Tenants Rights Attorney

 If you want to develop strong courtroom advocacy skills while doing deeply meaningful work, consider applying for this position. If hired, you will work with a talented team of housing rights advocates doing cutting edge legal work. A brief overview of the position and duties is as follows:

  • Defend tenants against eviction lawsuits by asserting defenses, negotiating settlement agreements, and connecting tenants to resources that will keep them safe and housed.

  • Try cases in court, craft legal pleadings, work to establish pro-tenant legal precedents.

  • Collaborate with other legal aid organizations defending tenants and attend monthly trainings to develop rigorous legal skills.

  • Collaborate with interns, volunteers and fellow staffers.

Attorney will need to be licensed in Missouri, be able to work with diverse populations in crisis, and manage a fast-moving caseload. This job requires grit, skill, ambition and tenacity and is also very exciting and rewarding. The workplace is highly collaborative, friendly and supportive. Experience and/or a second language proficiency is a major plus but not required.

For more information about Kansas City's transformational Right to Counsel law, please see this KCUR article.

For those unfamiliar with this area: Kansas City is an extremely diverse, liberal city with a lively art, theater, food and music scene. We have a rich history of worker and tenant organizing. Because the midwest and south play such an important role in determining the direction of our nation this is also an extremely important and impactful place to do social justice work.

 HCJF is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital or parental status, gender identity, or gender expression.

Job Type: Full-time, exempt
Pay: $68,000.00 - $80,000.00 per year
Schedule: Monday to Friday
Work Location: In person

Benefits: We offer health, dental, and vision insurance, 15 days of vacation, 10 days sick, 2 personal days, & 11 holidays per year, parental leave, SIMPLE IRA with a match, employer-paid short-term disability insurance, and professional development.

To apply, email resume and cover letter (recommended) to Mary Pfaff at marypfaff[@]jobsandfreedom.org.

Legal Assistant/Legal Investigator

The Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom (HCJF) is a nonprofit legal organization that enforces housing and workplace rights for low-wage workers. We are seeking a legal assistant and investigator that can assist our eviction defense team. Our five eviction defense lawyers handle cases through Kansas City’s Right-to-Counsel program. The team prevents homelessness and keeps families housed by stopping the vast majority of evictions that get filed. The legal assistant/investigator plays an important role in this process by helping attorneys manage their cases, investigating title histories, documenting bad housing conditions, helping to draft legal documents, and working with tenants in court and on the phone. We are a collaborative and supportive staff committed to winning better housing and jobs for all. Our vision is that working people of all races and backgrounds will have the power and influence to ensure that everyone can live a full life free of abuse, exploitation, and poverty.

Position Qualifications:

  • Two or more years working in a legal environment and/or higher education (bachelor’s degree or higher)

  • Strong attention to detail and accuracy;

  • Comfort working with people in crisis;

  • Able to work collaboratively with coworkers;

  • Excellent organizational, time management skills with the ability to multi-task and prioritize;

  • Fluency in Spanish is strongly preferred but not required

A brief overview of the position and duties include:

  • Open and close out cases

  • Conduct outreach to tenants in court

  • Investigate landlords and their properties

  • Help attorneys track cases

  • Help attorneys draft legal documents

  • Help attorneys communicate with clients

  • Help cover phones on a limited basis

Job Type: Full-time, non-exempt
Pay: $50,000.00 - $55,000.00 per year
Schedule: Monday to Friday
Work Location: In person

Benefits: We offer health, dental, and vision insurance, 15 days of vacation, 10 days sick, 2 personal days, & 11 holidays per year, parental leave, SIMPLE IRA with a match, employer-paid short-term disability insurance, and professional development.

To apply, submit your resume and cover letter to: marypfaff[@]jobsandfreedom.org.