Housing Attorney Fellowship

Summary

Uptown People’s Law Center (UPLC) is hiring a staff attorney on a one-year fellowship to work in its housing rights practice. Duties of this position include representing tenants in a variety of cases, including traditional eviction defense, advocating for tenants experiencing substandard living conditions, and teaching both tenants and social services providers about tenants’ rights. This is the perfect job for a new attorney, or an attorney finishing up a fellowship or clerkship who wants to get experience and network with tenant’s rights attorneys.

Responsibilities

This staff attorney will, under the supervision of the Housing Supervising Attorney, and with the assistance of other UPLC staff, represent tenants in traditional eviction defense, advocating for tenants experiencing substandard living conditions, and teaching both tenants and social services providers about tenants’ rights. As part of this effort, this staff attorney will:

• Appear in state court for eviction proceedings, and prepare for jury trials with the drafting of and responding to discovery requests, argue any appropriate dispositive motions, engage in settlement negotiations, and other litigation-related tasks.
• Represent tenants in other housing legal matters, including illegal lockouts, landlord retaliation, illegal entries, material noncompliance on building conditions and repairs, and discriminatory actions by landlords.
• Provide training and other outreach and educational efforts to tenants, community groups, social service agencies, and housing providers in order to raise broad as well as targeted grassroots awareness about the JHA and to advise both landlords and tenants of their rights and obligations under the law.
• Work with various community organizations to strengthen UPLC’s relationship with, and ability to provide legal assistance to, community residents.

Additionally, this staff attorney is expected to:

• Support the training of paralegals, legal interns, and outreach workers, including reviewing their work, as needed.
• Attend CLE classes and legal community meetings on relevant legal and social justice topics.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• J.D. and licensed to practice in Illinois by date of application, or having sat for the 2024 Illinois bar  (applicants who took the bar exam this summer are encouraged to apply).
• Some prior experience (which can include law school clinical experience, internships, fellowships, judicial clerkships or other similar experience, in addition to traditional legal practice) is preferred but not required
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively with diverse audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work effectively with clients who have experienced trauma and/or crisis.
• Ability to take initiative, self-motivate, and juggle multiple tasks
• Community outreach and engagement skills, presentation and communication skills, experience with conducting trainings are a plus.
• Comfortable managing a workload of 15-25 matters and sensitive client issues, as well as the high-intensity atmosphere of litigation. 
• Cross-cultural competencies and self-awareness around issues of power, privilege, and difference.
• Experience handling eviction cases, or general trial experience is preferred, but not required
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice and experience providing direct legal services to low-income communities is preferred, but not required.
• All UPLC employees must be fully vaccinated and boosted against COVID, with exceptions as provided by law.

Travel Requirements

Occasional travel to area social service providers, typically but not exclusively in the Uptown neighborhood, and to the Chicago Daley Center courthouse in the Loop, is required. Most locations can be reached via Chicago public transit; however, access to a car is a plus.

Required Hours

Monday through Thursday, 9:00am to 5:00pm, and Friday 9:00 - 2:00, approximately 37 hours per week. UPLC employees are expected to work in person at UPLC’s office at least one day per week.

Flex time and limited remote work options are available.

This is a full-time, exempt position. Non-traditional hours—weekends and evenings—may be required on occasion, including when preparing for trial and when attending community meetings, which are often held in the evenings.

Organization Background

Uptown People’s Law Center is a nonprofit legal clinic located on the North Side of Chicago. Our work is focused on three areas: representing disabled people who have been denied Social Security disability benefits; representing tenants who are facing eviction, or other issues relating to their tenancy; and representing prisoners in civil rights lawsuits.

UPLC offers an entrepreneurial environment with a small staff of kind people who are passionate about their work. The dress code is casual (except for court appearances and certain meetings/events) and we are conveniently located a short walk from the Wilson Red Line stop. Full-time at UPLC is typically 37 hours per week, including half-hour lunches daily.

UPLC has a long history of commitment to engaging with social justice work, and values the diversity of perspectives its workers can bring to the table. We have begun working to formalize our commitment to diversity/equity/inclusion and to integrate it more explicitly into our work and office culture. We look forward to this position's input and participation in that work.

In addition, we as an office have extensive experience providing accommodations as necessary in order to establish equity in our working environment. If you are interested in discussing accommodations for this position or for the interview process, please feel free to include your query with your application. We do not require a disclosure of disability in order to extend an accommodation.

To Apply

Send a cover letter and resume to hiring@uplcchicago.org. Job is posted September 16, 2024  and is available until filled. Please, no phone calls, visits, or social media contact regarding the position.

Salary depends on experience and starts at $60,000/year. UPLC provides up to $400 a month towards health benefits (depending on personal costs, and untaxed if you get BCBS insurance through UPLC), as well as 2% of your salary to a Simple IRA, and generous paid time off to its employees, including office closure the week between Christmas and the New Year.

UPLC is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and as an organization committed to diversity and the perspective of all voices, we strongly encourage people of color, LGBTQ folks, people with disabilities, and/or former prisoners to apply. Staff members are chosen on the basis of ability without regard to race, color, religion, ethnicity, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, HIV status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, national origin, or prior record of arrest or conviction, in accordance with federal and state law.