Staff Attorney, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

SeniorLAW Center•Philadelphia, PA

13d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Staff Attorney, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren provides direct legal services to and engages in education and advocacy on behalf of older adults throughout Pennsylvania seeking custody of minor children, often due to the unavailability of the natural parents and other legal issues affecting their lives, safety and security.

Requirements

Juris Doctor
Active member of the Pennsylvania Bar in good standing
Must be a motivated self-starter
Must possess high-quality advocacy and negotiating skills
Highly professional, organized, energetic, flexible, and culturally sensitive
Excellent writing, organizational, interpersonal and presentation skills
Interest and ability to work with older people and persons of different backgrounds

Nice To Haves

Experience working with older adults
Experience representing in dependency and/or family court proceedings
Second language proficiency preferred
Courtroom experience

Responsibilities

Provide civil legal assistance to older adults with custody or dependency issues, including filing and/or representing in child custody petitions or and related litigation.
File and/or represent in protection from abuse matters on behalf of the minor child(ren).
Provide advice, brief services and referrals to older adults with child custody or dependency matters and related issues.
Provide information, support, and advocacy with related criminal proceedings that may impact civil litigation, collaborating with the police and District Attorneys, as necessary.
Work with legal advocate to provide appropriate social service referrals and support to older adults who care for minor children.
Assist with maintenance of resources and referral information for grandfamilies.
Assist with GRG focused community clinics.
Assist with GRG focused client council.
Assist with pro bono recruitment, training, and other pro bono case processes, including assisting with preparation of case files and advising pro bono volunteers as needed.
Handle all aspects of client representation, including screening and interviewing walk-in and/or emergency clients, conducting client interviews by telephone or in person to give legal opinion or recommend a case is accepted for further services, filing necessary court documents timely, analyzing facts to prepare appropriate case strategies, preparing for all court appearances, and assessing holistic legal needs of clients and making referrals internally and externally.
Provide technical assistance to staff and volunteer attorneys.
Handle case-related tasks including retrieving, transcribing, and performing prescreen data entry in the case management system as needed, preparing and mailing retainers and letters, drafting court documents, communicating with clients or third parties via telephone, email, text message or other by other means, preparing case files for hearing/trial, maintaining case files and case management database, conducting home visits to frail or homebound clients, and handling other case or client related tasks as necessary.
Utilize Language line or other interpretation services for Limited English Proficient (LEP) older adults.
Provide information and referrals to older adults related to custodial issues, linking them to other resources and supportive services, including emergency financial assistance, support groups, health services and other resources.
Represent SeniorLAW Center at professional committees/coalitions related to grandparent custodial issues.
Develop and present legal education workshops to older adults, caregivers, aging networks, the legal community, and medical professionals about grandparent custodial issues.
Aid in the development of educational materials and resources for older adults on custodial issues and “best practices” resources for professionals.
Aid in planning, organizing, and attending community outreach and tabling events.
Assist with community clinics focused on adult guardianship issues.
Coordinate with Project Director to update website, E-News, and other communication tools with project related information.
Participate in scheduled project-related meetings.
Participate in staff and Legal team meetings.
Provide support to other colleagues agency-wide as needed.
Assist with on-boarding staff as needed.
Become knowledgeable of and follow all SeniorLAW Center’s personnel and legal policies and procedures.
Demonstrate and model commitment to SeniorLAW Center’s mission and values.
Assist with quality control and case management data collection and reporting as necessary.
Participate in SeniorLAW Center’s culture of philanthropy and events to support the organization.
Other responsibilities to further mission of the project and organization.
Identify systemic problems affecting older Pennsylvanians related to grandfamilies and work with our local, statewide and national partners to develop creative solutions.
Participate in quarterly Learning Community meetings with co-grantees under the William Penn Foundation grant, and participate in monthly check-ins with Generations United, technical assistance provider under William Penn Foundation grant.