Please email resumé and cover letter to info [at] miamemphis [dot] org
Salary: $62,000-64,000
Position Summary:
MIA’s Children’s Project Staff Attorneys (based in either Memphis or Nashville) represent and inform detained and released unaccompanied children. The attorney will represent selected clients housed by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in a transitional foster care (TFC) programs in Nashville and Smyrna, as well as children and adolescents released by ORR into the Mid-South (Tennessee, Arkansas, and north Mississippi). (The Immigration Court is located in Memphis). The attorney will work closely with legal and social services staff in MIA’s Memphis and Nashville offices and will be supervised by MIA’s Memphis-based Children’s Project Director.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
The essential functions include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Provide direct legal services to children and adolescents seeking asylum, Special Immigration Juvenile Status (SIJS), and other forms of relief from removal in the Memphis Immigration Court, USCIS, and regional probate and juvenile courts;
- Communicate regularly with TFC program staff regarding the status of unaccompanied children (UCs);
- Coordinate referrals of UC cases to other legal service providers around the United States;
- Place cases with pro bono attorneys in Tennessee, and build relationships between MIA and potential pro bono volunteers;
- Provide regular reports and data on cases and statistics for quality control and grant reporting purposes;
- When necessary, screen potential UC clients at Nashville and Smyrna facilities for all potential and available immigration benefits, including adjustment of status, asylum, withholding of removal, U nonimmigrant status, and/or SIJS;
- Oversee “Know Your Rights” presentations at facility for children and adolescents housed in ORR facilities in Nashville and Smyrna (as needed, if Nashville attorney is unavailable);
- As needed, supervise work of interns, legal assistants, volunteers, and other non-attorney staff;
- Track time for work done on “billable” cases or projects.
- Attend mandatory training and conference calls related to UC work and representation.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)
- Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited college or university;
- Admission to any state bar (Tennessee preferred);
- Prior experience and/or coursework in immigration law and procedure preferred;
- Spanish fluency or high proficiency strongly preferred;
- Strong interpersonal, communication, advocacy, computer, and organizational skills;
- Ability to work effectively with a diverse community, including children and families;
- Experience working with children, immigrants or refugees, survivors of violence, and/or torture preferred.
- Must have a valid driver’s license, insurance, and personal transportation. (Position requires some local and occasional regional travel.)
Physical Demands and Work Environment
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions. While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to use hands or finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
Note
This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee(s) incumbent in this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by any person authorized to give instructions or assignments. All duties and responsibilities are essential functions and requirements and are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities. To perform this job successfully, the incumbents will possess the skills, aptitudes, and abilities to perform each duty proficiently. Some requirements may exclude individuals who pose a direct threat or significant risk to the health or safety of themselves or others. The requirements listed in this document are the minimum levels of knowledge, skills, or abilities. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” relationship.
