Employment Opportunities at ILS

This position is based in Buffalo at the New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services’ (ILS’) Western New York Regional Support Center (WNY RSC), a satellite office of ILS, which is based in Albany. The WNY RSC addresses the compelling need for ILS to provide state expertise for local governments and providers of public defense to assure that the reforms initiated by the Hurrell-Harring settlement and its extension statewide under Executive Law § 832(4) will be implemented as effectively and as efficiently as possible in western New York counties.

The WNY RSC houses the Attorney in Charge and three staff attorneys, one Resource Support and Data Specialist, and one Administrative Assistant. The WNY RSC works collaboratively and directly with the counties in the WNY Region and their public defense providers (i.e., Public Defenders, Conflict Defenders, Legal Aid Societies and Assigned Counsel Programs) to achieve quality improvement reforms. All case-related information and knowledge obtained in the performance of these duties is highly confidential and may be subject to attorney-client privilege.

The attorney in this position will serve as Assistant Counsel and report to the Director of Quality Enhancement, Parent Representation in Albany, who works under the guidance of the Director of ILS (“Director”) and agency Counsel (“Counsel”). The Assistant Counsel will also work collaboratively with the Attorney-in-Charge and other staff in the WNY RSC to address public defense provider-specific needs and to promote regional initiatives.

Specific duties include:
• Working closely with other members of the WNY RSC and the Family Representation Unit at ILS, state and county officials, public defense providers and other interested organizations and individuals to facilitate development and implementation of regional initiatives, particularly in the area of parent representation in Family Court matters with a focus on utilization of an interdisciplinary, client-centered approach to representation;

• Serving as the ILS point person for counties in the region and their providers of mandated Family Court representation, assisting in the development and implementation of programs, initiatives, and competitive grant proposals to fulfill ILS’s responsibility to make efforts to improve the quality of representation in Family Court matters. This will include regular communication with the Family Court providers, stakeholders, and county officials and periodic travel to the counties.

• Working collaboratively with the Attorney-in-Charge and other staff at WNY RSC towards successful implementation of the ILS reform plans within the region, identifying challenges to implementation, and working collaboratively with county officials and public defense providers to develop creative solutions to meet the challenges. This includes regular communication with the counties, their providers, and occasional in-person meetings in the counties;

• Assisting in the development of curricula and training materials for the representation of parents in Family Court matters;

• Providing consultation to public defense attorneys in matters involving the representation of parents in Family Court matters upon request:

• Assisting with the planning, conducting, and evaluation of ILS’ biennial family defense state-wide conference;

• Monitoring and developing content for the ILSFAM listserv, including periodic case digests and legislative updates, training opportunities, and current events;

• Assisting in the preparation of reports as needed in support of ILS’s responsibility to examine, evaluate, and monitor provision of legally mandated representation in Family Court matters;

• Working closely with the WNY Resource Support and Data Specialist to promote access to non-attorney professional support services and to ensure collection and reporting of all relevant data, and with WNY RSC Criminal Defense Counsel and Appellate Counsel to identify inefficiencies and propose structural improvements in the delivery of representation;

• Occasional overnight travel to Albany for in-person meetings with ILS colleagues;

• Undertaking such other activities as may be requested by the Director and Counsel in furtherance of ILS’ overall responsibility to improve the quality of indigent legal services representation under County Law Article 18-B.

Salary: $109,180

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by April 30, 2025. The full vacancy announcement and application instructions can be found here: https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=180620

The Criminal Defense Representation Counsel, Region G is based in ILS’ Western New York Regional Support Center (WNY RSC) in Buffalo. The WNY RSC addresses the compelling need for ILS to provide state expertise for WNY county governments and providers of public defense services and to assure that the reforms initiated by the Hurrell-Harring settlement and its extension statewide under Executive Law § 832(4) are implemented as effectively and as efficiently as possible. This position works directly with county based criminal public defense providers, including Public Defender Offices, Conflict Defender Offices, legal aid societies and Assigned Counsel Programs. This position does not engage in direct representation of clients.

The Criminal Defense Representation Counsel, Region G is responsible for the effective implementation of Executive Law § 832(4)(a) (counsel at arraignment), § 832(4)(b) (caseload relief), and § 832(4)(c) (initiatives to improve quality), as well as monitoring implementation and efficacy of these reforms in Region G which consists of Cayuga, Monroe, Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Tompkins, Wayne, and Yates counties. This position reports to the Attorney in Charge of the Western New York Regional Support Center, who works under the guidance of the Criminal Defense Representation Chief.

Specific duties include:

• Under the supervision of the Attorney in Charge of WNY RSC, and in collaboration with the Criminal Defense Representation team, works toward successful implementation of the ILS reform plans within the region, identifies challenges to implementation, and works with county officials and providers of public defense to develop creative solutions to meet the challenges.

• Consults with the providers of legal representation in the Region G counties and other responsible officials to identify opportunities for enhancing the quality of criminal defense representation provided under article 18-B of the County Law.

• Facilitates the development and implementation of regional initiatives to improve the quality of public criminal defense representation, including regionalizing access to specialized professional supports for criminal defense representation.

• Assists with the implementation and monitoring of caseload/workload standards in criminal cases for each provider of mandated representation in the Region G counties, including representation in both trial and appellate-level cases.

• Works with the Region G providers and counties to ensure that eligible individuals receive quality defense representation at arraignment and monitor progress of the structures put in place to achieve this goal.

• Assists in maximizing the use of state funding by Region G counties and public defense providers, including negotiating budgets for ILS contracts with providers and counties within the region.

• Provides consultation to public defense attorneys upon request.

• Works closely with the Resource Support and Data Specialist and ILS’ Research Unit to ensure collection and reporting of all relevant data, and with the WNY RSC Family Court Counsel and Appellate Counsel to identify areas where quality improvement and greater efficiencies may be achieved.

• Consults regularly with the other ILS staff to problem-solve and promote improved quality representation.

• Undertakes other activities as requested in furtherance of the Office’s overall responsibility to make efforts to improve the quality of indigent legal services representation under County Law article 18-B.

Salary: $109,180

Application Deadline and Instructions: Applications are due by April 25, 2025. The full vacancy announcement and application instructions can be found here:https://statejobs.ny.gov/public/vacancyDetailsView.cfm?id=183442.