Legal Assistant - Asylum

  • $40,000.00/year
  • THE ORGANIZATION

    The Florence Project was founded in 1989 to respond to a representation crisis for indigent non-citizens detained at the rural Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention Center in Florence, Arizona. Through our programs today, we provide services to more than 10,000 men, women, and children detained in Eloy, Florence, Phoenix, and Tucson, Arizona on any given day.  The Florence Project has become known nationally for its legal service delivery systems which ensure detained people empowered access to justice. The Florence Project provides high quality legal advice or representation and supports initiatives for national changes in immigration law and policy.
     
    POSITION DESCRIPTION: ASYLUM LEGAL ASSISTANT

    The Florence Project is seeking a passionate advocate to support our asylum representation team as a legal assistant. The asylum legal assistant will engage in crucial human rights work for adults seeking asylum and who are experiencing immigration detention.  The legal assistant will have the opportunity to assist attorneys in the direct representation of people detained in Arizona and who fear return to their countries of origin.   The position will allow the legal assistant to work with individuals at the credible fear, immigration court, and appellate stages of their cases. The legal assistant will directly report to the Direct Representation Team Managing Attorney.

    The Asylum Legal Assistant position is based in Phoenix.  The adult detention program is generally headquartered in our office in Florence, AZ, approximately one hour south of Phoenix and one to one and a half hours north of Tucson, allowing access to clients detained in Florence and Eloy facilities. One requirement of the position is frequent travel to immigration detention centers located in Eloy and Florence, Arizona. 

    Duties include but are not limited to the following:

    • Conduct in-depth client intake interviews
    • Visit with detained clients to obtain initial and follow-up information
    • Assist with drafting and reviewing applications for relief from removal 
    • Investigate and develop evidence to support clients' fear-based claims, such as drafting client declarations, witness letters, and obtaining supporting documents from feared country of return 
    • Translate documents from Spanish to English and English to Spanish, when necessary 
    • Collect documentation on human rights conditions of feared countries of return (e.g. country conditions)
    • Communicate with witnesses as needed
    • Prepare legal filings and submissions and submit to the court as needed by the attorneys 
    • Refer clients who are released from ICE custody to appropriate pro bono resources in their destination community, when such resources are available, and develop a compilation of packets of support
    • Assist in drafting packets to advocate for clients’ release, such as humanitarian parole requests or bond 
    • Administrative support for direct representation teams
    • Data entry, file management, and preparing monthly statistics for grant reporting purposes 

    QUALIFICATIONS

    • Must be fluent in Spanish or have advanced proficiency
    • Bachelor’s degree is preferred 
    • Demonstrated commitment to immigrant rights, social justice, or human rights issues 
    • The position includes extensive client contact with men and women who have survived violence; applicants must have a comfort-level or prior experience working with torture survivors, victims of sexual violence/gender-based violence, child abuse survivors, highly traumatized people, and people suffering from PTSD           
    • Must be comfortable working in a detained setting and with people with criminal convictions
    • Must be highly organized and an innovative thinker with excellent communication skills 
    • Ability to work in a high volume setting with limited resources
    • Must be a hard working team player with a sense of humor who is flexible, patient, respectful, and comfortable in a busy setting
    • Ability to collaborate and build relationships with legal and non-legal stakeholders
    • Ability to travel regularly, especially between the Phoenix and Florence offices and secondary work locations
    • Must be able to pass  basic background checks and obtain security clearance to enter detention facilities 

    SALARY AND BENEFITS

    This is a full-time, salaried non-exempt position. Starting annual salary is $40,000. We strive to create and uphold a positive, supportive, and inclusive work environment for all staff. We offer excellent benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, with full premiums paid by the Florence Project. We also provide reasonable mileage reimbursement for travel between offices and places of work. After one year of employment, employees are eligible for an employer matching retirement plan. Paid time off includes one personal day each month in addition to fifteen days of vacation and twelve days of sick/medical leave annually, six weeks of parental leave (up to twelve weeks total, with option to use personal, vacation, and sick paid time off for unpaid portion), and bereavement leave, in addition to observing all federal holidays. After three years of employment, employees are eligible for an eight week paid sabbatical.

    APPLICATION PROCESS

    We are looking to fill this position immediately. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis and applicants are encouraged to apply early.  To apply, please complete the application below, upload a resume, letter of interest detailing your interest in the position with three professional references. 

    Only applicants selected for an interview will be contacted. The Florence Project values diversity in the workplace and strongly encourages applications from people of color, LGBTQ individuals, individuals with disabilities, and members of underrepresented communities. 
     
    This job announcement is for informational purposes only, and is subject to change and modification without notice. This job announcement includes a non-exhaustive list of responsibilities, qualifications and requirements of the position, but does not necessarily include all job functions of the position.

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