Maine Equal Justice is a nonprofit legal aid and economic justice organization located in Augusta, Maine that represents the interests of people with low income in the state legislature, before the courts and administrative agencies, and through outreach and education in the community.
We work to increase economic security, opportunity, and equity in Maine, ensuring that people can access adequate health care, food, income security, and higher education and training.
Job Summary:
Maine Equal Justice (MEJ) has an immediate opening for a passionate, mission-driven individual for a full-time Public Benefits Attorney position. This position is made possible by grant funding that expires in January 2027. MEJ cannot guarantee sustaining the position beyond that date.
The Attorney is responsible for handling a range of civil legal needs of low-income (200% FPL and below) residents of Maine with a focus on helping clients access safety net programs like TANF, SNAP, and MaineCare. As a litigator, the attorney will be in court or in administrative hearings on a regular basis to provide representation to clients. The attorney is expected to handle cases before state agencies, in all state courts, and federal court. The attorney is also expected to provide supervision support for the work of legal services paralegals, both in the provision of limited legal assistance and in other work specific to the attorney’s caseload.
In addition to direct representation, the attorney is responsible for supporting MEJ’s systemic advocacy through impact litigation and legal support on administrative and legislative advocacy. The attorney is also responsible for community engagement and networking to increase access to legal services by eligible individuals.
Maine Equal Justice is a nonprofit legal aid and economic justice organization located in Augusta, Maine that represents the interests of people with low income in the state legislature, before the courts and administrative agencies, and through outreach and education in the community. Maine Equal Justice works to increase economic security, opportunity, and equity in Maine, ensuring that people can access adequate health care, food, income security, and higher education and training.
Representative Tasks:
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
Minimum qualifications:
A four (4) year combination of education, training, and/or experience in working on issues that affect low-income people, including direct client contact. Knowledge and experience of the legal system and substantive and procedural law. Law degree required. Knowledge of a spoken language in addition to English is preferred but not required.
Licensing/Registration/Certification Requirements:
Admitted to practice law in Maine.
Location:
This is a hybrid position. There is an expectation to work some days from Portland or Augusta with flexibility to work some remotely as well. Travel throughout the service area should be expected, as well as to court hearings, statewide trainings and meetings.
Salary and Benefits:
Salary range of $68,000 - 72,000 based on experience. Health and dental insurance are provided, with premiums and deductibles mostly covered by employer, as well as employer-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability insurance. MEJ offers retirement accounts with an annual employer contribution, generous vacation time (five weeks vacation in first year of employment), generous sick time, and 14 paid holidays per year.
To Apply:
Submit a letter of interest and a resume addressed to Frank D’Alessandro, Director of Legal Services, and emailed to admin@mejp.org (PDFs preferred). Applications will be accepted until February 16, 2025 (or until the position is filled).
More information about Maine Equal Justice can be found at MaineEqualJustice.org. We encourage people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and those with lived experience of poverty to apply. Maine Equal Justice is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Thinking about applying? Research shows that people from historically excluded communities tend to apply to jobs only when they check every box in the posting. If you’re currently reading this and hesitating to apply for that reason, we encourage you to go for it! Let us know how your lived experience and passion set you apart.
Job Summary:
Maine Equal Justice has an immediate opening for a highly organized, detail-oriented individual for a full-time Housing Paralegal. This position is made possible by grant funding that expires in January 2027. MEJ cannot guarantee sustaining the position beyond that date.
The Housing Paralegal provides direct service to individuals and families that contact Maine Equal Justice (MEJ) for assistance with housing, public benefits, and other basic needs. The paralegal is primarily responsible for conducting intakes, providing advice and referrals, and advocacy under attorney supervision on behalf of clients as appropriate. The paralegal is also responsible for community engagement, outreach, and education to strengthen access to legal services by eligible individuals. The Housing Paralegal is expected to provide support on cases in all state courts and on know-your-rights trainings and outreach at community events.
Maine Equal Justice is a nonprofit legal aid and economic justice organization located in Augusta, Maine that represents the interests of people with low income in the state legislature, before the courts and administrative agencies, and through outreach and education in the community. Maine Equal Justice works to increase economic security, opportunity, and equity in Maine, ensuring that people can access adequate health care, food, income security, and higher education and training.
Representative Tasks:
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
Minimum qualifications:
A three (3) year combination of education, training, and experience in working on issues that affect low-income people, including direct client contact and/or lived experience. General knowledge of and experience with the legal system. Bachelor’s degree preferred. Paralegal experience preferred, but not required.
It is anticipated that many clients seeking help with housing issues will speak Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Lingala. Fluency in any of these languages and/or experience working with interpreters is preferred, but not required.
Licensing/Registration/Certification Requirements:
None
Special Requirements:
None
Location:
This is a hybrid position. Weekly in person presence working in Portland may be necessary. Travel throughout the service area should be expected, with anticipated regular travel to Portland, Lewiston, and Biddeford.
Salary and Benefits:
Salary range of $56,000-$60,000 based on experience. Health and dental insurance are provided, with premiums and deductibles mostly covered by employer, as well as employer-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability insurance. MEJ offers retirement accounts with an annual employer contribution, generous vacation time (five weeks vacation in first year of employment), generous sick time, and 14 paid holidays per year.
To Apply:
Submit a letter of interest and a resume addressed to Frank D’Alessandro, Director of Legal Services, and emailed to admin@mejp.org (PDFs preferred). Applications will be accepted until February 16th, 2025 (or until the position is filled).
More information about Maine Equal Justice can be found at MaineEqualJustice.org. We encourage people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and those with lived experience of poverty to apply. Maine Equal Justice is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Thinking about applying? Research shows that people from historically excluded communities tend to apply to jobs only when they check every box in the posting. If you’re currently reading this and hesitating to apply for that reason, we encourage you to go for it! Let us know how your lived experience and passion set you apart.
Maine Equal Justice welcomes and values interns and volunteers! Whether you are looking for a role to meet work requirements, an internship or externship for an educational program, or another service-learning experience, we want to hear from you. Unfortunately, we cannot offer intern placements in the summer for public policy.
Please complete this form so we can learn more about your interests and timeframe.
You will hear from us within a few days to seek more information if we have an upcoming internship opportunity. Our internships team meets quarterly (generally in early January, April, July and October) to review our need and capacity for internships.
Internships are based on our current capacity and how well the needs of both the organization and the learner fit together. We want to provide a supportive, meaningful experience for people who can also contribute to our work. Unfortunately, we are not able to say yes to every request.
We offer internships in the following areas:
Our organizing team works to build the power of people, especially those living in poverty, to create positive change for Maine. They connect with people around the state through online community meetings, story collection, and strong relationships to build a movement for greater economic and racial justice in Maine.
We work on impact litigation in the courts and with administrative agencies to create lasting positive change on systemic issues that affect groups of people with low incomes. MEJ typically has an internship available for a law student each semester. We receive referrals for legal internships from the University of Maine School of Law and Northeastern Law School. We will consider candidates from other schools.
We provide legal aid to Mainers with low incomes on state-level public benefits issues. We work to ensure Mainers are being treated fairly in accordance with the laws within these programs. Some of the programs h we provide help with are MaineCare, SNAP, and TANF. We typically have an internship available for a Master's level Social Worker to work with our legal services team from September to May. We get referrals from the University of Maine. We will consider candidates from other schools.
Our policy team advocates for laws at the state legislature and within governmental agencies that will help people with low income meet their basic needs and improve their financial circumstances.
Maine Equal Justice is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate because of race, creed, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, marital or family status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other consideration prohibited by law. Persons who are of color, are current or former recipients of public assistance, or have a lived experience of poverty are especially encouraged to apply.
Maine Equal Justice focuses its work on many of the issues that affect people’s daily lives – access to adequate health care, housing, transportation and childcare; food and income security; and higher education and training. Maine Equal Justice is a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization. Our EIN is 04-3346273.
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126 Sewall Street, Augusta ME 04330 (Map) • Toll-free: 1-866-626-7059 • FAX: 207-621-8148
