Eviction Right to Counsel Implementation Specialist (Remote Work Position)

September 2023

About the Project

The National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (NCCRC) was created in 2003 as a project of the Public Justice Center (PJC). The PJC uses legal advocacy tools to pursue social justice, economic and racial equity, and fundamental human rights for Marylanders who are struggling to provide for their basic needs. The NCCRC is the PJC’s only project with a national focus.

The NCCRC’s mission is to ensure individuals have a right to effective counsel when facing the loss of
their basic human needs in the civil legal system. We work nationally to accomplish this by:

• Supporting, connecting, and coordinating federal, state, and local efforts to study, enact, litigate, implement, and evaluate right to counsel programs;
• Tracking and reporting on right to counsel litigation, legislation, education, and social science research efforts around the country;
• Maintaining a comprehensive right to counsel research repository and status map;
• Planning and/or presenting at convenings, educational sessions, and public events; and
• Speaking with the media to raise awareness / understanding of, and enthusiasm for, the right to counsel.

We have assisted the NCCRC’s 600 participants and partners across 45 states in efforts to establish a right to counsel for cases involving adoption or guardianship of children, termination of parental rights, evictions, suspension of driver’s licenses, civil incarceration, domestic violence, truancy, guardianship of adults, and civil forfeiture.

About the Position

The movement to establish the right to counsel for tenants facing eviction (“RTC”) has seen dramatic growth in the past six years: with our support, four states, seventeen cities, and one county have enacted such a right. We therefore are looking to hire an Implementation Specialist so that we can fully assist jurisdictions working to ensure their enacted rights to counsel are effective and empowering. While the position has clear responsibilities, we’re looking for someone who can bring fresh perspectives, ideas, creativity, energy, and humor to the position.

The Implementation Specialist is a new, full-time, exempt, professional, and remote position (all NCCRC employees work remotely), and will report to the NCCRC Coordinator, who works from Montgomery, Alabama. The Implementation Specialist will initially travel to Montgomery for a week of training and will later travel on occasion to other locations as needed.

Core duties

• Providing direct technical support to cities, counties, and states that are in the process of implementing a RTC, including matters related to rollout / phase-in, hiring, outreach, intake, court collaboration, funding, data collection / evaluation, and more;
• Collaborating with the NCCRC staff on:
  • Providing implementation knowledge to assist advocates pursuing RTC enactment;
  • Collecting, compiling, and publishing data emerging from RTC jurisdictions;
  • Designing and presenting on webinars, boot camps, and conferences;
  • Developing guides available to advocates.
• Exploring and reporting on potential federal, state, and local funding sources;
• Overseeing interviews of advocates in RTC jurisdictions to document implementation data and lessons learned;
• Planning and facilitating monthly nationwide calls, including identifying relevant topics and securing expert speakers;
• Gathering lessons learned from implementing the right to counsel in criminal cases;
• Working on efforts to expand the pipeline of attorneys available for RTC programs.

Desired skills and experience

• Admission to practice law in Maryland or state of residence required;
• Experience with eviction proceedings required;
• Experience managing/supervising a legal services program strongly preferred;
• Experience with RTC campaigns or implementation strongly preferred;
• Established passion for social justice, and keen interest in access to justice;
• Strong organizational skills, as well as keen attention to detail;
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment;
• Experience working with diverse populations from various backgrounds and lived experiences, as well as demonstrating cultural responsiveness and understanding;
• Ability to effectively communicate complex legal and technical concepts to various stakeholders, adapting communication style to meet different needs.

Compensation

Salary range for an attorney with 1-15 years of experience is $65,000-95,000 and increases with experience. An excellent cafeteria benefit package in the annual amount of $15,600 is also provided. This package offers health, vision, dental, disability and life insurance, and retirement options. Cafeteria benefits packages give employees flexibility to choose how to direct their benefits. For example, this package can cover 100% of employee healthcare premiums, but an employee can choose to direct those funds towards retirement if they already have health insurance and/ or the excess can be taxed and added to salary. PJC employees receive at least 20 days of paid leave, with increases based on length of tenure, 10 paid holidays, and 15 days of sick leave annually.

Applications

Applications should be submitted by Friday, October 13, to be assured of consideration but will be accepted and interviews conducted on a rolling basis until the position is filled. To apply, please submit a cover letter explaining your interest, resume, one short legal writing sample, and the names and telephone numbers of three references. Please send applications to John Pollock, jpollock@publicjustice.org with “NCCRC Implementation Specialist Position” in the subject line.

Physical/Mental Demands and Office Environment

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

The Public Justice Center is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer that encourages all interested persons to apply regardless of race, color, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, citizenship, creed, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, age, religion, genetic information, physical or mental disability, marital status, or any other legally protected status. We strongly encourage Black, Latine, Indigenous, and other applicants of color, people with disabilities, and other people historically underrepresented in the practice of law to apply.