The Committee for Public Counsel Services, the Massachusetts public defender agency, is seeking a full-time Paralegal with a strong sense of the daily injustices faced by CPCS’ clients and a commitment to fighting those injustices. 

We fight for equal justice and human dignity by supporting our clients in achieving their legal and life goals. We zealously advocate for the rights of individuals and promote just public policy to protect the rights of all.

Our Values

Courage   •   Accountability   •   Respect   •   Excellence

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MISSION STATEMENT

CPCS is committed to protecting the fundamental constitutional and human rights of our assigned clients through zealous advocacy, community-oriented defense, and the fullness of excellent legal representation.  We are dedicated to building and maintaining strong professional relationships, while striving to accept, listen to and respect the diverse circumstances of each client, as we dedicate ourselves to meeting their individual needs.  It is our CPCS mission to achieve these goals, and in furtherance thereof, we embrace and endorse diversity, equity and inclusion as our core values as we maintain a steadfast commitment to: (1) Ensure that CPCS management and staff members represent a broad range of human differences and experience; (2) Provide a work climate that is respectful and supports success; and (3) Promote the dignity and well-being of all staff members. CPCS leadership is responsible for ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion. The ability to achieve these goals with any level of certainty is ultimately the responsibility of each member of the CPCS community.

AGENCY OVERVIEW

CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the            appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one.  The agency provides representation in criminal, delinquency, youthful offender, family regulation, guardianship, mental health, sexually dangerous person, and sex offender registry cases, as well as in appeals and post-conviction and post-judgment proceedings related to those matters.

The clients we represent are diverse across every context imaginable and bring many unique cultural dimensions to the matters we address. This reality creates a critical need for CPCS staff to be culturally competent and able to work well with people of different races, ethnicities, genders and/or sexual orientation identities, abilities, and limited English proficiency, among other protected characteristics.

OFFICE OVERVIEW

The Strategic Litigation Unit (SLU) focuses on the right to counsel and the elimination of systemic injustices impacting CPCS clients, and attempts to remove obstacles faced by CPCS clients through litigation, data collection and analysis, and attorney support. The SLU is responsible for litigation aimed at achieving systemic and institutional reform in all of CPCS’ practice areas.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Strategic Litigation Unit is seeking a full-time paralegal. The paralegal must have a strong sense of the daily injustices faced by CPCS’ clients and a commitment to fighting those injustices. The paralegal will assist the SLU in the development and pursuit of litigation to address systemic issues, such as public records requests and providing support for our databases.

This position will report to the Director of Strategic Litigation.

MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS

Candidates must have:

• A Bachelor's degree or Paralegal certificate;
• Access to reliable transportation in order to travel to locations that are not easily accessible by public transportation; and,
• Access to home internet access sufficient to work remotely.

Substitution: Two years of paralegal experience may be substituted for the degree/certificate.

QUALIFICATIONS/SKILLS

• A strong interest in seeking sustainable systemic and institutional reform on behalf of CPCS’s indigent clients in all practice area;
• Facility with MS Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook;
• Excellent organizational skills;
• Ability to perform factual research via internal records, public records and on-line databases;
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Skills and experience in interacting with persons of various social, racial, cultural economic and educational backgrounds; and,
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively and persuasively orally and in writing.

APPLICATION

Candidates should submit a résumé, writing sample, and letter of interest.  The letter of interest should include a description of the candidate's education and experience, as well as a descriptive statement of the reasons the applicant wishes to work in the SLU.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The duties of the Paralegal include, but are not limited to:

• Factual research via internal records, public records, and on-line databases;
• Preparing and pursuing public record requests and appeals;
• Updating databases and providing support for database users;
• Organizing and summarizing data obtained via discovery;
• Answering phone, written, and email inquiries from individuals, including attorneys;
• Maintaining accurate electronic records of work performed; and,
• Other duties as assigned.

EEO Statement

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran or military status, genetic information, gender identity, or sexual orientation as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other applicable federal and state statutes and organizational policies.  Applicants who have questions about equal employment opportunity or who need reasonable accommodations can contact the Chief Human Resources Officer, Sandra DeBow-Huang, at sdebow@publiccounsel.net