Trial Attorney - CAFL Transition Age Youth Office

Commonwealth of Massachusetts•Framingham, MA

17h•Remote

About The Position

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS), the public defender agency for Massachusetts, is excited to announce the opening of a Transition Age Youth Office, a new initiative in the Children and Family Law Division “conflicts office,” the Family Justice Advocates. Trial attorneys will be part of a multidisciplinary team, committed to improving representation and advocacy for the specific issues young adults and transition age youth face when caught up in the family regulation system. The Transition Age Youth Office will open as a fully remote office until office space is procured. The final office location is expected to be in Framingham but may be located in other Metro West or Greater Boston area locations. We fight for equal justice and human dignity by supporting our clients in achieving their legal and life goals. We zealously advocate for the rights of individuals and promote just public policy to protect the rights of all. Our Values C ourage A ccountability R espect E xcellence DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MISSION STATEMENT CPCS is committed to protecting the fundamental constitutional and human rights of our assigned clients through zealous advocacy, community-oriented defense, and the fullness of excellent legal representation. We are dedicated to building and maintaining strong professional relationships, while striving to accept, listen to and respect the diverse circumstances of each client, as we dedicate ourselves to meeting their individual needs. It is our CPCS mission to achieve these goals, and in furtherance thereof, we embrace and endorse diversity, equity and inclusion as our core values as we maintain a steadfast commitment to: (1) Ensure that CPCS management and staff members represent a broad range of human differences and experience; (2) Provide a work climate that is respectful and supports success; and (3) Promote the dignity and well-being of all staff members. CPCS leadership is responsible for ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion. The ability to achieve these goals with any level of certainty is ultimately the responsibility of each member of the CPCS community. AGENCY OVERVIEW CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one. The agency provides representation in criminal, delinquency, youthful offender, family regulation, guardianship, mental health, sexually dangerous person, and sex offender registry cases, as well as in appeals and post-conviction and post-judgment proceedings related to those matters. The clients we represent are diverse across every context imaginable and bring many unique cultural dimensions to the matters we address. This reality creates a critical need for CPCS staff to be culturally competent and able to work well with people of different races, ethnicities, genders and/or sexual orientation identities, abilities, and limited English proficiency, among other protected characteristics. OFFICE OVERVIEW The Transition Age Youth (TAY) Office is a new advocacy unit that provides multidisciplinary support in matters involving transition age youth across the state. We aim to address the varied and complex needs of a vulnerable population. In addition to case support and training, the defense teams provide limited direct client representation. The TAY Office promotes and supports attorneys to provide holistic and high-quality representation of transition age youth throughout the Commonwealth. Attorneys in the TAY Office focus their advocacy on Care and Protection cases for children ages 14-22 and their siblings, Children Requiring Assistance, and Permanency for Young Adult (PYA) cases where youth are in DCF’s continued responsibility pursuant to G.L. c. 119, § 23(f). This new office will be comprised of an Attorney in Charge, trial attorneys, a social worker, an administrative assistant, and a peer support specialist. The Transition Age Youth office is part of Family Justice Advocates (FJA), CAFL’s “conflicts trial office.” FJA provides legal representation to children and indigent parents and guardians in family regulation cases in which (a) a CAFL staff attorney in a non-conflict office has been appointed to another party to the case or (b) a conflict of interest prevents CAFL staff attorneys in non-conflict offices from representing any party in the case. The Transition Age Youth Office will open as a fully remote office until office space is procured. The final office location is expected to be in Framingham but may be located in other Metro West or Greater Boston area locations. POSITION OVERVIEW The TAY Office of CPCS is seeking Trial Attorneys to join our team. The TAY office will provide direct representation to transition age youth and their siblings involved with the Juvenile Court, legal training and support to attorneys and social workers, and free advice and consultation to attorneys across the state. The Transition Age Youth Trial Attorney positions will have responsibilities across all areas listed above. The Trial Attorneys will report to the Attorney in Charge of the Transition Age Youth office.

Requirements

Eligible to practice law in Massachusetts, either as a member of the Massachusetts bar in good standing, or as the member of the bar of another jurisdiction eligible to engage in limited Massachusetts practice under Supreme Judicial Court Rule 3:04
Access to an automobile in order to travel to courts, clients, and investigation locations that are not easily accessible by public transportation
Access to a personal computer with home internet access sufficient to work remotely

Nice To Haves

Trial experience in termination of parental rights cases as counsel for a parent and/or as counsel for a child or children
Substantial experience working with adolescents or young adults
A demonstrated commitment to the principle of zealous advocacy in the representation of indigent persons
Strong interpersonal and analytical skills
Foreign language skills
Ability to work in a community and defense-oriented capacity, both independently and collaboratively

Responsibilities

Visiting and interviewing adolescents, young adults, and their sibling clients
Pre-trial investigation and discovery, including locating and interviewing witnesses, reviewing documentary evidence, and consulting with experts and other service providers
Legal research and writing, including preparing papers for National conferences, with publishing opportunities
Advocating through the internal DCF administrative processes
Representing clients in pretrial proceedings, hearings, trials, and interlocutory appeals
Advocating with DCF and other providers for appropriate services for clients and other family members
Coordinating advocacy with CPCS, CAFL, and FJA social work staff
Providing direct support to child welfare attorneys through advisory case support, requests for assistance, and ongoing regionally based training
Assisting with the creation of annual plans for young adult and transition age youth advocacy training programs and projects
Participating in state and local coalitions to drive policy reform
Maintaining strong working relationships with the local Juvenile Court, Probation, DYS, DCF, DESE, community agencies, and other stakeholders in the Juvenile and Child Welfare systems
Other duties as assigned