Disability Rights Attorney - Disability Law Colorado

Disability Rights Attorney

FLSA Status: EXEMPT, FULL-TIME (36 hours/week)

Reports to: Co-Legal Director

$72,000 - $105,000 annually

About Disability Law Colorado

Disability Law Colorado (DLC) is a statewide, nonprofit legal organization dedicated to advancing the rights of Coloradans with disabilities. DLC works to achieve fairness and justice for people with disabilities through advocacy, litigation, policy leadership, education, and outreach. As Colorado’s designated Protection and Advocacy System (P&A), we use our federal authority to serve clients with disabilities—everywhere from nursing homes to prisons, schools to voting booths. DLC operates nine federally mandated programs for people with disabilities. For more information about DLC, please visit: http://www.disabilitylawco.org.

Position Overview

As a key member of the Legal Team, the Disability Rights Attorney works on issues such as disability discrimination in healthcare, decision-making, and access to services to live in the least restrictive setting. The Disability Rights Attorney will handle multiple cases and advocacy projects with appropriate supervision depending on experience, including leading individual client representation, administrative practice, appellate advocacy, technical assistance, systemic advocacy, outreach, training, and policy advocacy. This work also includes monitoring facilities including, but not limited to, jails, prisons, Regional Centers, group homes, Community Centered Boards, and psychiatric hospitals. It will also include investigating complaints of abuse, neglect, and rights violations.

Reporting Relationships

The Disability Rights Attorney reports directly to one of two Co-Legal Directors. The Disability Rights Attorney has no direct reports and collaborates across the organization.

Primary Responsibilities

The following duties are an overview of the primary duties and responsibilities of the Disability Rights Attorney and should not be considered an all-inclusive list:

• Provides legal services to clients with disabilities, including self-advocacy assistance, advice, negotiation, representation in administrative complaints, litigation in state and federal court, and administrative and policy advocacy.
• Stays up to date on legal developments in the areas of healthcare – including Medicaid, guardianship and alternatives to guardianship, and Olmstead (the right to live in the least restrictive environment).
• Conducts investigations and monitoring.
• Conducts outreach and training, and produces self-advocacy materials, to increase the capacity of individuals with disabilities to be self-advocates, advance awareness about disability rights issues, and inform the public about DLC’s services.
• Analyzes and evaluates barriers to community living presented by clients and community partners.
• Writes organized and concise public reports, reports to other oversight and enforcement agencies, and internal reports regarding findings, conclusions, and recommendations resulting from investigations or monitoring activities.
• Assists with reviewing, analyzing, and drafting legislation related to disability rights issues, including contacting legislators and testifying before committees.
• Maintains timely and accurate records in accordance with records retention schedules, laws and regulations, ethics, and other requirements.
• Works collaboratively on teams with a spirit of cooperation to support any of DLC’s advocacy, monitoring, or litigation.
• Represents DLC on councils, commissions, work groups, and stakeholder groups, as assigned by supervisor.
• Collaborates with other DLC staff to plan and develop agency priorities, goals, and objectives, and prepare annual program and performance reports.
• Travels throughout Colorado as needed to conduct investigations/monitoring and provide advocacy and client services.
• Attends staff meetings and internal trainings.
• Consistently promotes a professional image of DLC and enthusiastically supports the ideals, mission, and goals of DLC.
• Exhibits work performance consistent with the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct and the National Disability Rights Network’s Standards.
• Exercises discretion, independent judgment, and ethical approaches in job performance.
• Maintains knowledge of all Disability Law Colorado services and program areas.
• Performs other duties, as assigned by one of the Co-Legal Directors.

Required Qualifications

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The individual must also possess these qualifications:

• Juris Doctorate (J.D.) from an accredited law school.
• Member in good standing of the Colorado Bar or admission before beginning this role.
• Ability to work independently in a hybrid or remote environment, as well as under general supervision and on a team.
• At least six months of experience practicing law or serving as a legal intern or law clerk.
• At least six months of experience working with or volunteering with communities experiencing marginalization.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to synthesize complex information.
• Demonstration of appropriate and professional behavior in working with members of the public who may often be in crisis or frustrated with service availability.
• Strong organizational skills.
• Excellent dispute resolution, negotiation, mediation, and facilitation skills.
• A commitment to understanding and updating knowledge about disability legal issues, including how to work with people with disabilities of all kinds.
• Ability to conduct research on applicable laws, practices, services, and other issues.
• Diligence and attention to detail in maintaining accurate records, maintaining confidentiality, and following records retention guidelines.
• Commitment to providing services and advocacy that are focused on continuous improvement, the values of the Protection and Advocacy System, integrity, disability justice, equity, inclusion, and diversity.
• Expertise using Microsoft Office products and other technology, such as Zoom, printers, scanners, file-sharing platforms, databases, timekeeping software, and other applications required to perform the essential functions of the job.
• Comfort with offering training and outreach to a variety of audiences within DLC’s mission.
• Ability and flexibility to travel throughout the state and work nonstandard hours, as needed for monitoring, investigations, training, advocacy, and litigation.
• Ability to conceptualize and develop initial and ongoing case strategies and creative solutions.
• Ability to remain impartial when conducting investigations.
• Ability to triage multiple responsibilities, adapt to client needs (e.g., communication, language, cultural, disability access), be flexible with work assignments, foster collaborative problem-solving, strengthen relationships, and address external and internal concerns and needs.

Preferred Qualifications

The following qualifications are highly desired to advance DLC’s work, but they are not required:

• Bilingual or multilingual.
• Admitted to the United State District Court for the District of Colorado and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10

  th

  Circuit.
• Experience practicing civil rights law, especially disability law.
• Familiarity with administrative processes and complaints at the state and federal levels.
• Familiarity with relevant systems, including jails, prisons, state hospitals, nursing homes, regional centers, Community Centered Boards, special education, Medicaid, guardianship, healthcare discrimination, group homes, and/or host homes.

Work Environment

Applicants for this position must live in Colorado or be willing to relocate to Colorado before they begin the position.

DLC promotes a mostly remote work environment, with the understanding that employees will travel and meet in person as needed for conducting their job functions and collaborating with other staff members, the Board, clients, and partners. (DLC currently has office space in Denver, which is available but not required for employees’ use.) DLC provides equipment to employees to work successfully in a remote environment, including, but not limited to, laptops and phones. This position might require periods of frequent in-state travel to support clients’ needs, however.

DLC provides reasonable accommodations to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their jobs and participate in the recruitment and interview processes. For support with the application process, please contact Esther Brieno at ebrieno@disabilitylawco.org.

Compensation and Benefits

The hiring range for this position is $72,000 to $105,000 annually, depending on experience. (For reference, $88,500 represents five years of experience in a similar position.) Disability Law Colorado offers competitive salaries; generous leave; and an excellent benefits package, which includes a 403(b) retirement savings plan and medical, dental, vision, life, and short term and long-term disability insurance. DLC employees also enjoy a 36-hour workweek as full-time employment, as well as flexible hours.

Application Process

We are committed to having our staff and work reflect our communities. The call of disability rights work is: “Nothing about us without us.’’ We encourage candidates with disabilities and others with lived experience and diverse backgrounds to apply.

DLC will consider applications as they are received. Candidates should submit a cover letter, outlining their interest and qualifications, along with their resume to Esther Brieno at ebrieno@disabilitylawco.org with the subject line: Disability Rights Attorney by January 10, 2025, for priority consideration. Candidates wishing to mail or fax their materials, instead, may send them to:

Esther Brieno, Operations Manager

Disability Law Colorado

455 Sherman Street, Suite 130

Denver, CO 80203

FAX: (303) 722-0720 

To view the full job description, visit: https://disabilitylawco.org/careers