Organization: LAF
Fellowship: Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps
For the past 50 years, LAF has provided people living in poverty in metropolitan Chicago with comprehensive free legal services to resolve non-criminal issues. Each year, LAF’s more than 80 full-time attorneys and support staff help resolve civil legal problems, including consumer fraud, foreclosure, unfair evictions, domestic violence, and many others. LAF’s work helps about 35,000 people annually.
Under this announcement, LAF will host a fellow over two years as part of the Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps. The fellowship should begin on or about June 1, 2018 and end May/June 2020.
The Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps is a legal fellowship program designed to increase capacity and access to civil legal help for crime victims. A cohort of approximately sixty fellows are placed at nonprofit organizations across the country to provide direct representation to victims of crimes, including human trafficking, fraud/identity theft, campus sexual assault, and hate crime, and immigrant victims of crime with meritorious claims for immigration relief, and outreach and education to community partners. All fellows will incorporate crime victims’ rights enforcement into their practice and will receive training from the National Crime Victim Law Institute and other training and technical assistance providers.
This program is supported by an award from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, Award Number 2017-MU-MU-K131, and private funding.
The fellow will be supervised by LAF and based in Chicago, Illinois.
Fellowship Description
The Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps Fellow will:
• Provide direct legal services to human trafficking survivors to address the range of civil legal issues that arise from the victimization
• Provide crime victims’ rights enforcement
• Conduct outreach and education activities, provide referrals, and leverage pro bono resources
• Contribute to programmatic reporting required under the federal award
• Collaborate with other Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps Fellows
• Actively participate in mandatory in-person training programs including two-day Crime Victims Justice Corps Victim Law Boot Camp training on June 28-29, 2018 in Washington, DC; learning event at the end of the Fellowship; annual three-day Equal Justice Works Leadership Development Training in October/November 2018 and 2019 in Washington, DC; and training calls with the National Crime Victim Law Institute
• Work with a variety of survivors from diverse backgrounds, including low-wage workers, immigrants, migrant farmworkers, short-term visa holders, citizens, non-citizens, and other individuals.
• Refer clients to case management services
• Provide internal referrals to LAF staff on related legal issues to provide comprehensive legal services to clients
• Seek pro bono counsel for discreet legal issues
Qualifications
The ideal candidate will possess the following qualifications:
• Licensed to practice law
• A demonstrated commitment to public interest work and desire to assist crime victims
• Strong writing, communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills
• An ability to provide victim-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally competent legal assistance to crime victims/survivors
• An ability to work collaboratively in a variety of contexts and with multiple organizations to facilitate comprehensive services to crime victims/survivors
• Ability to begin the fellowship by on or about June 1, 2018 and serve for 2 years
• Those with legal experience in crime victims’ rights enforcement and victim service are strongly encouraged to apply
• Law school clinic, externship, summer or other relevant practice experience a plus
• Strong or fluent Spanish skills that enable working without an interpreter are required
• Prior immigration law experience a plus
Salary and other support
The Fellow will receive an annual salary, health insurance, dental insurance, a low-cost vision plan, and position-related travel cost reimbursements.
Application Instructions
• Send cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information for two professional references, by e-mail, to: [email protected]. Put the phrase “IWR Practice Group – Equal Justice Works Fellow” in the subject line of the e-mail. No phone calls, please.
• The deadline for applications is May 18, 2018.
• LAF is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, age, disability or veteran status.