Recognition and Announcements
Congratulations to Judge Nelly Withers
Nelly Withers was recently sworn in as Chief Recorders Court Judge by Judge Coursey. Judge Withers’s husband, John, is by her side.
Nelly Withers was recently appointed chief judge to the DeKalb Recorders Court and sworn in by Judge Coursey on Jan.7. Judge Withers has worked in DeKalb County for 17 years, first as an assistant district attorney under Bob Wilson, and again when she was appointed as an associate Recorder’s Court Judge in 2002. After working in the DA’s office, Withers practiced law part-time while her children were small, working on projects with the AOC, and as a SAG for the Attorney General’s Office doing 1983 litigation in the middle and northern districts and in the Eleventh Circuit. Before her appointment to the Recorders Court, she worked at McNally, Edwards and Bailey doing general practice and criminal defense. Judge Withers is married to John Withers and has two children, both students at the University of Georgia.
Job Announcement:
Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc.
February 1, 2010: Atlanta Legal Aid Society seeks an attorney to work in its Decatur office, a branch of Legal Aid, which serves low income clients in DeKalb County and houses several specialty units, including a Home Defense Program, Hispanic Outreach, and a Mental Health and Disability Unit. The office is comprised two co-managing attorneys, 12 staff attorneys, eight paralegals, and six support-staff members. The position is a full time job with fringe benefits.
Attorneys in this office represent low income persons in a wide variety of civil law problems, using a variety of methods, including community education, brief service, advice and referral, transactional work, negotiation, mediation, and litigation. The attorneys handle a mixed caseload, including domestic relations, housing, consumer, employment, health, public benefits, and education law issues. Attorneys provide community education to low income persons, and are encouraged to participate in local bar and social service associations, and to provide support to various client organizations. They also regularly help staff a Family Law Information Center in the DeKalb Superior Court, and serve a few evening hours at a shelter for victims of domestic abuse.
Qualified candidates must possess excellent legal writing, oral advocacy and work ethic. Communication and listening skills, ability to work in a team and alone, adaptability, and appreciation of diversity are required. A Georgia bar license or eligibility for the next exam is required. Demonstrated commitment to public service, participation in law school clinics, trial advocacy courses, familiarity with areas of poverty law, and previous work with low-income persons are strongly preferred. Fluency in Spanish and experience working with non-English speaking communities are highly valued in applicant selection.
The program asks a new attorney for a 2.5-year commitment. This is a moral commitment not to seek or accept other employment during this initial work period, given the intensive training, supervision, and mentoring invested in each new lawyer. The salary for a licensed attorney is $42,500+, depending upon legal experience. The program provides generous fringe benefits, including paid holidays, vacation, sick, and parental leave; health, life, and long and short term disability insurance; partial payment for dependent and partners’ health insurance; a salary reduction option for a flexible spending account; educational loan reimbursement up to $600 per month (after a $65 deductible), CLE expenses; and Georgia Bar dues.
To apply: A complete application packet must include a letter of application, résumé, a legal writing sample that demonstrates your ability to research and analyze a legal issue, the names and phone numbers (and e-mails addresses if available) of three legal references, and an official law school transcript. (A student copy is acceptable, pending your order of an official transcript). Please mail or e-mail your application to Cheri Tipton, Deputy Director, Atlanta Legal Aid Society, 151 Spring Street NW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-2097; employment@atlantalegalaid.org. Your application will be acknowledged.
EOE: ALAS considers all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, or sexual orientation.
Spring Southeast Legal Hiring Conference:
Efficient & Effective Hiring For Your Organization
Friday, April 9, 2010
Georgia State University College Of Law, Atlanta
Register Online
www.law.uga.edu/career/employers/sselhc.html
Registration Deadline: Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010
Save Time & Money
One convenient location and day.
100% Pre-Screening
Select candidates from résumés submitted in advance.
Expand Your Recruiting Reach
Interview motivated and highly-qualified students from 12 top Southeastern law schools for summer or entry-level positions.
Participation Fees
$200 per interview schedule/room
$75 government/non-profit
$50 information table
Fees include administrative costs, scheduled interviews, interview room accommodations, and lunch for up to two interviewers per interview schedule/room/table. Each schedule includes up to 20 students.
Contact Information
Conference Chair
Ms. Beth Kirch
The University of Georgia School of Law
706-542-7541
Kirch@uga.edu
Employer Registrar
Ms. Amine Seifert
Wake Forest University School of Law
336-758-5759
SeiferAT@wfu.edu
Sponsors
The University of Alabama School of Law
Cumberland School of Law
Samford University
Emory University School of Law
The University of Georgia School of Law
Georgia State University College of Law
Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School
University of Kentucky College of Law
Mercer University School of Law
The University of Mississippi School of Law
University of South Carolina School of Law
The University of Tennessee College of Law
Wake Forest University School of Law