Eviction Defense Housing Paralegal/Legal Assistant – San Francisco, CA

Full-time, Exempt

Hybrid, (3 days minimum in office)

About Us:

It always seems impossible until its done. – Nelson Mandela

We believe that even the biggest problems can be broken down into small, achievable steps. Poverty and access to justice are part of the same problem. And to solve this, we just need to discover what the steps are. At Open Door Legal, were pioneering the countrys first system of universal access to civil legal representation to dramatically reduce poverty and prove that the law really can belong to all of us. Weve grown 100x since our founding, and in the next 3 years, we hope to finish scaling across San Francisco and eventually become a model across the country. To achieve this ambitious goal, weve created an award-winning and best-in-class legal aid organization full of creative, results-oriented people.

We believe that injustice is the heart of poverty, and we’re looking for someone to help us make a systemic impact on how we, as a society, ensure justice for all.

Overview of Position:

We are hiring an Eviction Defense (UD) Housing Paralegal/Legal Assistant to provide critical support to our housing team. We help low-income families stay in their homes and prevent homelessness. Even with positive legal outcomes, our clients can face a lot of confusion, fear, and anxiety over the next steps regarding their housing and cases. The Housing Paralegal/Legal Assistant is going to help clients navigate their legal journey with us as well as be a crucial part of building successful cases. Overall, this position is intended to be a challenging yet extremely rewarding experience for someone looking to make a difference in clients lives with an innovative, results-oriented, and fast-growing organization.

Day-to-day tasks include: providing basic rights advice (with attorney supervision, assisting with intakes, completing court forms for clients cases, triaging potential clients, coordinating timely service of process, physically filing documents at San Francisco Superior Court, communicating case progress to clients, and follow-up communications with clients including drafting letters and other correspondence.

You will be the paralegal/legal assistant for the eviction defense (UD) housing legal practice, working with multiple attorneys. The work is fast-paced and will require you to be organized, think critically and dynamically, and demonstrate empathy and awareness in understanding the needs of our community. This position will be in the office at least three days per week. You will report directly to our Supervising Eviction Defense Housing Attorney but will also work closely with our UD housing team.

Responsibilities:

• Embrace and embody our mission of universal access to civil legal aid and our values of passion, grit, dynamism, caring, and teamwork to ensure that everyone in our service area, with a viable housing problem gets appropriate help, including legal representation.
• Own a full paralegal caseload (as per team needs) and communicate with clients regarding case status, documentation needs, and next steps under attorney supervision. Draft routine client correspondence including follow-ups and case closure letters.
• Support eviction defense (UD) housing intakes in-person and virtually across multiple physical Open Door Legal locations.
• Draft court forms to file in court, such as fee waivers, proofs of service, sub-in and sub-outs, and other more complicated filings relevant to the Housing Team.
• Execute timely and error-free filings and mailings, ensuring they are high-quality and within the deadline. If needed, physically go to SF Superior Court to file, deliver courtesy copies and/or pick up orders, and E-file any filings as required.
• Work with the attorney and client to assist with fact-gathering for the clients case using information technologies, calling possible witnesses, or business or government agencies.
• With attorney supervision, draft pleadings, propound and respond to discovery, and assist attorneys in drafting motions.
• Assist in providing trauma-informed legal services and help clients stay updated on their case, helping to maintain consistently positive client feedback scores. Meet clients where they are, factoring in their cultural and socio-economic backgrounds and any barriers to service.
• Efficiently utilize Salesforce, our client management system (CMS), to document case activities, maintain detailed and accurate client records, and ensure timely record updates.
• Commit to leading the office in representing our mission and values externally to potential clients, clients, and others, as well as internally to all teammates and volunteers. Our values are passion, grit, teamwork, caring, and dynamism.
• Provide clear information to guests and clients regarding their case, maintaini…