If you require an accommodation due to a disability to complete this application OR you are experiencing issues submitting your application and accompanying materials please e-mail: talent@disabilityrightsca.org

Make a difference! We fight for the rights of people that have disabilities....JOIN US!

Individuals who are d/Deaf or Disabled are encouraged to apply.

LOCATION:

Statewide - prefer Los Angeles Area. This hybrid position requires one to be in the office 2 to 3 days per week as needed by the work.

EMPLOYMENT STATUS:

Exempt; Regular; Full time (37.5 hrs).

SALARY RANGE:

Litigation Support Manager - $62,469.81 yr - $91,242.65 yr.

Senior Litigation Support Manager - $75,948.60 yr - $111,215.99 yr.

We base salary and position offers on experience and an internal equity analysis.

EXCELLENT BENEFITS 

Including 8% 401k Match, a language differential up to $250/mo. Health (HMO and PPO options), dental, vision, basic life insurance, short-term and long-term disability insurance and flexible spending accounts (medical, dependent care and commuter). Additionally, we offer ample vacation, sick/self care leave and eighteen paid holidays (including the last week in December) and more…..  We are a Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) - eligible employer. 

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 

Open until filled. Applications should be received by February  9, 2024 to be considered for the first round of interviews.

WHO WE ARE

Disability Rights California (DRC) defends, advances, and strengthens the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities.

DRC works for a world where all disabled people have power and are treated with dignity and respect. In this world, people with disabilities are supported, valued, included in their communities, afforded the same opportunities as people without disabilities, and make their own decisions.

DRC values all forms of human diversity. We are committed to a culture of belonging where all people are welcome. In order to be effective advocates for all people with disabilities, we must address discrimination in all its forms, including the unique challenges faced by people who experience the intersection of multiple systems of discrimination.

YOUTH PRACTICE GROUP (YPG)

We are a statewide team of passionate attorneys who work collaboratively to enforce and expand the rights of students with disabilities. Our goal is to ensure that students with disabilities receive the benefits and supports guaranteed under federal and state laws. We achieve this objective through various types of lawyering and advocacy strategies that includes individual student representation at due process hearings, systemic litigation, investigations and monitoring of school districts, policy advocacy and community empowerment. 

The YPG works collaboratively on lawsuits and advocacy projects on behalf of all youth with disabilities. Much of our current work includes advocating on behalf of students with disabilities facing exclusionary discipline, youth with mental illness, foster youth, undocumented youth, Tribal youth, students of color and equity seeking communities. We also work to improve access to education supports and services, through our legislative and policy work with coalition partners.

Guided by disability justice principles, we prioritize geographically equity seeking populations subject to intersectional harm caused by racism and ableism. Our direct services work prioritizes representing youth experiencing intersectional harm on account of their race or nationality and disability while our systemic litigation and advocacy docket focuses on challenging the school-to-prison pipeline.

PURPOSE OF THE JOB

The Litigation Support Manager position is a new role within the Youth Practice Group at DRC. The position will supervise three to four legal support staff and play a leading role in, coordinating litigations, and administrative hearing docket to ensure all timelines are met, work is staffed and that legal support staff are adequately trained. The position will be supervised by the Managing Attorney.

The Litigation Support Manager will work directly with our attorneys and support staff to ensure the coordination of all casework, projects and court deadlines. The person in this position will be a skilled paralegal and support staff manager who is able to interview and interface with clients, prepare for upcoming cases, participate in fact investigation projects, prepare documents for filing, and be responsible for developing and organizing documents and factual materials for cases and projects. The ideal candidate for this position is organized, detail-oriented, professional, responsible, and committed to helping us meet our clients’ needs and able to supervise and delegate tasks to legal support staff and has substantial litigation support experience.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

TRAIN, MENTOR, AND SUPERVISE SUPPORT STAFF

This position will be responsible for leading, mentoring, developing, and training of the employees that they supervise in a positive and collaborative manner and in accordance with the agency's policies and applicable laws.

• They will be responsible for interviewing, hiring, and training employees.
• Planning, assigning, monitoring and directing work; regularly evaluating.
• Performance, productive, and providing ongoing feedback, developing and implementing annual goals for staff.
• Reviewing and approving timesheets.
• Working with HR to take correction actions when needed; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

LITIGATION SUPPORT MANAGEMENT

• Ability to lead, coordinate and assign tasks across multiple cases and support staff to ensure deadlines are met and appropriately staffed.
• Detailed case management, including maintenance and calendaring of filing deadlines, hearing dates, and post-judgment matters. Review, summarize, organize, index and manage documents, including use of litigation document management databases. Establish and maintain client files. Ensure that all pleadings are filed and served in a timely manner.
• Handle all aspects of discovery including interrogatories, requests for admissions, depositions, and document production.
• Preparation, review, and drafting of all pleadings/forms. Assist in preparing documents for filing, including cite checking (applying proper legal formatting, checking accuracy of citations and quotes, etc.).
• Factual investigations, including requests for records and documents, internet research, interviews of potential witnesses and others.  Prepare fact summaries and charts for cases and projects.  
• Legal Research as necessary. 

CLIENT OUTREACH AND MANAGEMENT

• Client outreach and management, client interviews, factual investigations, record management, and developing and organizing factual material for litigation. Communicate with callers, clients, client representatives, and other agencies and organizations. 

ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT

• Lead in ensuring practice group administrative compliance with DRC’s policies including travel policies, direct advocacy expenses, coordination and hiring of experts, and other contractors and services necessary to support the legal work of the group.
• Coordinate and caucus with support staff management of other Practice Groups to ensure consistency across the LAU in managing the work of support staff. 
• Perform other duties as assigned.

LITIGATION SUPPORT MANAGER

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS:

(Applicants MUST meet EACH of the minimum qualifications to be considered for an interview.)

• High school diploma or general education degree (GED).
• A certificate of completion from a paralegal program approved by the American Bar Association or an accredited postsecondary institution as defined in California Business and Professions Code Section 6450 (c)(2).
• Seven years of legal support experience and at least five years of supervision or case management experience in a law office that handles litigation.
• Demonstrated commitment – through lived experience and/or employment history – to working with and advocating for people with disabilities and low-income clients.
• Strong writing and interviewing skills.  Effective oral and written communication skills, including a working knowledge of the English language; correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure; and ability to draft routine correspondence. 
• Experience using Microsoft Word with strong word processing skills (including creating, editing, and formatting documents). Experience using Excel. 

SENIOR LITIGATION SUPPORT MANAGER 

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS:

In addition to the minimum qualifications described above for Litigation Support manager:

• 10 years of legal support experience and at least five years of supervision or case management experience in a law office that handles litigation.
• Five years of paralegal experience working in litigation.
• Five years’ experience conducting client outreach, client interviews, factual investigations, legal research, and developing and organizing factual material for litigation.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

(Applicants DO NOT have to meet any of the Desirable Qualifications to be considered for an interview.)

• Fluency in American Sign Language OR Bilingual in English/Spanish.
• Life experience as a person with a disability OR direct experience as a caregiver of a family member with a disability. 

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS

Minimal travel required: Ability to travel infrequently for activities such as training or outreach activities up to 10% of the time. Required to travel to Los Angeles office. 

WORKING CONDITIONS

The following describes general working conditions and requirements of the job, which can be performed with or without disability related reasonable accommodations. 

• Duties are performed between an office and home environment and the field in a wide range of settings, including courthouses, facilities, or other institutional settings, or in community-based settings.
• Duties require regular communications over online platforms.
• Must be able to transport oneself to work-related meetings, training, and community events.