Criminal Defense Trial Attorney

Hills at Law, P.C.; Grand Rapids (MI); On-site; USD 100,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid vacation

Paid holidays

Health, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) / Roth IRA

Short-term disability

Job summary

Hills at Law in Grand Rapids, Michigan, seeks a dedicated criminal defense attorney. You will prep thoroughly for hearings and trials, collaborate with a skilled team of attorneys, paralegals, and staff, and uphold the firm’s core values of Heart, Help, Grit, and Honesty.

The role emphasizes client outcomes and long-term team success. The firm offers a supportive environment with extensive defense experience and opportunities to handle diverse cases in multiple courts.

Qualifications

• Heart: you lead with empathy and integrity.
• Help: you coach and support teammates, share knowledge.
• Grit: you stay prepared and focused under pressure.
• Honest: you give candid feedback and make ethical choices.

Responsibilities

• Prepare relentlessly for every hearing, motion, and trial.
• Collaborate with attorneys, paralegals, and support staff to strategize cases.
• Put the client and team first to achieve optimal outcomes.

Job description

Defending Rights. Restoring Lives.

Is This You?

This isn't just a hire for us. Our whole team, every one of us, is looking for our next teammate, the next member of our select community. Our own circle of trust.

You do the job because it matters to you, not because someone is checking your work. Beyond the legal skills, here is the kind of person who thrives at Hills at Law.

You live our core values every day, because they are already your own.

• Heart: You want to be here doing this job, with us. Your reasons are your own, but you want to do this work. You treat clients, colleagues, vendors, support staff, and everyone else with respect. You own your mistakes without getting defensive, and you learn from them. You give credit before taking it.

• Help: You know that helping, lifting, giving, and coaching are superpowers that grow exponentially on a focused team. You help when needed, you coach instead of criticize, and you share what you learn. When others share with you, you seek to understand. Helping, giving, teaching, coaching, and learning are part of who you are.

• Grit: You have a blue-collar work ethic. You know the best lawyer is the prepared lawyer, and there is no shortcut. You follow through on what you say you'll do and stay calm and focused under pressure. You hold yourself to "done and done right," not just done.

• Honest: You give candid, respectful feedback, tell the truth even when it's uncomfortable, and make the ethical choice when no one is watching.

Your work ethic goes beyond the minimum.
You take initiative instead of waiting to be told what to do. You prepare relentlessly for every hearing, motion, and trial, and you take pride in your work. For you, "good enough" is never the goal.

You're a genuine team player who gives and takes feedback well.
You see feedback as a GIFT, not a threat, and you're just as comfortable giving it as receiving it. When something's wrong, you raise it directly with the person involved instead of venting to others. You work closely with attorneys, paralegals, and legal assistants, and you ask for help before problems become emergencies.

You put the client and the team first, not yourself.
You make decisions based on what's best for the client's outcome and the team's reputation and long-term success. Personal wins matter less than the team's wins.

You celebrate everyone's wins, because our wins are your wins, and you lift others up when they stumble.

If that sounds like you, keep reading. If it doesn't, this probably isn't the right fit, and that's okay.

What You'll Get

• A diverse but limited caseload. We want you to have time to work each case, so we limit your caseload.

• A community of criminal defense attorneys who love to talk about their cases, have deep experience in criminal defense, and will strategize with you one-on-one or in small groups.

• Formal strategy sessions each week where you can add to the agenda. You'll learn there is no stupid question, and there's often more than one right answer.

• Life on the circuit. Abraham Lincoln traveled the circuit, and so will you. Like "The Lincoln Lawyer," you'll handle cases in multiple courts across multiple counties.

• The support of staff trained in criminal defense work.

• The support of management and leadership with deep experience in criminal defense, committed to our team culture, core values, and first principles.

• Help finding a variety of experts and investigators, many with strong ties to our firm built over years of working together.

• The opportunity to work in alternative court systems if you want to. Our firm has long, strong ties with alternative courts in multiple counties.

• A team not burdened with other areas of law. We focus only on criminal defense and driver's license restoration.

Compensation & Benefits

$100,000 to $135,000 per year, based on experience, plus a discretionary annual performance bonus.

• Paid vacation

• Paid holidays

• Health, dental, and vision insurance

• 401(k) / Roth IRA

• Short-term disability