General Counsel

About Legal Services NYC

Legal Services NYC (LSNYC) fights poverty and seeks racial, social, and economic justice for low-income New Yorkers. As the largest civil legal services provider in the country, our staff of 700 people in neighborhood-based offices across all five boroughs provides high-quality, free legal assistance to more than 100,000 New Yorkers annually. For almost 60 years, we have challenged systemic injustice and helped New Yorkers meet basic needs related to housing, income, immigration, family, education, and health. We partner with scores of community-based and client-run organizations, elected officials, public agencies, pro bono lawyers, and the courts to maximize our effectiveness. Our work fights discrimination and helps to achieve equal opportunity for all low-income New Yorkers.

LSNYC currently has a staff of over 700, including attorneys, paralegals and social workers as well as administrative professionals.  We are a unionized program with over 500 of those employees belonging to a wall to wall union, LSSA 2320. 

Job description

LSNYC seeks a highly motivated and dedicated attorney to join its team as General Counsel. A new position, the General Counsel will report to LSNYC’s Executive Director and work closely with the LSNYC’s Senior Leadership team to provide high-level guidance to the organization

This is a challenging role, requiring a high level of expertise in multiple areas of law, as well as strategic thinking skills. The ideal candidate will have strong labor law and employment law experience and supervisory/management experience in a nonprofit unionized environment, and must have the ability and desire to stay up-to-date with legal trends and development and if needed, learn new areas of the law so as to best serve the organization.

Duties and Responsibilities

The successful candidate will be responsible for performing and/or supervising staff executing the following duties and responsibilities:

• Providing labor and employment law advice to LSNYC’s Executive Director and senior management, and, when appropriate, in consultation with outside counsel.
• Advising senior management on grievances under the CBA, conducting grievance hearings as requested and representing the organization in arbitration or collaborating with outside counsel in preparing for arbitrations.
• Assisting with collective bargaining, including responding to union information requests.
• Providing guidance for the organization in risk management including proactive solutions to manage risk.
• Representing the organization or assisting with litigation and other matters in which LSNYC and/or its employees are parties, including working with outside counsel.
• Advising and training on professional responsibility matters and identifying and resolving client conflicts of interest.
• Reviewing real estate leases;
• Drafting agreements for the organization.
• Reviewing and negotiating grants and contracts with funders, vendors, and subcontractors.
• Supervising LSNYC’s Compliance department which ensures compliance with applicable laws governing New York nonprofits, including New York’s Not-for-Profit Corporation Law.
• Developing and updating office policies.
• Performing other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and state bar admission in New York or eligibility for immediate membership.
• Minimum of 10 years of legal experience.
• Substantial supervisory/managerial experience.
• Labor and employment law experience, including supervisory/managerial experience in a unionized environment.
• Experience with corporate governance and regulatory and compliance issues.
• Excellent judgment and discretion, and the ability to balance legal risks with business demands.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to further the goals of a mission-driven organization and to be guided by its values.
• Ability to work well with diverse constituencies.
• Demonstrated commitment to public interest work and/or supporting work for social change.

Compensation & Benefits 

LSNYC offers an excellent benefits package and highly competitive public interest salary. Our benefits include health, dental and vision plans, contributions to a 403(b) plan, and generous leave time. 

Salary Range 

$171,978.00 - $222,343.00 USD, commensurate with experience.  

Work Location 
This is a hybrid position based in New York City with a minimum of 5 in-office days over each two-week period. 

How to Apply 

Interested individuals should submit a resume and cover letter via the Greenhouse portal. 

Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted. No telephone calls, please. 

Legal Services NYC is an equal opportunity employer. People of color, women, people with disabilities, people over 40, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people are strongly encouraged to apply.