Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA) seeks two attorneys for its Immigration Unit. 

What you get when you come to JALA

JALA is the premier litigation legal aid firm in the Southeastern United States. We are mission-driven, and our team makes a difference in our community. As a JALA employee, you can expect immediate hands-on experience interviewing and counseling clients as well as litigating cases in Federal and State court. Staff is expected to take on challenging cases for our at-risk clients while being mentored and supported in taking on such cases. While there is a premium placed on initiative and self-motivation, you can expect to be supervised by lawyers who are recognized as subject matter experts in their field (JALA is the only law firm in Florida with two Florida Bar Consumer Protection Lawyers of the Year on staff, for example.) Our lawyers and paralegals regularly serve on local and statewide committees, and our lawyers have gone on to become hearing officers, magistrates, judges, and administrative law judges. In addition to the opportunity to litigate early, our lawyers and staff are trusted as professionals - we have adopted a hybrid work environment (although not all positions are able to work remotely.) Regardless of what others may prefer, we embrace diversity and inclusion as a way to ensure we are the most prepared to offer the best and highest level of representation for our clients, as this is what they deserve from us.

Salary commensurate with experience. Benefits package include, but are not limited to, medical, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, group life insurance, remote/onsite work hybrid, and generous leave policy (e.g., 13 paid holidays plus 22 personal leave days in the first year, one-month sabbatical every four years).

Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Essential job functions include but are not limited to: 

• Interviewing clients in-office and remotely. 
• Interaction with Customs and Border Control. 
• Manage a large caseload of cases including but not limited to removal defense, VAWAs, U-visas, SIJ relief, naturalizations, adjustment of status, family petitions, and waivers.
• Prepare for and appear before EOIR, USCIS, and State Court on behalf of clients, primarily in naturalizations, adjustments of status, family petitions interviews, asylums, and SIJS hearings. 
• Work with attorneys, DOJ-accredited representatives, paralegals, and other staff who contribute to serving clients. 
• Supervise intern(s) to assist in completion of casework. 
• Maintain complete and accurate client records physically and electronically in our case management software. 
• Ability to keep up with the constantly changing field of immigration law. 
• Comply with all applicable regulations, policies, and grant requirements. 
• Perform other duties and projects as required by Director.

We are looking for candidates who have a commitment to serving immigrant populations and underserved communities. Self-starter, ability to self-direct and manage work autonomously. Excellent communication skills and can work collaboratively in a team. 

• Candidates must be an active member in good standing with the Florida Bar, or another state bar or eligible to sit in the next bar exam of a State. 
• Immigration experience in a law school clinical setting and/or attorney practice is preferred. 
• Fluency, or high level of competency, in Spanish, Pashto, Dari, and Arabic is strongly preferred. 

The mission of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is to provide high-quality legal assistance to low-income and special needs groups – to empower them to accomplish energetic and affirmative advocacy, all to alleviate the circumstances, incidents, and causes of poverty and discrimination.

Developed during the Great Depression and subsequent recession of 1937, the organization that has become Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, Inc. (JALA) was born when a group of Jacksonville Bar attorneys banded together to provide legal services to those in need. Called different names over the years including Duval County Legal Aid Association, it was officially named Jacksonville Area Legal Aid in 1973. The organization achieved 501(c)3 status in 1976. JALA now serves 17 counties of North Florida including Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Nassau, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, and Union.