Trial Attorney - Emerging Adult - YAD Lowell

Overview

The Youth Advocacy Division (YAD) of the Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS), the Massachusetts public defender agency, is seeking to fill an attorney position in its Lowell Office to work in the Emerging Adult pilot project, as well as to represent youth ages 12-17.  The Emerging Adult pilot project is a partnership with YAD and the Public Defender Division (PDD) to work with clients 18-25 years old in the Lowell and Lawrence area. 

We fight for equal justice and human dignity by supporting our clients in achieving their legal and life goals. We zealously advocate for the rights of individuals and promote just public policy to protect the rights of all.

Our Values

Courage   •   Accountability   •   Respect   •   Excellence

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MISSION STATEMENT

CPCS is committed to protecting the fundamental constitutional and human rights of our assigned clients through zealous advocacy, community-oriented defense, and the fullness of excellent legal representation.  We are dedicated to building and maintaining strong professional relationships, while striving to accept, listen to and respect the diverse circumstances of each client, as we dedicate ourselves to meeting their individual needs.  It is our CPCS mission to achieve these goals, and in furtherance thereof, we embrace and endorse diversity, equity and inclusion as our core values as we maintain a steadfast commitment to: (1) Ensure that CPCS management and staff members represent a broad range of human differences and experience; (2) Provide a work climate that is respectful and supports success; and (3) Promote the dignity and well-being of all staff members. CPCS leadership is responsible for ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion. The ability to achieve these goals with any level of certainty is ultimately the responsibility of each member of the CPCS community.

AGENCY OVERVIEW

CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one.  The agency provides representation in criminal, delinquency, youthful offender, child welfare, guardianship, mental health, sexually dangerous person, and sex offender registry cases, as well as in appeals and post-conviction and post-judgment proceedings related to those matters.

The clients we represent are diverse across every context imaginable and bring many unique cultural dimensions to the matters we address. This reality creates a critical need for CPCS staff to be culturally competent and able to work well with people of different races, ethnicities, genders and/or sexual orientation identities, abilities, and limited English proficiency, among other protected characteristics.

DIVISION OVERVIEW

The Youth Advocacy Division (YAD), the youth defender division of CPCS, is committed to ensuring that every youth in Massachusetts has access to zealous legal representation in delinquency, GCL Revocation, juvenile murder, juvenile appeals, and youthful offender cases from a diverse and ever improving community of youth defenders consisting of both private assigned counsel and staff public defenders. YAD provides leadership, training, support, and oversight to the youth defense bar in Massachusetts.

Trial Offices, led by Attorneys in Charge, integrate the work of attorneys, a social service advocate (SSA), and an administrative assistant (AA) to fully address the legal and developmental needs of our clients. 

OFFICE OVERVIEW 

Located approximately 30 miles to the north west of Boston, Lowell, with an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, is the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts.  Incorporated in 1826 to serve as a mill town, many of its historic manufacturing sites are preserved by the National Park Service. During the Cambodian genocide, the city took in an influx of refugees, leading to Lowell having America's second largest Cambodian-American population in America.  Lowell is also home to UMass Lowell, Middlesex Community College, and a thriving arts community.  The Lowell office also covers Lawrence, another old mill town with an interesting mix of colonial and industrial history and modern immigrant cultures.

EMERGING ADULT PILOT PROJECT OVERVIEW

In March 2023, YAD and PDD (the division that represents adults charged with criminal cases) are starting an Emerging Adult pilot project centered in the YAD Lowell Office that will cover the Lowell and Lawrence courts.  This project will combine lawyers from YAD Lowell, PDD Lowell, and PDD Lawrence, as well as an Emerging Adult pilot project SSA, a PDD SSA, investigative support from PDD, and administrative professional support from both divisions.  These positions will form an Emerging Adult Unit that will represent 18-25 year olds charged with criminal offenses.  By taking YAD’s expertise in holistic Positive Youth Development based defense and PDD’s knowledge of the emerging adult cohort, and applying a Developmental Framework, CPCS intends to create a replicable unit that assists emerging adults achieve the best possible outcomes when they come in contact with the criminal legal system.

Qualifications

MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS

• A Trial Attorney must be committed to serving a culturally diverse, low-income population and must be eligible to practice law in Massachusetts, either as a member of the Massachusetts bar in good standing, as a law school graduate under Supreme Judicial Court Rule 3:03, or as the member of the bar of another jurisdiction eligible to engage in limited Massachusetts practice under Supreme Judicial Court Rule 3:04;
• Access to an automobile in order to travel to courts, clients, and investigation locations that are not easily accessible by public transportation; and,
• Access to a personal computer with home internet access sufficient to work remotely.

 QUALIFICATIONS/SKILLS

•  Experience with criminal, especially youth and emerging adult defense;
• Experience with a community-oriented defender practice;
• Ability to provide trauma informed and culturally competent representation;
• Knowledge of adolescent development;
• Knowledge of the Emerging Adult cohort;
• A demonstrated commitment to social justice issues and experience working with individuals of diverse backgrounds;
• Knowledge of positive youth development;
• Knowledge of state and local resources of use to youth defendants and/or emerging adults;
• Understanding of juvenile legal practice and policy issues;
• Experience with educational system advocacy;
• Experience with the child welfare system;
• Experience working with youth;
• Fluency in Spanish is strongly preferred; and,
• Lawyers with four or more years of experience are encouraged to apply.

Responsibilities

POSITION OVERVIEW

Trial Attorneys provide zealous legal representation on delinquency and youthful offender cases using the Positive Youth Development Approach, as well as using all the same criminal defense skills needed to practice in district and superior courts.  Additionally, Trial Attorneys work closely with staff Social Service Advocates (SSAs), as research has shown that meeting the formative developmental needs of young people is essential to both short and long term legal success. Attorneys also provide post dispositional advocacy and support to DYS committed youth, as well as school-based advocacy.  They also work on projects related to improving legal representation and outcomes for court involved children. In addition, staff Trial Attorneys play a leadership role in working towards reducing the racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile legal system.

In addition to the above position overview, this Emerging Adult Unit attorney will represent 18–25-year-old clients charged with a variety of crimes.  Thus, this position will have a mixed caseload of youth from 12-17 years old and emerging adults from 18-25.  The Trial Attorney will partner closely with the staff SSAs and community based organizations, such as UTEC, Inc. in Lowell, that have programs and services already existing to help the emerging adult cohort.  This position will play an integral role in creating a replicable unit that helps 18–25-year-olds achieve the best legal and life outcomes possible.

EEO Statement

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran or military status, genetic information, gender identity, or sexual orientation as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other applicable federal and state statutes and organizational policies.  Applicants who have questions about equal employment opportunity or who need reasonable accommodations can contact the Chief Human Resources Officer, Ted Waterman, at ewaterman@publiccounsel.net

Salary : $68,000 - $0