SUPERVISORY ATTORNEY (Unaccompanied Minor and Immigrant Youth Representation)

Unaccompanied Minor and Immigrant Youth Representation

THE ORGANIZATION

Al Otro Lado is a binational legal services and immigrant rights organization serving immigrants, asylum seekers and deported persons in Southern California, Tijuana, México, and beyond. We approach cases using a multidisciplinary, client-centered, harm reduction-based lens, and engage in zealous individual representation, medical-legal partnerships, human rights monitoring and impact litigation to protect the rights of individual immigrants and challenge systemic practices that violate the human rights of immigrant communities. We leverage vital partnerships with community-based organizations and academic institutions, and engage thousands of volunteers to maximize our impact and help build a broad-based immigrant justice movement.

For more information about our organization, please visit us on our website at: alotrolado.org/ or visit us on social media: Instagram and Twitter: @alotrolado_org; Facebook: Al Otro Lado.

SUPERVISORY ATTORNEY

(UNACCOMPANIED MINOR & IMMIGRANT YOUTH REPRESENTATION)

Al Otro Lado is seeking a bilingual Spanish-speaking Supervisory Attorney for the U.S. Based Advocacy team’s Unaccompanied Minor and Immigrant Youth Representation program. The US. Based Advocacy team provides holistic, full-scale representation to particularly vulnerable immigrants, including unaccompanied children, members of the LGBTQA+ community, Indigenous migrants, Black migrants, torture survivors, survivors of human trafficking, clients with disabiltiies/medical vulnerabilities, and clients whose cases present family unity concerns. Our holistic representation strategy includes identifying a client’s needs, goals, and challenges, and seeking to achieve their best immigration outcomes, not only through legal services but also by connecting individuals with support to overcome the non-legal obstacles they face in their cases.

The Supervisory Attorney will work under the supervision of the Managing Attorney, and will help lead a team of staff attorneys and legal assistants working with unaccompanied minors seeking forms of relief including Special Immigrant Juvenile (“SIJ”), asylum, and other humanitarian protections as relevant.

The Supervisory Attorney will be based out of Al Otro Lado’s Los Angeles office and will have the opportunity to work a hybrid in-person/remote model with in-person duties as needed to serve our client population. In-person duties may include attending court hearings, ICE check-in’s, USCIS interviews, and in-person client meetings. Court hearings and other in-person tasks may require travel throughout the Southern California region, and potentially other locations as assigned.

JOB DUTIES

Job responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• With a reduced caseload, prepare applications for relief before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”), the Executive Office for Immigration Review (“EOIR”), and state courts
• Review and provide feedback for applications for relief prepared by team members.
• Mentor, supervise, and provide support for a team of staff attorneys representing clients in their application for immigration benefits
• Monitor capacity and distribution of work through regular one-on-one check-ins with staff attorneys and legal assistants
• Assist in developing and implementing policies, templates, and procedures that increase effectiveness and efficiency within our representation work
• Directly supervise staff, including the authority and role to hire, mentor, train, develop, conduct performance reviews, and, when necessary, terminate employment. This authority includes the right to task and assign work to direct reports
• Work with the managing attorney to ensure program directives are met
• Initiate and implement corrective actions for staff performance or conduct issues to maintain team productivity and adherence to organizational policies
• Keep abreast of changes in case, statutory, or regulatory law in relation to SIJ and immigration law in general
• Ensure compliance with Al Otro Lado’s data management policies including record-keeping for grants and funders, case management documentation, and internal systems for fiscal and personnel oversight
• Assist the managing attorney in the data compilation for and preparation of reports, grant and government contract applications, and program budgets
• Other duties as assigned to support the mission of the organization

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

• J.D. degree from an accredited university, with active California State Bar License
• Minimum 3 years of practical experience in immigration law, preferably with SIJS clients
• Fluency in Spanish and English, including the ability to communicate professionally and in writing in both languages
• Excellent legal skills and broad knowledge of immigration law
• Self-direction and self-reliance, with exceptional attention to detail and ability to balance multiple cases, tasks, and deadlines
• Strong organizational, written and oral communication skills
• Flexible, innovative, and able to quickly adapt to changing program needs as immigration policies change
• Able to work in a fast-paced setting with limited resources
• Adept at learning to use new technology platforms, as well as experience and proficiency with Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat Pro, Zoom, and Google Workspace tools
• Demonstrated commitment to the mission and values of Al Otro Lado
• Commitment to working in a diverse professional environment, with a kind and respectful attitude towards clients, colleagues, and relevant stakeholders
• Mandatory background clearance

Please note, this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this position. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. The ideal candidate will be flexible, adaptive, and enthusiastic about responding to needs as they arise.

All Al Otro Lado staff working directly with clients must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, including with recommended boosters, and must follow strict COVID protocol while providing services, including by using a high-quality mask in shared spaces and by testing for COVID if experiencing any symptoms.