Attorney, Institutional Rights and Civil Liberties Team

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Disability Rights Texas is hiring an Attorney for the IRCL Team based in Fort Worth, Texas or Dallas, Texas.

About the Team

Disability Rights Texas (DRTX) is the federally designated legal protection and advocacy organization for people with disabilities in Texas to protect and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.

The Institutional Rights and Civil Liberties Team (IRCL) serves the following people:

• Persons with mental illness living in institutions and in the community;
• Persons with intellectual disabilities living in state supported living centers or who have recently transitioned to the community for up to 90 days;
• Persons with mental illness and/or intellectual disabilities in jails and juvenile justice facilities

Services provided include:

• Community integration and prevention of institutionalization
• Abuse and neglect investigations (primary and secondary)
• Advocacy regarding rights violations
• Guardianship restoration

The Team Attorney for Institutional Rights and Civil Liberties (IRCL) in Fort Worth will be responsible for monitoring two state-run forensic psychiatric hospitals North Texas State Hospital – Vernon and North Texas State Hospital – Wichita Falls, as well as other institutions as assigned. The attorney may also be assigned to cases from Mexia State Supported Living Center, a forensic state supported living center. The attorney is responsible for identifying and investigating abuse, neglect, and rights violations, and drafting complaints based on the findings of the investigation; providing legal services and determining eligibility under Organization priorities; conducting legal research; negotiating outcomes; and representing clients in administrative hearings and in state and federal judicial proceedings. This position provides legal assistance, direction, and supervision of an Advocate’s case work, when appropriate. The IRCL Team Attorney also provides education and training sessions for people with disabilities, advocates, and professionals/service providers and the community.

Physical/Mental Requirements

1. Uses personal computer approximately 6-7 hours per day.
2. Uses telephone and email to communicate with clients and other professionals, approximately 3-5 hours per day.
3. Spends approximately 1-3 hours per day in meetings.
4. Sits approximately 6-7 hours per day.
5. Requires working under a moderate degree of stress (time constraints; deadlines; multi-tasking high-level projects and issues; complex issues; and conflict resolution).
6. Moderate travel (25-30%) for monitoring and to meet with clients or handle case-related matters as needed, including regular travel to Wichita Falls, Texas and Vernon, Texas.

Essential Functions

• Monitors assigned institutional facilities regularly, and other institutions as requested.
  1. Monitoring means going unaccompanied around the facility and, through a combination of talking to residents and observation, picking up potential cases to further investigate. It is rewarding and exhausting. A good monitor is curious, tenacious, observant, adept at building quick rapport with clients, and is able to identify issues that merit further investigation.
• Independently identifies abuse, neglect, and rights violations through monitoring.
• Investigates potential cases, reviews medical and facility records, compiles evidence, and determines whether further action needs to be taken.
• Provides legal services and advice to individuals eligible for Disability Rights Texas services, which may include legal advocacy, negotiation, mediation, litigation, and handling of administrative and court proceedings.
  1. While an IRCL attorney practices law and carries a litigation caseload, most of our cases are resolved through administrative processes. This is not the job for someone who wants to regularly file lawsuits.
• Conceptualizes case strategies and develops case work based on proper legal concepts and established precedents. Is creative in finding solutions and reaching outcomes.
• Clearly communicates with clients, fellow staff members, institution staff, and other necessary parties, and documents case file to reflect activity in case and case status.
• Responds to requests for assistance and determines eligibility for services.
• Provides direction and technical assistance to Advocates, when appropriate.
• Develops and/or maintains ongoing caseload within the level established by the agency's client services policies and procedures and meets expectations for litigation.
• Provides technical assistance on an ongoing basis to private attorneys representing persons with disabilities
• Develops materials for and conducts a selected number of education and training (E&T) presentations on Disability Rights Texas's services and legal rights issues.
• Maintains effective communication.
• Travels as needed to provide services.
• Appropriately prioritizes tasks as needed and multi-tasks numerous responsibilities in a timely manner.
• Establishes personal credibility throughout and outside the organization, in order to be an effective partner and advisor.
• Effectively and regularly communicates with employees, clients, and the public at the individual, team and organizational levels.
• Maintains thorough and complete records.
• Develops and maintains collaborative, cooperative relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including clients, the community, the board of directors as well as employees at all levels of the organization.
• Applies the principles of the organization’s vision and values in all work-related business and interactions.
• Performs other duties as requested or required.

Required Qualifications

1. Law Degree plus Texas Law License.
2. Demonstrated legal skills including the ability to develop and evaluate facts and apply knowledge to client outcomes; the ability to analyze and apply legal rules and principles in order to develop case strategies; the ability to conduct legal research and apply information to case strategy; the ability to conduct an investigation and gather all pertinent facts; and the ability to form logical and legal conclusions from the information.
3. Demonstrated effective written and oral communication skills including the articulation of well thought out arguments; drafting complaints, briefs, memorandums of law and other pleadings; conducting depositions and other discovery methods; engaging in negotiations and settlement discussions; writing demand letters and other correspondence.
4. Demonstrated knowledge of complex state and federal rights protection statutes, laws and regulations.
5. Awareness and knowledge of problems experienced by persons with disabilities.
6. Ability and willingness to travel to all parts of the state including overnight trips
7. Excellent interpersonal, relationship-building and collaboration skills to be able to work effectively with others inside and outside of the organization; relationship builder with the flexibility and finesse to “manage by influence.”
8. Demonstrated public speaking skills to conduct education and training sessions.
9. Comply with organizational standards regarding legal case development and management
10. Maintain licensure to practice law in Texas
11. Proven ability to lead, mentor and train others.
12. Experience working with governmental entities including school districts, state and federal agencies and service providers
13. The ability to take direction and independently follow through on all instructions.
14. The ability to create collaboration among stakeholders and other disability groups.
15. Excellent detail-orientation, follow-up skills and organizational skills plus the ability to multi-task and work under challenging conditions while meeting deadlines.
16. Demonstrated ability to manage individual workload so services are delivered timely and appropriately.
17. Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and legal case management software (such as Legal Files).
18. High level of commitment to service excellence, plus high degrees of integrity, ethics and judgment are a must.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Bilingual in Spanish – both written and spoken word