Attorney IV-VI Public Defender's Office - Mental Health Division

Minimum Requirements

Education and Experience:
Attorney IV: J.D./LL.B. from an accredited law school AND 4 years of licensed attorney work experience.
Attorney V: J.D./LL.B. from an accredited law school AND 6 years of licensed attorney work experience.
Attorney VI: J.D./LL.B. from an accredited law school AND 8 years of licensed attorney work experience.

Licenses, Registrations, Certifications, or Special Requirements:
Licensed to practice law in the State of Texas. May consider deferred start date for highly qualified candidates immediately eligible to waive into the Texas Bar using the Admission without Examination (AWOX) process or Uniform Bar Examination (UBE) transfer process (offer contingent on successful admission).
Please attach your resume to the application.

Preferred:
Applications with a cover letter detailing interest in the position, including why you want to work for the Travis County Public Defender’s Office, are strongly preferred.
Recent legal writing sample.
Hearing and trial experience consistent with years of practice.
Ability to fluently speak and write in Spanish.
Mission-aligned experience (work or lived) advocating on behalf of people/communities directly impacted by the criminal/immigration/indigent/civil legal systems.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Knowledge of:
Jurisprudence, criminal and civil law, and procedures, including constitutional and statutory law.
Applicable law at the intersection of mental health and disabilities and the criminal legal system.
Federal, State, Local, and County applicable laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines, including those requiring the confidential handling of certain protected health information.
Enmeshed penalties and collateral consequences triggered by involvement or contact with the criminal-legal system.
Best practices in socially and culturally competent representation of marginalized people.
Effective techniques for presentation of cases in court, as well as effectively presenting facts and precedents verbally and in writing in law-related matters.
Policies, practices, procedures, and legal terminology related to the court system.
Computer equipment includes word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and various software packages.
Business letter writing, grammar and punctuation, and report preparation.
Skill in:
Effective communication with individuals across a continuum of communication styles, abilities, backgrounds, presentations, and circumstances.
Appraisal and analysis of facts, law, policy, and procedures.
Problem-solving and decision-making.
Verbal and written communication, including presentations, negotiations, court, and meetings.
Synthesizing complex information, effectively communicating complex information, choices, and decisions to others.
Advocacy through collaboration, negotiation, and litigation.
Ability to:
Exercise sound judgment.
Communicate effectively across lines of difference with others.
Conduct legal research and analysis, both manually and electronically.
Present facts, precedents, and arguments verbally and in writing, and apply negotiation skills.
Communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.
Work independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team.
Manage time effectively and perform multiple tasks while organizing diverse activities.
Work well under pressure and exercise tact in trying situations.
Establish and maintain effective working relationships with departmental clientele, representatives of outside agencies, other County employees and officials, and the general public.