Alaska Legal Services Corporation is recruiting for a full-time (35 hours per week) staff attorney to serve clients in an innovative holistic defense project in its Bethel office. The ALSC attorney will provide a wide range of civil legal services to clients referred by the Alaska Public Defender Agency (APDA), including but not limited to housing, family law, health law, and juvenile rights issues. Responsibilities include a general civil practice with special emphasis on legal issues faced by clients in the criminal justice system. Other duties include working with community groups to build a network of resources for clients; planning and conducting community legal education; and some travel to small communities and rural villages in the region.
About the Project: ALSC established a partnership with the APDA to start Alaska’s first holistic defense practice in 2015. The holistic defense project is situated in Bethel, Alaska, and includes criminal defense attorneys, a social worker, and a civil legal services attorney, all working together to help clients make lasting changes in their lives. The ALSC attorney works with other members of the holistic defense team to help identify and solve clients’ civil legal problems.
Bethel is the largest city in western Alaska and serves as an administrative and transportation hub for the surrounding fifty-six villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region. Approximately 85% of Y-K residents are Alaska Native, and many practice a subsistence lifestyle. The Y-K Delta is one of the poorest regions in the country. The region has few roads, and residents travel by boat, snowmachine, or plane.
Required: Applicants must be admitted to practice law in Alaska or admitted to practice in another state and be eligible for an Alaska Bar Rule 43 waiver. Information on Bar admission or requirements for a waiver can be found at www.alaskabar.org. Computer proficiency (Windows operating system, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, Internet, e-mail and data entry). Applicants must demonstrate an ability to gain clients’ trust and a commitment to effect change for them on an individual and systemic level.
Highly Desired: A demonstrated commitment to serving low-income individuals; and a background working in cross-cultural situations.
Salary $96,120-$144,180 DOE. Generous benefits and leave package provided, including partial reimbursement of relocation expenses. Personal leave begins at six weeks per year for a full-time employee. ALSC observes 15 paid holidays.
Applications: ALSC is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a culturally diverse and inclusive workplace and strongly encourage women, persons of color, LGBTQ individuals, veterans, persons with disabilities, and persons from other underrepresented groups to apply. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Please email a cover letter, writing sample, and resume that includes three professional references to: Careers@alsc-law.org.
About Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC): As a private, nonprofit law firm, the mission of ALSC is to provide civil legal aid to those who cannot afford it. Through our work, we empower people and communities throughout Alaska to protect their safety, their health, and to promote family stability. Through advocacy, education, collaboration, and litigation, we empower individuals, protect fundamental rights, strengthen communities, create opportunities, and achieve justice.
