Job Board

Organization Overview:
Lakeshore Legal Aid serves low-income people, seniors, and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in a holistic manner to address clients’ legal issues and improve our communities. Lakeshore provides free direct legal representation in southeast Michigan and the thumb and client intake, advice, and brief legal services throughout Michigan via our attorney-staffed hotline. Our practice areas include housing, family, consumer, elder, education, and public benefits law.
Position Overview:
Lakeshore Legal Aid is seeking dedicated lawyers who will provide quality legal representation to families at risk of child removal in the Juvenile Division of Third Circuit Court. Staff attorneys will be responsible for representing clients in a holistic manner to achieve clients’ goals through advocacy including litigation. In addition to individual client representation, staff attorneys are expected to be active in the community through participation in outreach and community organizations. Staff attorneys will treat clients, co-workers, and others with dignity and respect.
General Task Areas:
• Provide timely civil legal services to low-income and senior clients and client groups through representation in trial courts, appellate courts and other forums, through litigation, advice, negotiation, drafting and review of legal documents, referrals and administrative advocacy.
• Serve the clients in a holistic and client centered manner.
• Develop an expertise in one or more areas of law, if required.
• Promote and maintain civil and professional relationships with coworkers, clients, members of the judicial system, and members of the public with whom they have contact, treating all with dignity and respect.
• Train or mentor other staff in areas of experience.
• Create and/or deliver presentations to community groups on legal services related topics.
• Develop continuing expertise to handle increasingly more complex litigation or other projects.
• Perform other work-related duties as assigned by the supervising attorney, a director, CEO, or a CEO designee.
Qualifications:
• Graduated from an accredited law school.
• Admitted to practice law in the State of Michigan, or an application at the first opportunity for admission by reciprocity, or by taking the first available bar exam.
• Demonstrated interest in the area of poverty law and working with low- income individuals. Able to communicate effectively, be empathetic and understand the diverse clients of the poverty community.
• Ability to deal effectively with all people under difficult circumstances.
• Demonstrable skills in litigation, advocacy, interviewing, and drafting legal documents.
• Demonstrated ability to plan and organize multiple tasks.
• Ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing.

MCILS is an independent commission whose purpose is to provide efficient, high-quality representation to indigent citizens who are entitled to counsel at state expense under the United States Constitution or under the Constitution or statutes of Maine.

MCILS is an independent commission whose purpose is to provide efficient, high-quality representation to indigent citizens who are entitled to counsel at state expense under the United States Constitution or under the Constitution or statutes of Maine.

The Supervising Attorney will be one of four co-supervisors providing overall leadership and vision for Legal Aid’s housing law practice.