Supervising Attorney

POSITION

Supervising Attorney

Federal Pro Se Legal Assistance Project – S.D.N.Y. (Fed Pro-SDNY)

Director, Fed Pro-SDNY

Exempt

The City Bar Justice Center furthers access to justice by addressing unmet civil legal needs of New Yorkers struggling with poverty and other systemic socioeconomic barriers. The Justice Center mobilizes law firms, corporate legal departments, and other legal institutions to provide pro bono legal services, educates the public on pertinent legal issues, fosters strategic community relationships, and impacts public policy. The City Bar Justice Center annually provides high‑quality, free civil legal services to over 27,000 New Yorkers who lack the resources to hire private counsel.

In the past year, over 3,000 pro‑bono attorneys have contributed services to support clinics and client matters drawn from the Center’s do‑zens of civil legal services projects.

Fed Pro‑SDNY is an innovative initiative that provides free, limited‑scope legal assistance to pro‑se plaintiffs and defendants (including incarcerated individuals) litigating civil cases in the SDNY. Services cover employment discrimination (e.g., Title VII, ADA, ADEA), civil and prisoner rights, and a broad range of other claims centered on individual rights. Staff and volunteers deliver assistance at various stages of federal litigation, from complaint to trial, benefiting more than 1,000 individuals each year.

The City Bar Justice Center seeks a candidate committed to expanding access to justice to join our team as a Supervising Attorney for Fed Pro‑SDNY. This position reports to the Director of Fed Pro‑SDNY and operates in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

• Serve as part of a team comprising volunteer attorneys and law student interns to deliver high‑quality legal services to pro‑se litigants at different stages of federal litigation, including brief legal advice, case strategy, discovery and motion practice, trial preparation, and document drafting or editing.
• Conduct virtual or in‑person consultations with litigants at Fed Pro‑SDNY’s courthouse in downtown Manhattan or, on occasion, at the White Plains courthouse, and collaborate with the social‑work support team to provide additional services on a case‑by‑case basis.
• Stay abreast of changes and updates to federal law and court rules, taking a leadership role in supervising pro‑bono volunteers and interns.
• Provide professional legal and administrative support to Fed Pro‑SDNY’s Director, ensuring quality of services, supervising team members, collecting case data, creating periodic reports, coordinating referrals, supervising special projects, and performing other duties as requested.

• Must be a New York and S.D.N.Y. bar member in good standing with at least four years of federal litigation experience, including employment and civil rights cases, or substantial experience delivering high‑volume client services or clinical legal services; at least two years of supervising others’ legal work.
• Excellent writing, editing, oral communication, and organizational skills; able to work independently and collaboratively, training and mentoring an interdisciplinary team of attorneys, legal assistants, interns, social‑work team members, and volunteers.
• Detail‑oriented self‑starter with strong legal judgment, respectful collaboration with court personnel, and capacity to manage multiple cases, litigants, and special projects.
• Excellent people and client counseling skills, with a desire and ability to interact effectively and sensitively with a diverse public, including clients with cognitive or mental‑health challenges.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office 365, and rapid learning of Legal Server and other technology.

Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States; we are not able to sponsor visas for this position. This is a hybrid position requiring availability for 2–3 in‑person workdays during standard business hours at Fed Pro‑SDNY’s office in the SDNY Manhattan courthouse, with the remainder of the time…