As most folks know, Voices for Civil Justice has been remaking the way we think about civil legal aid and access to justice.  While on one level it has merely been seeking the best way to talk to policy makers, the public and the profession, at a much deeper level, what it has been finding has put us at the forefront of an unprecedented process of change in how we think about, and indeed organize our movement.

Among the key ideas have been the value of thinking about “legal aid,” as a broad phrase that includes “court-based legal aid” services such as self-help centers and forms, as well as the new phrase “community-based legal aid,” which some of us think is the best way to describe the traditional nonprofit legal services community.  Similarly, the initiative has found the great value of focusing on the needs of middle income as well as poor, and a variety of services beyond traditional “full service” lawyering.

So the opening for a Communications Associate at the project, more details of which appear below, is a wonderful opportunity not only to work with some of the most highly regarded experts both in access to justice and in media and communications (BerlinRosen), but also to be a very significant part of this re-conceptualization process.

For a person in the court world, this would be an even more exciting opportunity, in my personal opinion, because while the project has been absolutely phenomenal in getting media coverage about the traditional legal aid sector, it has, so far, found it somewhat harder in the court-based legal aid area.  A wonderful exception is here in this NYT article that covers the whole combined filed.  So the person who has the experience and contacts that can help bring it all together would be a find indeed.

Here is the description of responsibilities and skills required for the position:

Responsibilities and Tasks

• Develop story ideas and sources for pitching to the media by working with Voices’ extensive national network of legal aid lawyers, court personnel, pro bono attorneys and others
• Increase the circulation and amplify the impact of successful media placements by using social media, email and other outlets
• Assist with developing and drafting blog posts, op-eds, social media posts and other written communications
• Grow and maintain a robust network of legal aid lawyers, court personnel, and other experts and spokespeople by optimizing Voices’ use of Salesforce and integrating it with Voices’ website and MailChimp account
• Track Voices’ media placements and other significant legal aid media clips and post them to the Voices website
• Perform other duties as required to accomplish Voices’ objectives of heightened media presence and communications capacity for civil legal aid

Required Education, Experience, Knowledge and Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong news sense and knowledge of the media
• Proficiency in Word, Excel and PowerPoint, as well as facility in Salesforce (or comparable constituent relationship management software) and WordPress (or comparable web platform);
• Adept at social media
• Familiar with and interested in the issues that concern the legal aid sector and the civil courts, including problems of poverty and income inequality, as well as access to affordable housing, employment, health care and education
  Bachelor’s degree or experience in a communications-related field

Its the perfect opportunity for someone.  I hope they take it.  Please spread the word.