OVERVIEW
The Youth Justice Coalition (YJC) is working to build a youth, family, and formerly and currently incarcerated people’s movement to challenge America’s addiction to incarceration and race, gender and class discrimination in Los Angeles County’s, California’s and the nation’s juvenile and criminal injustice systems. The YJC’s goal is to dismantle policies and institutions that have ensured the massive lock-up and deportation of people of colour, increasing law enforcement violence and militarization, violation of youth and communities’ Constitutional and human rights, the construction of a vicious school-to-jail track, and the build-up of the world’s largest network of jails and prisons. We use transformative justice and community intervention/peacebuilding, FREE LA High School, know your rights, participatory defense, and police and court monitoring to “starve the beast” – promoting safety in our schools, homes and neighborhoods without relying on punishment and suppression, preventing system contact, and pulling people out of the system. We use direct action organizing, advocacy, political education, and activist arts to agitate, expose, and pressure the people in charge in order to upset power and bring about change. For more information, visit: www.youthjusticela.org
JOB POSITION SUMMARY:
The legal clinic has several areas that support our communities to thrive. The legal clinic assistant will be supporting the criminal record expungement clinic, members intake court support process, inside a membership, community outreach and office day-to-day assistance with the legal community support coordinator. Legal clinic assistants typically provide administrative support to the Legal Coordinator.
REPORTS TO: Community Legal Coordinator & Director of Finance and Operations
EXPECTED WORK HOURS: 40 hours weekly
COMPENSATION: $50,000 Annually
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Assisting with expungements, pardons, sealing youth records and commutations
- Preparing court support files when needed for our clients.
- Communicate with community members, gathering necessary documents and information to help them in their case.
- Organize and file all legal documents in a safe and confidential manner.
- Coordinate clerical tasks, including making copies, sending emails, maintaining appointment schedules, processing member’s intake and organizing filing systems.
- Maintain legal clinic database
- Maintain and update the I-5 material and membership updated
- Attend monthly participatory defense meetings
- Facilitate(expungement, pardon, commutation) trainings
- Support with court support when needed
- Support with county jail’s outreach
SKILLS AN EXPERTISE:
- Computer skills.
- A minimum experience of two years in a paralegal role
- Research skills.
- Ability to maintain confidentiality
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Organization skills.
Formerly incarcerated, system-impacted, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities and people with community, union and/or youth organizing experience are strongly encouraged to apply.
HOW TO APPLY:
Inquiries are welcome. To apply, send a cover letter, resume and two references to jobs@youth4justice.org with the subject line “Application: YJC – Legal Aid”.