- Company: Youth Law Australia
- State: Western Australia
- Location: Western Australia, Australia
- Job type: Full-Time
- Salary: Specified in body of job post
- Job category: Legal Services
- Job expires in: 17 days
Senior Solicitor (National Harm Practice)
- Exciting opportunity to join one of Australia’s most important legal practices, assisting young people nation-wide to live free from violence and abuse.
- Work from YLA’s Offices (2 days WFH available) in Sydney, Melbourne, or Hobart, or work remotely from Queensland, Western Australia, or South Australia.
- Well suited to a Senior Solicitor with 5+ years of post-admission experience in providing trauma-informed advice to clients who have experienced trauma or who are at risk of harm, including family, domestic, and sexual violence; or in providing legal assistance to children and young people.
- Join the team at a SCHADS 6-7 position, depending on skills and experience.
- FBT salary packaging (both living expenses and meals & entertainment) and additional self-care leave available.
Youth Law Australia (YLA)
YLA is the national children’s and youth Community Legal Centre (CLC). We provide high quality, free and confidential legal assistance services to children, young people, and their families and advocates nationally in all areas of the law. YLA is a fast-paced, high-volume legal centre that provides over 6,000 legal services to clients each year. YLA is committed to being a child-safe organisation.
YLA aims to enhance children and young people’s access to and engagement with their legal rights; assistance to exercise these rights; and to remedies when these rights are violated.
YLA’s objective is to fulfill these aims by providing appropriate and targeted legal information, advice, education, representation, and advocacy.
Amongst other things, YLA provides:
- YLA website, the leading community legal information resource for young Australians. The site is an accessible, 24/7 pathway to legal information and assistance: yla.org.au.
- Get help now, the free, confidential legal information, advice, and assistance service for all young Australians. Get help now is a clear and timely “next step” for help-seekers and access is by webform, phone, or email.
- Live webchat access for young Australians at risk of or experiencing a broad range of harms or maltreatment.
Headquartered at the University of New South Wales, YLA is an accredited CLC and holds specialist consultative status (children’s rights) with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. YLA was founded in 1993 as the National Children’s and Youth Law Centre.
About the role
YLA is recruiting a Senior Solicitor to work within YLA’s Harm Practice and participate in a national program providing technology-enabled legal services to children and young people with a particular focus on family and domestic violence, sexual abuse, exploitation, cyber harm, and other forms of maltreatment.
This is an opportunity to join an important legal practice that champions the rights of young people, nationwide, by facilitating access to justice for any legal problem. You will help to lead a team dedicated to preventing and intervening early in the maltreatment of young people.
In this role you will be:
- Working at the forefront of legal innovation. The live webchat service is the first and only national live webchat in the community legal assistance sector, delivering legal support in real time to any young person, anywhere in Australia, on any harm related matter. You will be predominantly providing one off assistance via live-chat, phone, and email, with some occasional opportunities to provide casework and other ongoing assistance.
- Making a positive difference in the lives of young people Australia-wide.
- Collaborating with dedicated Solicitors and committed children’s rights advocates.
- Using technology to facilitate access to justice.
The Senior Solicitor will report to and work under the supervision of YLA’s Principal Solicitors and will work closely with YLA’s Director, fellow solicitors, pro bono solicitors, law student volunteers, interns, and trainees to provide technology-enabled legal information, advice, and one-off assistance. YLA provides close supervision, and a trauma informed and supportive team environment. Because YLA’s practice is paperless and delivered via YLA’s bespoke technology platform, collaboration, support, and supervision occurs within our online network of lawyers and law student volunteers.
About you
The Senior Solicitor should have a commitment to children’s rights or human rights more broadly, dedication to enhancing access to justice, or an interest in technology and how it can be used to enhance access to justice.
Interested Senior Solicitors should also have a moderate to high level of technological proficiency and be comfortable working across and learning to use multiple digital platforms, including live chat, soft phone, email and in online case management systems.
We strongly encourage interest from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for all positions.
Specific Responsibilities
- Providing verbal and written legal advice, information and referrals and assistance via telephone, online chat, and email, for or on behalf of young people (under 25) across Australia.
- Updating and creating harm related legal factsheets on YLA.org.
- Working collaboratively with other Junior Solicitors, Senior Solicitors, and Principal Solicitors based in different jurisdictions to promote and deliver YLA’s services.
- Providing detailed advice and one-off assistance such as drafting letters, complaints, applications, or support for self-represented litigants.
- In limited cases, providing ongoing support, assistance, casework, and legal representation to vulnerable young people. Please note that this role is predominately funded to provide one off legal advice, minor assistance, and information rather than ongoing casework or litigation.
- Participating in stakeholder engagement and business development activities.
- Where applicable assisting with Community Legal Education, law and legal services reform.
- Collaboratively developing and maintaining accurate information sources for young people.
- Maintaining accurate records, files, accountabilities, and reporting.
Desirable Criteria
- Must have or be eligible for a practicing certificate in one or more of New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, Western Australia, or South Australia. The applicant must have experience practicing in one or more of those jurisdictions.
- Should have at least 5 years of post-admission practice experience.
- Experience providing generalist legal services, or a demonstrated capability to develop a broad knowledge of and practice in the law (this role may suit a lawyer with experience as an employee or volunteer in a Community Legal Centre, at Legal Aid, an Aboriginal Legal Service, or other justice agency).
- Experience working with clients experiencing family and domestic violence, sexual abuse and/or cyber harm is highly desirable.
- Demonstrated ability to work without close supervision, set priorities, organise, manage own workloads, and meet deadlines.
- Senior Solicitors should have experience signing off on legal advice and managing their own caseload. Provision of efficient, timely and accurate legal advice services is essential.
- Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, and an ability to support, supervise and train junior lawyers and student volunteers, interns, and practical legal trainees using digital platforms.
- If requiring remote work, demonstrated experience in maintaining a safe work environment while receiving support, training and supervision remotely and a willingness to work in co-located space if a suitable agency partnership is identified.
- Experience working with children and young people and providing trauma informed telephone and electronic advice to clients who have experienced trauma or who are at risk of harm.
How to Apply
Please submit a resume and a separate cover letter which addresses each of the desirable criteria (‘complete application’). Please also indicate which jurisdiction you would like to work in. Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.
Applications should be emailed to careers@yla.org.au, using the subject line: Senior Solicitor position (National Harm Practice) – Youth Law Australia.
Successful applicants will be asked to undertake a national criminal record check and a working with children check/ working with vulnerable people check.
Applications close at 11:59PM on Sunday 6 October 2024.
Contact
If you have any questions about the position, please direct them to careers@yla.org.au so that we may discuss further.