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Director, Immigration Legal Services


JOB TITLE: Director of Immigration Legal Services

REPORTS TO: Executive Director

EMPLOYMENT TYPE: Full-time/exempt/salary

LOCATION: Concord/remote

WORK SCHEDULE: Monday - Friday

OUR AGENCY

Rooted in Jewish values and historical experiences, and inspired by the strengths of the diverse communities we serve, JFCS East Bay promotes the well-being of individuals and families by providing essential mental health and social services through every stage of life. JFCS East Bay is an innovative, multicultural human service agency that has served individuals and families throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties since 1877.

The agency’s current programs include resettling refugees, providing mental health services to children and families of color, offering immigration legal services, and supporting seniors and Holocaust survivors. Our staff of more than 60 employees is characterized by its dedication, teamwork, warmth, humor, and high professional standards. Agency offices are located in downtown Berkeley (five blocks from BART) and Concord (five blocks from BART), with a satellite location in uptown Oakland. 

JFCS East Bay actively seeks to hire qualified professionals who reflect the cultural and linguistic diversity of the East Bay and of our clients.


PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

JFCS East Bay’s Immigration Legal Services [1] program provides professional assistance to immigrants and refugees applying for a range of immigration legal services in our Concord office. As a federally recognized legal services agency, JFCS East Bay assists clients with citizenship, green cards, U-visas, DACA, and other legal remedies. As part of the Stand Together Contra Costa [2] collaborative, JFCS East Bay also provides legal representation to detained and non-detained individuals seeking relief from removal and release from detention, including representation on administrative appeals (to the BIA and Circuit Courts) as well as in Federal District Court. We are staffed by a psychologist who assists as an expert in removal proceedings, conducts psychological evaluations and testing and provides counseling.

JOB SUMMARY

The Director of Immigration Legal Services reports to the Executive Director and is responsible for overseeing the administration and development of the Immigration Legal Services program. This position also supervises staff attorneys and legal assistants who provide direct representation to clients.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES

●        Develop and manage all aspects of the Immigration Legal Services department

●        Actively works with the Agency’s leadership team to support the entire Agency’s work, collaborate across programs, and maintain client-focused programs

●        Train, support and supervise attorneys and DOJ-accredited representatives providing legal services to underserved immigrant populations as they apply for affirmative immigration benefits before USCIS, including regular meetings with staff to engage in case strategies and ensure quality representation for clients.

●        Train, support and supervise removal defense attorneys and legal assistants providing legal representation to clients in removal proceedings, in administrative appeals, in petitions for review before Circuit Courts and in federal district court litigation.

●        Maintain monitoring systems and oversee program progress toward goals on grants and contracts, including systems to track numbers of clients served as well as success of program and client satisfaction.

●        Assist with preparing funding proposals and progress updates and other materials for reports.

●        Oversee all legal case records and documentation.

●        Build and maintain collaborations and cooperative relationships with other agencies and community-based legal providers.

●        Ensure the agency maintains its status as a DOJ (now OLAP) recognized agency and that all DOJ representatives maintain their accreditation.

●        Represent JFCS East Bay at community meetings and forums about legal services and how best to respond to community needs.

●        Develop and conduct training sessions in substantive legal areas to practitioners within JFCS East Bay and at other non-profits to increase capacity

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

●        Membership and good standing in the bar of any state or federal territory. California license strongly preferred.

●        Juris Doctor (JD) degree from an ABA-accredited law school.

●        Minimum of 10 years’ experience in providing immigration legal services in removal defense proceedings, on appeals to the BIA, in Circuit Court petitions for review, in Federal District Court litigation, as well as in filing affirmative applications before the USCIS (including but not limited to adjustment of status, citizenship, and U-visas).

●        Minimum of 5 years experience managing and supervising attorneys and legal assistants in immigration legal practice

●        Experience in program development and administration.

●        Ability to work with skill and sensitivity in a multicultural environment.

●        Experience and interest in working with ethnically diverse populations.

●        Strong oral, written, interpersonal, and computer skills.

PREFERRED ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

●     Spanish-languge fluency

●     Experience working at a non-profit community services organization.

●     Experience in providing reports to funders.

●     Experience working with or directing legal services clinics.

●     Experience handling immigration appeals.

●     Experience designing and conducting trainings for practitioners.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

●     Ability to sit and work at a computer for extended periods of time

●     Ability to lift and carry 20 pounds

●     Walking, standing, twisting and bending for brief periods of time.

●     Occasional reaching and/or grasping using hands and/or arms.

●     Regular use of hands requiring dexterity in using the telephone, computer keyboard, mouse or calculator.

●     Regularly required to talk and hear in person or by telephone.

●     Visual ability to read documents and computer monitor.

●     May be required to ascend/descend stairs.


Compensation

The Compensation is $120,000 per year. Benefits include medical, dental, 401(k), generous holiday and Earned Time Off (combined vacation/sick), great colleagues, and a friendly work environment.

TO APPLY

Please submit a thoughtful cover letter and resume to currentjobs@jfcs-eastbay.org [3] with ED99 in the subject line of your email. Only complete applications will be considered.

 JFCS East Bay is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age (40 or older), ancestry, color, religious creed (including religious dress and grooming practices), denial of family and medical care leave, disability (mental and physical), including HIV and AIDS, marital status, medical condition (cancer and genetic characteristics), genetic information, military and veteran status, national origin (including language use restrictions), race, sex (including pregnancy, child birth, breastfeeding and medical conditions related to pregnancy, child birth or breastfeeding), gender, gender identity and gender expression, sexual orientation, or any other protected status in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws.


  1. https://jfcs-eastbay.org/immigration-legal-services/
  2. http://standtogethercontracosta.org/
  3. mailto:currentjobs@jfcs-eastbay.org

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