Job Details

Litigation Assistant

Location: Berkeley, CA (hybrid workplace, in-office attendance required with up to 3 days remote each week)
Classification: Non-exempt
Compensation: $70,380-$88,330, depending on experience, plus benefits*

*The compensation for this position is based upon a collective bargaining agreement; the range listed is from the 2025-2026 salary scale.

What We Do:

Prison Law Office is a nonprofit public interest law firm that strives to reduce incarceration and demands fair and humane treatment for people who remain in prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities and who are on parole. Prison Law Office engages in class action and other impact litigation, advocates for policy and law changes, assists individuals in administrative actions and lawsuits, educates the public, creates and distributes self-help information, and lends technical assistance to other attorneys.

The Role:

The Litigation Assistant (LA) works at the direction of and under the supervision of attorneys to support Prison Law Office's litigation and advocacy efforts. The LA primarily reviews, summarizes, organizes, and suggests responses to correspondence from incarcerated people and their families. Under the supervision of attorneys, LAs also participate in multi-day tours of prisons and jails, interview class members in-person and on the phone, review documents to prepare for prison and jail monitoring visits, and draft individual advocacy letters on behalf of class members regarding conditions of confinement for attorney review.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

The LA's work is directed and supervised by attorneys. The following are the most common duties/responsibilities of this position, but are not limited to:

• Review incoming correspondence from people in prisons and jails, from their families, and from other third-parties
• Enter accurate correspondence and class member information into Salesforce
• Identify in the correspondence any areas related to our class action cases and areas of concern
• Suggest responses to correspondence, and under the supervision of an attorney, drafting outgoing correspondence and advocacy
• Route correspondence to the appropriate person in the office
• Identify systemic issues that appear in correspondence
• If proficient in Spanish, translate incoming correspondence written in Spanish, draft letters in Spanish, and conduct interviews in Spanish
• Participate in multi-day monitoring tours at prisons and jails under the supervision of an attorney
• Conduct both in-person and telephone interviews with class members and correctional staff to gather information regarding conditions within prisons
• Assist in reviewing legal documents and preparing materials for prison and jail monitoring visits
• Manage the office's voicemail system
• Attend and participate in case meetings, including to take notes as needed
• Provide administrative support as needed, such as scanning, printing, and uploading documents; preparing binders of relevant information for participants on site visits; reviewing, filing, and organizing documents; scheduling legal calls on behalf of staff members as needed; etc.
• Assist with processing outgoing mail and surveys, which includes placing surveys and relevant materials in envelopes, generating labels for mail and placing it on the envelopes; sending mail through the postal service
• Assist the Mailroom Coordinator as needed
• Provide training and onboarding support for employees as needed
• Develop and maintain comprehensive knowledge of case details
• Accurately record time spent on substantive and administrative work, as well as work- related expenses, in the office's billing system
• Accurately record hours worked each day on a daily time-card
• Complete all assigned tasks within required deadlines
• Comply with office's policies regarding confidentiality

Requirements:

• BA, AA, or equivalent college degree
• Excellent analytical, reading, and writing skills
• Exceptional organizational skills with the ability to efficiently manage and process high volumes of correspondence accurately
• Writes clearly and informatively; edits work for spelling and grammar; varies writing style to meet needs; able to read and interpret written information
• Effective interpersonal skills when interacting with a diversity of audiences
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, Gmail, and other standard computer applications
• Ability to take direction, welcome constructive feedback, and interact professionally with co-workers, co-counsel, opposing counsel, opposing parties, class members, and vendors
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment
• Good attendance
• Willingness to travel regularly for field assignments (tours typically range from 1 to 4 days
• Demonstrated ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion and professionalism
• Ability to anticipate work needs and follow through with minimum direction while adapting to changing priorities and work demands

• Spanish language fluency (preferred but not required)

Benefits:

• Generous health insurance coverage
• Dental care reimbursement
• Annual wellness bonus
• Life insurance
• Short-term and long-term disability insurance
• 403(b) retirement account with employer matching at 5% of annual earnings
• Repayment of qualifying federal educational loans up to $350 monthly
• Paid vacation and sick leave
• All state and federal holidays off
• Office closure the last week of the year

Prison Law Office is committed to creating an equitable, diverse, and inclusive organization and community. We believe our excellence depends on recruiting and retaining a diverse staff that includes people of all races, ages, backgrounds, citizenships, national origins, disabilities, gender identities, languages, military experiences, sexual orientations, religions, socioeconomic statuses, and work experiences.