ABOUT US:

“It always seems impossible until it's done.” - Nelson Mandela

We believe that even the biggest problems can be broken down into small, achievable steps. Poverty and access to justice are part of the same problem. And to solve this, we just need to discover what the steps are.

At Open Door Legal (ODL), we're pioneering the country's first system of universal access to civil legal representation to dramatically reduce poverty and prove that the law really can belong to all of us.

To achieve this ambitious goal, we've created an award-winning and best-in-class legal aid organization full of passionate, motivated, gritty, thoughtful, and team-oriented people.

We believe that injustice is the heart of poverty and we're looking for someone to join us in having a systemic impact on how we, as a society, ensure justice for all.

OVERVIEW OF POSITION:

We're hiring a civil litigation staff attorney to help us provide critical support to our civil litigation team by assisting with serving our clients in their civil litigation cases filed in SF Superior Court civil department (restraining order, tort, contracts, property damage) and potentially chapter 7 bankruptcy cases. Since the coronavirus pandemic struck the Bay Area and the United States, one thing became eminently clear: that low-income individuals and families are disproportionately affected in times of crisis. Our civil litigation teams work hard to ensure that tenants, homeowners, and consumers are protected by the law and given the opportunity to stay in their homes. 

You should work well in a fast-paced environment. Others describe you as versatile, gritty, and willing to take appropriate risks. Cultural humility is not just conceptual to you, you embody it and commit to growth. Your trauma-informed lawyering demonstrates how you see clients as whole people who are partners in achieving successful legal outcomes. This position would be good for a new attorney who is ready to learn quickly, and willing to represent clients over a very wide variety of subject areas. Thriving in this role requires grit, dynamism, teamwork, care, and passion (our organization's five values).

This position will report directly to the Senior Civil Litigation Attorney. 

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Embody our mission of universal access to civil legal aid and work with the team to make sure that the civil litigation needs of all clients in our service area are met.  
• Own approximately 30-40 civil cases simultaneously while being assisted by other staff attorneys, paralegals and volunteers.
• Facilitate civil intakes across multiple physical Open Door Legal office locations and virtually.  
• Litigate cases at San Francisco Superior Court in the Civil, Restraining Order & Small Claims Appeal departments. Potentially represent clients in the Northern District of CA in bankruptcy cases or other federal causes of action. 
• File, prepare, and ready clients for Civil Harassment Restraining Order hearings and Small Claims hearings.
• Draft pleadings, propound and respond to discovery, and draft motions and briefs. 
• As part of a team, jump in and take intakes and cases in areas of law that are unfamiliar to you. Work quickly on challenging, intellectually interesting, and interpersonally difficult cases.
• Write up and place ODL's litigation cases (in the civil, housing, and employment departments) with pro bono attorneys who want litigation experience. 
• Help keep our knowledge base up to date and actively contribute to creating best practices for the civil department. 
• Provide services and support to our low-income clients with sensitivity and awareness to cultural, socio-economic, and disability barriers to service and skillfully navigate difficult or tense situations. Ensure that the civil law department's client feedback rating continues to be positive. 
• Embrace and embody our values of teamwork, grit, caring, passion, and dynamic.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Membership in good standing with the California State Bar. Applicants without active California bar membership will not be considered. However, those without a license are encouraged to apply to volunteer with us at opendoorlegal.org/volunteer.
• Must have experience appearing in court.
• Strong time management skills and the ability to organize time, manage diverse activities, and meet critical deadlines with minimal supervision
• Excellent writing, editing, research and proofreading skills, with the ability to be detail-oriented.
• Must genuinely enjoy and be motivated by working with low-income clients and be able to work competently with clients impacted by trauma (emotional, mental, and physical).
• Must actively demonstrate cultural humility and sensitivity to barriers low-income residents face when attempting to access the justice system.
• Have a high level of comfort learning and using technology and cloud-based case management systems. We use Salesforce, Dropbox, and Google Suite. 
• Embrace and embody our values of teamwork, grit, caring, passion, and dynamism. 
• Must be willing to make a minimum two-year commitment to the organization.

BONUS POINTS:

• Comfortable practicing, translating and interpreting in Spanish and/or Cantonesse (this comes with a slight compensation increase).
• Knowledge of California and federal collection laws, restraining orders, and civil suits. 
• Experience appearing in San Francisco Superior Civil Court.
• Experience working with low-income and vulnerable populations.
• Experience working in a high-volume legal aid or similar environment.
• Having lived a significant period of your life in San Francisco proper.

STARTING COMPENSATION IS $75,000 - $89,000 ANNUALLY BASED ON EXPERIENCE.

PERKS:

• Strong organizational culture with an eNPS of 100
• Generous paid time off per year 
• Loan Repayment Assistance - for staff pursuing 10-year public interest debt forgiveness, we will pay the minimum payment on all qualifying loans so that you don't need to worry about student loan debt (this is a conditional benefit).
• Medical/Dental/Vision Plan offerings at 100% coverage
• Generous paid time off
• Flexible work hours 
• Generous paid parental leave
• 401K/Retirement Account
• We believe everyone is always learning.  We write individual learning plans for each staff member and provide many internal and external mentorships, coaching, and learning opportunities (conferences, workshops, etc.). 
• We are a fun and hard-working office with best-in-class technology solutions (including Salesforce) for anyone who's passionate about making a meaningful and measurable difference.

APPLICATIONS RECEIVED BEFORE JULY 24, 2021 WILL RECEIVE PRIORITY CONSIDERATION. 

Open Door Legal is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or any other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal records, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our recruiting process. If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, please let us know at whitney [at] opendoorlegal [dot] org. Black Lives Matter