Civil Action Practice Director of CAP Community Intake

Overview

Overview

The Bronx Defenders (BxD) is an innovative, progressive public defense office in the South Bronx. We are seeking a Director of CAP Community Intake to lead and supervise our community services.

Founded in 1997, BxD is a public defender nonprofit that has developed a nationally recognized model of representation called holistic defense, which provides people with teams of lawyers, social workers, and advocates to defend them zealously in court and address the underlying drivers and enmeshed penalties of legal system involvement.

Our office now has more than 400 staff members who defend nearly 20,000 New Yorkers facing incarceration, family separation, eviction, and deportation (among other devastating consequences) in criminal, family, civil, and immigration proceedings each year.

We continue reimagining the role of public defense even further, using community organizing and engagement, legislative advocacy, and impact litigation to partner with the communities we represent to bring about long-lasting systemic change. We also share our model and lessons learned on how to move to a holistic model of representation with current and future public defenders throughout the country.

Civil Action

A sweeping array of civil punishments are triggered the moment someone faces arrest, deportation, or family separation. The people we represent risk losing their jobs, homes, income, property, and basic civil rights—struggles that can be more devastating and long-lasting than the charges themselves. Last year, we helped 2,200 people obtain concrete benefits like maintaining their jobs, homes, income, property, and rights.

Civil Holistic Defense Team 

Our goal is to minimize the severe and often unforeseen fallout from criminal, family and immigration court proceedings and facilitate the seamless reintegration of the people we represent into the community. Our CAP attorneys, advocates, and social workers represent and advocate for impacted people in every forum in New York City—administrative, state, and federal—to address these problems. Our civil staff provide comprehensive representation to assist in overcoming civil legal barriers to housing, eviction, employment, and public benefits, as well as addressing instances of police misconduct, criminal record errors, and civil forfeiture.

Housing Justice and the Right to Counsel Team 

Recognizing the challenges to accessing affordable, quality, and safe housing in New York City, The Bronx Defenders has a team exclusively dedicated to providing tenants at risk of losing their homes with defense attorneys for their Housing Court cases. Our Housing Team was developed in response to the 2017 New York City Right-to-Counsel Law, which provides tenants facing eviction in Housing Court and New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) administrative proceedings with access to free legal representation.

Community Intake Team

The Bronx Defenders has Community Intake advocates across all practices which allows members of the Bronx community to walk into our office or call our community hotlines and proactively seek legal assistance with criminal, family, immigration, and civil legal issues.

Description

Reporting to the Managing Director of the Civil Action Practice, the Director of CAP Community Intake will oversee CAP’s community services and intake functions by providing leadership, supervision, and support to both attorney and non-attorney staff. This position focuses on ensuring effective advocacy and representation for clients facing challenges in housing, employment, and reentry, while also strengthening connections and creating systems with community-facing services within the practice and across the organization. This role will have a reduced case load.

Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee CAP community intake operations to ensure collaborative, timely, and effective assessment, referrals, and case management for community members
• Develop and implement systems and best practices for client services, intake protocols, and data tracking
• Coordinate and collaborate with community-facing services, including benefits advocacy, community intake, and early defense/early advocacy teams
• Guide community education, litigation, and advocacy strategies related to CAP’s community services in the areas of housing, employment, and reentry rights
• Build and sustain partnerships with community-based organizations, government agencies, and coalitions to enhance service delivery
• Provide direct oversight of community services staff and ensure high-quality advocacy for Bronx residents
• Represent CAP community intake in internal leadership meetings and external coalitions or advocacy forums

Leadership

• Provide strategic leadership and direction for the Civil Action Practice’s community intake and services
• Model a collaborative, equity-centered leadership style that empowers attorneys and non-attorney advocates
• Foster a supportive, inclusive work environment that promotes professional growth, accountability, and shared learning
• Champion holistic defense values by ensuring integration across criminal, civil, family, and immigration practices
• Serve as a thought leader in developing strategies to address systemic barriers in housing, employment, and reentry
• Serve as a member of CAP’s management team

Supervision

• Serve as the primary supervisor of CAP staff attorneys and advocates who provide services for clients and in the community in our core areas, including housing, employment, and reentry
• Monitor caseloads, supervise casework, and ensure compliance with professional and ethical standards
• Review and provide substantive feedback on client, written, and oral advocacy work
• Complete annual employee evaluations
• Regularly evaluate and adjust workflow of staff members as necessary to ensure equitable and sustainable distribution of work

Community Engagement

• Develop and strengthen relationships with Bronx community members, grassroots organizations, and coalitions to expand access to services and advocacy
• Represent CAP at community meetings, public forums, and advocacy campaigns
• Promote community education and outreach initiatives, including workshops, know-your-rights sessions, and partnerships with local service providers
• Ensure CAP community intake is responsive to community needs and actively incorporates community feedback into practice goals and strategies
• Engage community coalitions, advocates, and public officials in dialogue about the civil legal needs of Bronx community members

Grants Management & Fundraising

• Work closely with the development team to identify, secure, and manage grants supporting CAP and our community services
• Oversee grant reporting and compliance, ensuring alignment with funder requirements and organizational priorities
• Contribute to fundraising initiatives, including cultivating donor relationships and representing CAP at funder meetings and events

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (JD) and admission to practice law in New York (or eligibility to waive in)
• Minimum 6 years of civil legal services experience, with a focus on litigating housing, employment, and/or reentry related matters
• At least 2 years demonstrated experience supervising both attorneys and non-attorney advocates
• Strong leadership skills and proven ability to manage community-based legal services and intake operations
• Experience in grants management, fundraising, and external representation preferred
• Commitment to holistic, client-centered representation and advocacy for low-income communities
• Strong organizational, case management, and communication skills
• Ability to build effective collaborations with interdisciplinary teams, community partners, and external stakeholders
• Deep commitment to racial justice, equity, and systemic reform for marginalized communities
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to effectively engage with attorneys, advocates, court personnel, and elected representatives’ offices
• Fluency or high proficiency in Spanish, validated objectively, is preferred, as the role requires frequent interaction with Spanish-speakers
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
• Ability to effectively and respectfully communicate, and collaborate with people from various backgrounds, identities, experiences and in circumstances of crisis
• Ability to think critically and creatively under pressure
• Ability to receive critical feedback constructively, reflect, and shift behavior accordingly
• Meticulous attention to detail 
• Ability to exercise excellent judgment, discretion, and confidentiality around sensitive issues

This is an in-person position. Work during evenings and weekends may also be

necessary.

• Salary is commensurate with experience. For candidates with 6 8

1. years of directly relevant experience, the salary range for this position is approximately $127,00

– $132,066.00. Full-time employees are also eligible for a comprehensive benefits package including but not limited to medical, dental, and vision coverage; 403(b) plan with employer contribution; and a generous vacation, sick leave, and parental leave policy.

Approximately 70% of The Bronx Defenders’ staff, including attorneys and non- attorneys, are represented by UAW Local 2325 – Association of Legal Aid Attorneys (AFL- CIO). This position is not within the bargaining unit.

This position is salaried and exempt. By law, nonexempt employees are compensated hourly based on their annual rate and therefore are entitled to overtime.

To apply, please click APPLY TO THIS JOB ONLINE and upload your resume and cover letter in one document. Your resume will be used to determine your salary based on the number of years of directly relevant professional experience and should include all relevant professional experience. Applications without a written cover letter will not be considered.

The Bronx Defenders is an equal opportunity employer and is cultivating a workplace that embraces staff with a diversity of backgrounds, identities, and experiences. We acknowledge the ways in which systemic oppression and injustice can undermine access to professional opportunities and are committed to conducting hiring and promotion processes that are equitable and accessible to those commonly excluded from the workforce. We do not discriminate against and encourage applicants from marginalized communities to apply, including those who identify as Black, Indigenous, people of color, queer, transgender, gender non-conforming, disabled, neurodivergent, and those directly impacted by criminal, civil, family, and immigration legal systems. We value lived as well as professional experience and particularly welcome applications from the Bronx community that we work with.