Housing Unit Director

Bronx, NY, United States

Legal Services NYC (LSNYC) fights poverty and seeks racial, social and economic justice for low-income New Yorkers. For over 50 years, we have challenged systemic injustices that trap people in poverty and provided legal services that help our clients meet basic needs for housing, income and economic security, family and immigration stability, education, and health care.

LSNYC is the largest civil legal services provider in the country; our staff of more than 600 people in neighborhood-based offices and outreach sites across all five boroughs helps hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers annually. We partner with scores of community-based and client-run organizations, elected officials, public agencies, pro bono lawyers, and the courts to maximize our effectiveness. Our work fights discrimination and helps to achieve equity for all low-income New Yorkers.

LSNYC employees have numerous opportunities for growth and professional development, including access to our internal Justice Learning Center, which provides opportunities to earn free CLEs and gain experience as a trainer. Further, LSNYC prides itself on its Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) efforts and aims to create a work environment where everyone can bring their full selves to the work.

All non-managerial staff at LSNYC are part of one union and enjoy a generous benefits and compensation package, including exceptional healthcare, dental insurance, a vision plan, 21 vacation days per year (increasing to 28 days after the first year), 18 sick days per year, and a Loan Repayment Assistance Program. LSNYC staff can work remotely up to 50% of the time, job duties permitting.

Bronx Legal Services seeks a Director to lead the Universal Access to Counsel (UAC) management team in our eviction prevention and housing practice.

Our Organization:

Bronx Legal Services is the largest provider of free civil legal services in the borough, and is part of Legal Services NYC's network of local programs throughout New York City. Bronx Legal Services' mission is to advance society's promise to the most vulnerable members that they are entitled to equal access to our legal system.

In addition to the Director, UAC's supervisory team currently consists of seven Deputy Directors, and four Supervising Attorneys. The office plans to create a position of First Deputy Director to share some of the administrative and managerial duties of the Director. The practice currently has approximately forty staff attorneys and plans to continue growing. It will have a budget of approximately $11 million in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024.

LSNYC provides numerous opportunities for growth and professional development. Our Learning Center provides opportunities to earn free CLE credits and gain experience as a trainer. In recent years we hired The Management Center to teach management skills to our directors and supervisors, and we encourage and support supervisors and directors to attend local and national trainings to build supervision and management skills.

Bronx Legal Services' Housing Unit represents low-income Bronx residents in Bronx Housing Court, administrative proceedings, and in affirmative cases challenging agencies and actors who threaten Bronx residents' ability to obtain and retain affordable housing. We also collaborate with local community-based organizations to provide housing rights trainings to other advocates, community members, and community groups.

The Director will coordinate overall leadership of our housing practice with the Director of our Tenants Rights Coalition Unit and will lead our Universal Access to Counsel in Housing Court initiative, which is working to implement the NYC law mandating the right to legal counsel in eviction proceedings. The Director will shape the direction and manage the operations of the UAC unit; develop and strengthen relationships with partner community organizations; handle administrative and grant responsibilities; oversee the work of the Supervising Attorneys and Deputy Directors; and work to identify systemic housing-related trends that could be affected by strategic litigation.

Experience & Qualifications:

The successful candidate(s) should have

Minimum of 5 years housing litigation experience

Demonstrated expertise in local, state and federal housing law and policy, housing court practice, housing programs and subsidies, and public benefits

Excellent legal writing, litigation, and advocacy skills

Strong interpersonal, teaching/training and organizational skills

A demonstrated passion for social justice and commitment to working with low-income communities and communities of color.

Prior supervisory experience, grant management experience, experience working with community-based organizations, is strongly preferred.

Proficiency in Spanish or another language commonly spoken in the communities we serve is also preferred.

How to Apply

To apply for the position, send a cover letter, resume, names of three references, and two recent writing samples via e-mail to: Sylvia Figueroa [redacted].

The e-mail should include "UAC Unit Director" in the subject line.

Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted. No telephone calls.

Bronx Legal Services is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. People of color, women, people with disabilities, gay, lesbian, people over 40, and transgender people are all welcome and encouraged to apply.

All employees are strongly encouraged to continue to receive and maintain up-to-date COVID vaccinations unless they are unable to for medical or religious reasons.

Salary Range: $132,096 - $198,144 (based on years of experience)

Legal Services NYC is an equal opportunity employer. People of color, women, people with disabilities, people over 40, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people are strongly encouraged to apply.