Position: Oregon Law Center (OLC) seeks a bilingual (Spanish/English) staff attorney to provide civil legal services to low-income farmworker clients on matters related to their status as farmworkers. The position is based in Hillsboro, Oregon and serves farmworkers statewide.
About Us: OLC is a legal services program committed to achieving justice for the low-income communities of Oregon by providing a full range of the highest quality civil legal services. OLC does not receive funding from the federal Legal Services Corporation. OLC operates eleven regional offices, a state support unit, legislative advocacy unit, and statewide farmworker program. OLC works closely with Legal Aid Services of Oregon and other partners in Oregon’s coordinated civil legal services delivery system.
OLC’s Hillsboro Farmworker office comprises three attorneys (including one managing attorney) and a community educator/outreach worker and is part of a larger Farmworker Program. The Farmworker Program sets priorities according to client need; current priorities include employment, occupational safety and health, housing, and civil rights. The majority of our clients speak Spanish or one of the indigenous languages native to Mexico and Central America, such as Mixteco, Triqui, Zapoteco and Akateco. They experience a wide variety of legal problems, including unpaid wages, inadequate housing, exposure to pesticides, sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination, and retaliation for asserting their rights.
Responsibilities: The staff attorney will handle litigation with a significant emphasis on impact work in state and federal courts. An important component of this position is to engage in intensive community outreach and education together with community educators involving educational presentations to farmworkers and community-based groups. This position requires meeting and interviewing farmworkers outside of normal business hours. Attorneys in the Farmworker Program work irregular hours, frequently travel during the daytime and occasionally overnight, and conduct home visits and other outreach to clients in the evenings, often in remote areas of the state.
Requirements:
• Demonstrated proficiency in spoken and written Spanish.
• Demonstrated commitment to justice for low-income communities.
• A high degree of initiative and ability to independently manage a caseload.
• Desire and ability to work successfully as part of a team.
• Demonstrated ability to take direction and guidance from low-income clients and their
self-identified priorities and work for solutions within the legal process.
• Excellent written and verbal advocacy skills.
• Strong interpersonal communication skills, a sense of humor, and a positive attitude.
• Willingness to work irregular hours to meet the needs of clients.
Preferences:
• Admission to Oregon Bar, or reciprocal eligibility for admission.
• Zero to ten years of experience.
• Experience representing low-income clients, especially farmworkers.
• Experience with complex, impact litigation.
Application: Position open until filled. To apply, please submit your resume, cover letter, a description of your Spanish proficiency and list of three references to Julie Samples, Managing Attorney, Hillsboro Farmworker Office, [email protected] or 230 NE Second Ave, Suite D, Hillsboro, Oregon 97124.