Employment Opportunities at ILS

The New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services (ILS) seeks to hire an Assistant Appellate Attorney to be a part of the Statewide Appellate Support Center team at ILS in Albany, New York. The Assistant Appellate Attorney will be a self-starter who works well under supervision and strives to advance the work of the Center and to expand their knowledge and skills. This position reports directly to a Senior Appellate Attorney and will support the efforts of three midlevel Appellate Attorneys. Activities will include statewide initiatives to improve the quality of mandated representation; individual consultation services to attorneys providing mandated representation; and creation of resources and trainings.

Specific responsibilities for this position include working with the Center’s attorneys and team members to:

• Do legal research and analysis and write legal memoranda in trial, appellate, and post-conviction cases.
•Perform tasks to assist defense counsel or provide information and resources to pro se persons with DVSJA applications and other post-conviction litigation.
• Help collect templates for brief and motion banks.
• Help make arrangements and prepare materials for meetings for various Councils, Task Forces, and other groups; take notes at meetings; and do follow-up tasks.
• Help organize various training programs and prepare Power Point presentations and training materials.
• Consult with individual attorneys and defense team members in conjunction with other Center staff.
• Create legal resources, including templates, model motions, statements of law, and know your rights documents.
• Respond to letters from incarcerated persons seeking legal information; and offer information to support them in preparing motions to extend the time for taking an appeal.
• Work with the Center’s paralegal to maintain Excel spreadsheets on various activities and prepare monthly reports.
• Under the supervision of the direct supervisor, coordinate communications with other ILS units.
• Assist with administrative duties as needed. Qualifications: Admission to, or willingness to seek admission to, the New York State Bar; and two years of experience in the practice of criminal and/or family law subsequent to admission to the Bar. The ideal candidate will have a commitment to improving mandated representation statewide and a collegial and collaborative approach to team projects. Experience in appellate representation in criminal and/or Family Court matters is also desirable.

Salary Range: $88,283 to $96,000

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by May 3, 2024. Please review the full vacancy announcement application instructions here: https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=153099

The New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services (ILS) seeks an Appellate Attorney, Parent Representation. In the area of parent representation, the Appellate Attorney will help fulfill ILS’s statutory mission to “make efforts to improve the quality of services provided pursuant to article 18-B of the county law” by working in consultation with others to develop training programs, creating templates and other resources, and providing individual consultations to improve mandated representation in Family Court appeals in matters such as records, briefs, and oral arguments. In addition, the Appellate Attorney will provide litigation support to attorneys representing parents, in all types of Family Court proceedings and at all stages of litigation, in matters such as investigations, research, motions, trial strategy, and preserving appellate issues and rights. The Appellate Attorney will report to the Director of Quality Enhancement for Appellate and Post-Conviction Representation and will also collaborate with the Director of Quality Enhancement for Parent Representation and ILS’s new Statewide Appellate Support Center, which has been created to provide training and support to attorneys providing mandated criminal defense statewide.

Salary: $109,180

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by May 20, 2024. Please review the full vacancy announcement and application instructions here: https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=154456

The Assistant Director of Information Technology reports to the Director of Information Technology and has overall responsibility for supporting the Office’s technology needs.

The duties of the Assistant Director of Information Technology include the following, in coordination with and at the direction of the Director of Information Technology:

• Acting as Office liaison with the New York State Office of Information Technology Services and other external agencies and vendors on IT-related matters.

• Implementing technical plans for network enhancement and for better data visualization to make data easier to understand and more accessible to the public.

• Enhancing information systems and managing and upgrading the Office’s website and other internet communication.

• Procuring hardware, software, and services as needed; performing installations and updates; and maintaining inventories.

• Diagnosing and responding to staff’s IT user problems; creating and modifying user network accounts; facilitating and hosting ILS virtual conferences; and updating the ILS website.

• Ensuring all staff are equipped to telecommute because of staff travel obligations.

• Developing and implementing a data reporting portal and creating policies and procedures for the use of the portal.

Salary Range: $81,792 to $92,000

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by May 1, 2024. Please review the full vacancy announcement and application instructions here: https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=155131.

The Albany-based Criminal Defense Representation Counsel will work to assure that the reforms initiated by the Hurrell-Harring settlement and its extension statewide under Executive Law § 832(4) will be implemented effectively in New York State, specifically in Region D which consists of Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Warren, and Washington counties. The Criminal Defense Representation Counsel will report to a Deputy Criminal Defense Representation Chief, who works under the guidance of the Criminal Defense Representation Chief. This position is responsible for the effective implementation of Executive Law § 832(4)(a) (counsel at arraignment), § 832(4)(b) (caseload relief), and § 832(4)(c) (initiatives to improve quality), as well as monitoring implementation and efficacy of these reforms in Region D.

Specific duties include:

• Under the supervision of the Deputy Criminal Defense Representation Chief, and in collaboration with the Criminal Defense Representation team, works toward successful implementation of the ILS reform plans within the region, identifies challenges to implementation, and works with county officials and providers of public defense to develop creative solutions to meet the challenges.

• Consults with the providers of legal representation in the Region D counties and other responsible officials to identify opportunities for enhancing the quality of criminal defense representation provided under article 18-B of the County Law.

• Facilitates the development and implementation of regional initiatives to improve the quality of public criminal defense representation.

• Assists with the implementation and monitoring of caseload/workload standards in criminal cases for each provider of mandated representation in the Region D counties, including representation in both trial and appellate-level cases.

• Works with the Region D providers and counties to ensure that eligible individuals receive quality defense representation at arraignment and monitor progress of the structures put in place to achieve this goal.

• Assists in maximizing the use of state funding by Region D counties and public defense providers, including negotiating budgets for ILS contracts with providers and counties within the region.

• Provides consultation to public defense attorneys upon request.

• Works closely with the ILS Research Unit to ensure collection and reporting of all relevant data, and with the ILS Parental Representation Unit and Appellate Support Center to identify areas where quality improvement and greater efficiencies may be achieved.

• Consults regularly with the other ILS staff to problem-solve and promote improved quality representation.

• Undertakes other activities requested by the Director and Counsel in furtherance of the Office’s overall responsibility to make efforts to improve the quality of indigent legal services representation under County Law article 18-B.

Salary: $109,180

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by May 12, 2024. Please review the full vacancy announcement and application instructions here: https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=156199