Civil Action Practice Right to Counsel Housing Team Director - The Bronx Defenders

The Bronx Defenders (BxD)—an innovative, progressive, holistic indigent defense office in the South Bronx—seeks a leader committed to public defense and housing rights to lead as the Director of our Housing Team.

The Bronx Defenders is a public defender non-profit that is radically transforming how low-income people in the Bronx are represented in the legal system, and, in doing so, is transforming the system itself. BxD seeks thoughtful and creative individuals with a strong commitment to social justice to join our dynamic and diverse staff. Our staff of over 400 includes interdisciplinary teams made up of criminal, civil, immigration, and family defense attorneys, as well as social workers, benefits specialists, legal advocates, parent advocates, investigators, and team administrators, who collaborate to provide holistic advocacy to address the causes and consequences of legal system involvement. Through this integrated team-based structure, we have developed a groundbreaking, nationally-recognized model of representation called holistic defense that achieves better outcomes for the people we defend.

Each year, we defend more than 20,000 low-income Bronx residents in criminal, civil, family, and immigration cases, and reach thousands more through our community intake, youth mentoring, and outreach programs. Through impact litigation, policy advocacy, and community organizing, we push for systemic change at the local, state, and national levels. We take what we learn from the people we represent and communities that we work with and launch innovative initiatives designed to bring about real and lasting change.

Holistic Defense and Enmeshed Civil Consequences

Our Civil Action Practice provides comprehensive civil legal services to clients and their families by integrating civil representation with our Criminal, Family Defense, and Immigration Practices. Our goal is to minimize the severe and often unforeseen fallout from criminal, family, and immigration court proceedings and facilitate the seamless reintegration of the people we represent into the community. Civil Action Practice attorneys and legal advocates represent people in every forum in New York City – administrative, state, and federal – to address these problems and assist our clients in overcoming civil legal barriers to housing, eviction, employment, and public benefits, as well as addressing instances of police misconduct, criminal record errors, and civil forfeiture.

Housing Justice and the Right to Counsel

Reporting to the Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice, the Housing Team Director is responsible for leading our Right To Counsel (RTC) housing team; supervising housing attorneys, advocates, and other staff; and representing a reduced caseload of clients.

Direct Representation 

• Advise, support and defend individuals navigating proceedings related to eviction, termination, barriers to obtaining housing and other housing-related proceedings
• Staff Housing Court intake to provide representation to tenants in Housing Court
• Advise and represent the people we represent in intake with housing related issues
• Represent individuals in negotiations, administrative and judicial proceedings and trials
• Collaborate with advocates, social workers and immigration, criminal and family defense attorneys, to assess and address housing needs of the people we represent and the Bronx community
• Support and staff the Community Housing Helpline
• Participate in community training and public education
• Enter and maintain accurate client data and files, information and notes regarding advocacy and representation in case management system
• Help identify the systemic problems that affect the people we represent while thinking creatively about new strategies and solutions for strategic change 

Direct Supervision 

• Meet with each supervisee on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to evaluate and manage and support caseload, referrals, and client issues
• Review, monitor, and evaluate data entry to ensure high-quality services, evaluate the impact of housing advocacy and meet funding requirements
• Review, and evaluate attorney, advocate, and paralegal workloads to ensure equitable workload distribution
• Observe, evaluate, and provide feedback on client-related advocacy, including written, oral, and trial advocacy in administrative fora, courts, and the community
• Work to provide equitable, culturally conscious supervision, and support marginalized supervisees in navigating experiences of oppression in their work
• Manage coverage for the RTC Housing Team
• Monitor the ethical responsibilities in housing advocacy in conjunction with the Managing Director and CAP Supervisory Team
• Onboard, train, and aid in the ongoing professional development of RTC housing team members
• Promote and facilitate intra-practice and interdisciplinary collaboration among attorneys and non-attorney staff
• Organize and lead housing team meetings 

Supporting and Advancing the Growth of RTC Housing Work 

• Manage intake and referral streams, and devise equitable systems and protocols to organize how we are retained by new clients and how we manage our client housing work for RTC
• Organize and supervise community clinics, and other housing team-led efforts
• Participate in meetings with the Office of Civil Justice, the Human Resource Administration, and other partners regarding our housing work and its expansion
• Participate in campaigns, coalitions, and other working groups to inform RTC about housing
• Conduct staff, community & partner housing trainings
• Work to advance housing policy, communications, organizing, and other strategic reform in collaboration with other practices and departments at BxD 

Programmatic Reporting, Data Collection and Grants Management 

• Ensure accurate and timely data entry for monthly, quarterly and annual housing grants reporting
• Work and meet with CAP’s Practice Associate on a regular basis to ensure timely submission of funding reports, compliance with funding requirements and deliverables and funding renewals
• Stay abreast of funder directed changes and initiatives, and adjust data collection accordingly
• Create systems for capturing data not collected in the BxD case management system
• Assist with collecting referral, intake, community, and case data for housing reporting, fundraising, and policy initiatives 

CAP Management Team 

• Meet regularly with the Managing Director and CAP Supervisory Team
• Inform and implement practice priorities and improvements in collaboration with other supervisors
• Inform the direction of right to counsel in housing work and its growth at BxD

Work to develop and implement housing-related information management systems, trainings, and other public education within the office and the community

To be eligible, candidates must have: 

• Membership in good standing to the New York State Bar or eligibility for admission to the New York State Bar
• Minimum of 4 years of civil litigation experience, including at least two years specifically doing housing litigation work 

Candidates must demonstrate: 

• Experience working in and with racially and ethnically marginalized communities of color targeted by systemic injustice
• Dedication to directly defending people ensnared in family, criminal, civil, and immigration legal systems
• Commitment to fierce advocacy and willingness to strategically challenge authority in defense of clients
• Ability to effectively and respectfully communicate, collaborate, and connect with people with various backgrounds, identities, and experiences
• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively on an interdisciplinary team of lawyers and non-lawyers
• Ability to multitask, maintain order and meet deadlines in a fast-paced, high-stakes environment
• Meticulous attention to detail
• Ability to think critically and creatively in fast-paced settings, finding innovative solutions to unique obstacles
• Strong verbal and written advocacy skills
• Strong analytical skills and capacity to explore non-legal resources and solutions
• Supervisory and mentoring skills, including
  • Interest in and commitment to developing and mentoring supervisees
  • Ability to provide intentional and constructive feedback
  • Flexibility in balancing the needs of supervisees against their own caseload
• Ability to receive constructive feedback, demonstrate introspection, and shift behavior accordingly
• Ability to exercise excellent judgment, discretion, and confidentiality around sensitive issues
• Commitment to raising one’s cultural consciousness and challenging oppressive practices on an interpersonal and institutional level
• Experience supervising and training interns or staff is preferred, but not required 

This is a hybrid position that will require 21 hours/week of in person work or more as needed by clients and staff

Salary is commensurate with experience.  For candidates with 4-10 years of directly relevant experience, the salary range for this position would be approximately $102,000-$123,000 or 20,000 above attorney scale. Full-time employees are also eligible for a comprehensive benefits package including but not limited to medical, dental and vision coverage; a 403(b) plan with employer contribution; and a generous vacation, sick leave, and parental leave policy. More specific information about salary and benefits will be provided when and if an offer is extended.

Approximately 70% of The Bronx Defenders' staff, including attorneys and non-attorneys, are represented by UAW Local 2325 - Association of Legal Aid Attorneys (AFL-CIO). This position is not within the bargaining unit. 

This position is exempt. By law, nonexempt employees are compensated hourly based on their annual rate and therefore are entitled to over-time, whereas exempt employees are not. 

To apply, please click APPLY TO THIS JOB ONLINE and upload your resume and a cover letter in one document. If you would prefer to send in a video or audio statement in lieu of a cover letter, you may upload your resume as a document and separately upload a video or audio statement instead of a cover letter. Your cover letter or video/audio statement should share why you want to do this work at our office, some key lived and/or professional experiences that have prepared you for this position, and any additional information you would like for us to consider. This information allows us to understand your distinct perspective, experience and potential beyond the work history summarized on your resume. Your cover letter may be up to one page if written or up to 3 minutes if an audio/video statement. If selected for the position, your resume will be used to determine your salary based on the number of years of directly relevant professional experience listed; we therefore encourage you to ensure your resume is up to date. Please remember that you may submit a written cover letter or an audio/video statement, but not both, and applications without either will not be considered.

Applications will be accepted through October 7, 2024, but will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Please contact Runa Rajagopal, Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice, via email at runar@bronxdefenders.org with any questions regarding the position.

The Bronx Defenders is an equal opportunity employer and is cultivating an anti-oppressive workplace that embraces staff with a diversity of backgrounds, identities and experiences. We acknowledge the ways in which systemic oppression and injustice can undermine access to professional opportunities and are committed to conducting hiring and promotion processes that are equitable and accessible to those commonly excluded from the workforce. We do not discriminate against and in fact specifically encourage applicants from marginalized communities to apply, including those who are directly impacted by criminal, civil, family and immigration legal systems. We value lived as well as professional experience and particularly welcome applications from the Bronx community that we work with.