressing how technology, digital platforms, data systems, and artificial intelligence affect young people’s access to services, benefits, education, legal protections, and community-based opportunities. YLC is interested not simply in the effects of technology on young people, but in ensuring that public systems use technology in ways that expand access, reduce barriers, and create meaningful opportunity.

While responsibilities will vary depending on whether the successful candidate enters at the Staff Attorney or Senior Attorney level, the position will involve efforts such as:

• Supporting CA civil legal aid providers through technical assistance, training, and advocacy support to address the individual legal needs of youth impacted by systems and their families;
• Supporting community advocates, organizers, and directly-impacted young people and their families in their efforts to address the unique needs of systems-impacted children, youth, and young adults, with a focus on ensuring that, whenever possible, young people have every opportunity to live in the community with family with appropriate supports;
• Conducting advocacy at the local, state, and systems levels on issues affecting systems-impacted youth, including the role of technology, access to mental health and other community-based services, and related priorities;
• Educating stakeholders on new legal and policy opportunities to better meet the needs of systems-impacted youth;
• Collaborating across YLC’s legal, policy, and program teams to advance organization-wide advocacy goals; and
• Using a variety of tools—such as litigation, legislation, media, and narrative change work—to improve outcomes for students impacted by the foster care and juvenile justice systems.

Location: This is a remote position to be performed at home from a location within the continental United States. Some travel to locations within California and/or regionally within the candidate’s area of residence will be required.

About YLC’s Advocacy

Attorneys at YLC use a variety of traditional and creative advocacy strategies, including policy advocacy; litigation; legislative and administrative/regulatory work; collaborative systems-reform campaigns; public education and media advocacy; legal and non-legal writing; training; and technical assistance. Our advocacy approach is grounded in the belief that those most directly impacted by systems are best positioned to transform them. As advocates, we seek out the spaces and places where we can hear from those young people and their families and offer them the support they need to lift up the vision they have for change. We believe that change comes from deeply listening to young people and the organizations that support them; helping them to translate their ideas into practice and policy change; and working in partnership to advance a new narrative about what’s needed to transform systems.

Our broad advocacy goals include:

• Ending the incarceration of youth and reimagining new approaches to youth justice;
• Ending the use of congregate care for youth in foster care and juvenile justice and ensuring youth receive excellent parenting in families in their own communities;
• Improving access to education, including postsecondary education, for system-involved youth;
• Ensuring healthy transitions to adulthood for system-involved youth and access to needed services to make that transition; and
• Advocating for improved conditions in foster care and juvenile justice systems.

Attorneys on our legal team also engage in strategic collaboration with our non-attorney advocacy staff who work on a variety of systems-reform efforts, including YLC’s national Quality Parenting Initiative and the Pathways to Higher Education Project.

Who We’re Looking For

We want to hear from attorneys with a strong commitment to advocating on behalf of youth impacted by the foster care and juvenile justice systems, experience with advocacy in foster care, juvenile justice, education, health, youth homelessness or a related area, and excitement about a movement-based lawyering approach. More specifically, we’re looking for team members who embrace our advocacy values and who are able to develop advocacy strategies, communicate effectively within and outside of the YLC team, build partnerships, create high-quality written products, and exercise their advocacy skills in areas including litigation, policy, and training.

People of color and individuals who have lived experience in the foster care, juvenile justice, or youth homelessness systems are strongly encouraged to apply.

Skills & Experience

The list below represents what we believe to be the most important skills and experience needed for someone to be successful in this position. However, we recognize that women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ folks, and other historically economically marginalized people tend to self-select out of applying for positions if they don’t meet 100% of the listed qualifications. We encourage you to apply if you’re enthusiastic about this role, even if you aren’t sure you meet every single criterion on this list.

Staff Attorney Level

• A minimum of one year of post-law school experience as a practicing attorney
• Experience using a variety of advocacy strategies, such as litigation, direct service, and/or policy advocacy

Senior Attorney Level

• A minimum of five years’ post-law school experience as a practicing attorney
• Prior experience with project coordination, leading small project teams, and/or supervising staff
• Experience developing and executing a variety of advocacy strategies, such as litigation, direct service, policy advocacy, training and public education, and/or strategic communications

All Levels

• Current active bar license or willingness to obtain California licensure, either by passing the California bar exam or applying for RLAA status
• Demonstrated ability as an advocate in juvenile justice, foster care, education, health, youth homelessness, or a closely-related field
• Substantive experience and knowledge of civil legal practices impacting systems-involved youth, including education, public benefits, health access, housing, foster care entries and extended care, and others
• Interest in and ability to engage with emerging issues related to technology, digital systems, data use, and artificial intelligence as they affect systems-impacted youth’s access to education, benefits, services, legal protections, and opportunity; familiarity with AI tools or governance issues is helpful but not required
• Creativity and thoughtfulness in challenging the status quo
• Ability to think strategically and analytically and to identify policy issues
• Excellent interpersonal, listening, and communication skills, including the ability to facilitate, write persuasively and clearly, and to build strong partnerships and coalitions
• Experience and ability to communicate and collaborate with diverse groups of people, including families and youth (especially older youth with lived experience) and a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace
• Deep commitment to elevating the voices of young people impacted by the foster care and juvenile justice systems and the voices of the organizations that work on their behalf
• Capacity to take initiative on identified goals, manage multiple tasks simultaneously, work independently, and meet deadlines
• Flexibility and adaptability in response to changing priorities and circumstances
• Ability to work individually and collaborate effectively with others in a fully remote environment
• Ability to travel regularly for a variety of meetings, events, and other activities

About the Youth Law Center

YLC’s mission is to transform foster care and juvenile justice systems across the nation so every child and youth can thrive. Our goal is to ensure that, whenever a system must intervene in the life of a child, that child will receive the supports, services, and excellent parenting they need to become a flourishing adult. YLC’s specific, actionable, and sustainable advocacy strategies are shaped by the voices of youth and families most impacted by these systems and are informed by research in child development, psychology, behavioral economics, marketing and branding, and adult learning. The YLC team reflects the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and skills needed to make our creative approach to advocacy successful. Find out more about us at ylc.org and qpi4kids.org.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment.

Equal Opportunity Employer

YLC values a diverse, inclusive workforce, and we provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. All qualified applicants for employment will be considered without regard to an individual’s actual or perceived race, color, sex, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, body size, hair style, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, neurotypicality, medical condition, family care status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local laws.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Read our full DEI statement here.

Paid Time Off: Unlimited paid vacation, 13 accrued sick days, and 11+ paid holidays annually; paid parental leave available

Health & Pre-tax Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, long-term disability, and life insurance; EAP; healthcare and dependent care FSA plans; pre-tax commuter benefits plan; 401k with up to 4% employer match (no vesting period). Health plan premiums are currently 100% employer-paid for staff and all enrolled family members.

Other Benefits: Multi-state bar license reimbursement; remote workstation equipment & furniture subsidies for ergonomic needs; remote work expense reimbursement; flexible scheduling.