[INTERNAL ONLY] Assistant Supervising Attorney - Denver Housing Unit (Adams)

ICES: Data, Discovery, Better Health; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Colorado Legal Services (CLS) in Denver is seeking an Assistant Supervising Attorney to lead the Adams-team and guide staff in addressing the housing legal needs of low-income residents to ensure housing stability and prevent homelessness across Colorado.

The role involves supervising attorneys, paralegals, and social workers, participating in training, strategic planning, and grant-related activities, while maintaining an active caseload and reporting to the Supervising Attorney of DHU.

Qualifications

• Valid license to practice law in Colorado or ability to obtain Colorado license promptly.
• Experience in housing law from the tenant's attorney perspective.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Detail-oriented with strong critical thinking and analytical skills.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office.

Responsibilities

• Guide the legal work of the team with the Supervising Attorney.
• Assist in staff training, professional development, and performance evaluation.
• Assist in strategic planning and short- and long-range goal setting for the team and unit.
• Assist in coordinating systemic housing work and community outreach.
• Lead hiring of team members and assist in hiring unit members on other teams.
• Oversee workloads, client relations, and conflicts; make recommendations to Senior Leadership on performance or disciplinary action per the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Maintain an active but not full caseload.
• Assist with grant management activities and grant-funded clinics; communicate with grantors and court staff; help gather data for grant reports.
• Complete administrative tasks like leave approvals, timesheet reviews, and reimbursements.

Skills

Colorado license

Housing law experience

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Microsoft Office

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Organization Overview:

Colorado Legal Services (CLS) is Colorado’s statewide nonprofit legal aid program, with twelve offices providing civil legal assistance to low-income Coloradans throughout the state. CLS provides free legal assistance in a broad variety of legal areas, including family law, public benefits, eviction defense, consumer protection, services to survivors of serious crime and human trafficking, and many others.

CLS has strengthened lives, assisted families, and supported communities–one person at a time for over 100 years. We are committed to providing high-quality, free legal advice and representation to eligible individuals throughout Colorado. We have a long history of successful impact and advocacy. CLS strives to bring about substantive, transformational change in the lives of those we serve.

At CLS, we value representation. We value and respect our staff's wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. We ensure representation of our client communities in our staff, Board of Directors and leadership teams. We also envision a fair, just, trusted, and harm reductionist legal system which emphasizes access to and implementation of true justice for every Coloradan.

Position Summary:

[NOTE: ONLY INTERNAL CANDIDATES ARE BEING CONSIDERED AT THIS TIME.]

The Denver Housing Unit is looking for a new Assistant Supervising Attorney to lead the Adams-team, which currently has one staff attorney and one paralegal. This person will work with and report to the Supervising Attorney of DHU. They will lead and guide a team of staff (attorneys, paralegals, and social workers) in addressing the legal needs of low-income individuals to ensure housing stability and to prevent homelessness in Colorado.

Essential Duties:

• Work with the Supervising Attorney to guide the legal work of the team;
• Assist in staff training, professional development, and performance evaluation;
• Assist in strategic planning and short- and long-range goal setting for the team and the unit;
• Assist in the coordination and implementation of systemic housing work and community outreach;
• Lead the hiring of team members and assist in the hiring of unit members on other teams;
• For the team, oversee and manage staff workloads, client relations, and interpersonal conflict, and, working with the Supervising Attorney, make recommendations to Senior Leadership for performance improvements or disciplinary action consistent with the terms of CLS’ Collective Bargaining Agreement;
• Maintain an active but not full caseload;
• Assist with grant management activities, such as engaging in direct work in courthouse clinics, supervising grant-funded clinic staff, overseeing administration of the clinics, communicating with grantors and/or court staff regarding grant-funded clinics, and assisting with gathering data for grant reports;
• Complete administrative tasks such as leave request approvals, timesheet review, and reimbursement requests.

Required Qualifications:

• Valid license to practice law in the state of Colorado or ability to obtain a Colorado license as soon as practicable
• Experience in housing law from the perspective of a tenant’s attorney
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Detail-oriented with strong critical thinking and analytical skills
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office

Preferred Qualifications:

• Three or more years’ experience as a legal services attorney, or at a non-profit, governmental agency, or other similar organization
• Prior supervisory or administrative experience with a legal services program or law office
• Experience in the area of subsidized housing
• Bilingual in English/Spanish

Compensation and Benefits:

We offer a generous plan that includes 100% employer paid premiums for employee health, dental, vision, life, and long-term disability insurance, as well as partial employer paid premiums for spouses/dependents, based on a sliding scale. We also offer Dependent Care and Medical Flexible spending accounts, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). CLS contributes $200/month to each employee's 403(b) retirement account and matches 100% of employee contributions up to 3% of employee salary; vesting occurs gradually will full vesting after 3 years of employment. Additionally, CLS offers generous paid time-off and 13 paid holidays per year.

CLS values its employees’ commitment to working hard for the population it serves and recognizes the importance of work/life balance.We promote and foster a culture of belonging and a psychologically safe work environment, striving to be a “Best Place to Work” in Colorado.