About Public Law Center

Founded in 1981, The Public Law Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free legal services to low income residents and other nonprofits in Orange County. Last year, Public Law Center staff and volunteers provided over 65,000 hours of free legal services in handling over 4,500 cases benefiting low-income children, adults and seniors. The estimated value of this work is roughly $60 million in just the past three years. Our services include counseling, individual representation, community education and strategic policy advocacy and impact litigation to challenge societal injustices.

About the Role

The Public Law Center (PLC)’s Immigration Unit is seeking an energetic, passionate advocate to join our team in fighting for justice for Orange County’s immigrant communities through innovative, collaborative, community-centered lawyering.

PLC’s Immigration Unit provides fearless direct legal representation to, in addition to coordinating and supervising pro bono representation for, survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking, sexual assault, persecution and other crimes (U Visas, T Visas, VAWA, asylum, and adjustment of status); children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected (Special Immigrant Juvenile Status); young people who arrived as children (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals); lawful permanent residents seeking U.S. Citizenship (naturalization); and immigrants in Immigration Court proceedings (both detained and non-detained removal defense).

What You'll Do

• Full-time hybrid position with occasional evening and weekend work required.
• The Outreach Paralegal will perform outreach and coordinate community education events such as Know Your Rights presentations, will coordinate and oversee in-house and community legal clinics, and provide additional legal and administrative support to the unit.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Coordinate, oversee, and/or participate in immigration legal clinics, workshops, and community education presentations in collaboration with community partners and volunteers.
• Participate in collaborative advocacy efforts in coalition with other legal service providers and community partners.
• Represent PLC at legal networking and community events.
• Coordinate and triage the provision of immigration legal services between PLC, community partners, and volunteers.
• Provide legal support such as drafting, form preparation, and legal research.
• Provide support in grant management, including data collection and reporting
• Other duties as assigned, including administrative tasks. 

Qualifications

• Minimum high school diploma or GED; depending on level of education, must have matching experience or education to meet definition of paralegal pursuant to California Business & Professions Code section 6450(c).
• 1-3 years of paralegal experience in immigration law preferred.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and Outlook) and willingness to learn other software programs.
• Demonstrated commitment to working with immigrant communities.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple tasks.
• Strong oral and written communications skills, with the ability to communicate with a variety of audiences including clients, community partners, and volunteer attorneys.
• Bilingual English/Spanish or other language strongly preferred.

Salary & Benefits

• Compensation dependent on experience; range of $27-29 per hour
• Competitive benefits provided, and for this position include:
• • Health, Dental, Vision, Disability, and Life Insurance (100% of employee premium costs paid by PLC, and 50% of dependent health insurance premium costs paid by PLC)
  • Flexible Spending Account Program to help pay for medical expenses and childcare costs
  • 15 paid holidays per year
  • Approximately 1 week paid off during office winter closure (between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day)
  • 21 paid sick days per year
  • 15 paid vacation days per year
  • 2 paid wellness days per month to promote mental wellness and general wellbeing
  • Birthday paid time off (2 hours of paid time off during birthday month)
  • 403b retirement plan (after 6 months of employment PLC provides a matching contribution equaling 100% of salary deferral up to a maximum of 3-4%, depending on length of employment)
  • Monthly $55 stipend for Wi-Fi and cell phone use
  • Monthly Bilingual Pay Premium upon successful completion of an oral and/or written test ($50 for oral premium and $50 for written premium)

Public Law Center is dedicated to building a diverse team and fostering a fair and welcoming work environment. To view our complete DEI statement, please click here.

Public Law Center is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, please contact Public Law Center.

PLC will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with all legal requirements.

PLC regrets that it is unable to sponsor employment Visas or consider individuals on time-limited Visa status for this position.