Staff Attorney

South Texas College of Law Houston (TX) · United States

SUMMARY Since 2016, South Texas College of Law Houston has operated a Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC or Tax Clinic), which is partially funded by an IRS grant. The LITC (which also teaches law students about tax controversy work) provides both community education and direct representation in federal tax controversies to low-income taxpayers. Clients assisted by the LITC need a variety of types of assistance in resolving their federal tax issues with the IRS, including entering into installment agreements, submitting offers in compromise, negotiating with IRS Appeals, requesting Collection Due Process Hearings, and filing petitions and litigating in the United States Tax Court. The Staff Attorney will work in the LITC during the 2025 calendar year. This position is funded by a federal grant and could extend beyond the 2025 calendar year if grant funding continues to be available. ESSENTIALDUTIESANDRESPONSIBILITIES includethefollowing.Other duties as assigned. Screen cases, help to manage the LITC's docket, and represent clients. Assist with matters relating to the day-to-day administration of the clinic and its cases and assist with cases that begin outside of or are not concluded during the academic year. Identify community partners to host community education sessions and present or assist in presenting information at the sessions. Identify possible locations for outreach activities by the LITC and perform or assist in performing the outreach. Assist with the IRS grant reporting functions. Comply with all aspects of the law school's Customer Service Standards. SUPERVISORYRESPONSIBILITIES NA QUALIFICATIONS Toperformthisjobsuccessfully,anindividualmustbeabletoperformeachessentialdutysatisfactorily.Therequirementslistedbelowarerepresentativeoftheknowledge,skill,and/orabilityrequired.Reasonableaccommodationsmaybemadetoenableindividualswithdisabilitiestoperformtheessentialfunctions. Mustbeprofessional andconfidentialofalldepartmentdataandcorrespondence. Thepersonmusthaveapoisedandprofessionalimage;strongabilitytomulti-taskandprioritizeinafast-pacedenvironment,excellentinterpersonalskillsandtheabilitytointeracteffectivelyandefficientlywithallemployees,visitorsandstudentswhileprojectingapositiveimagefortheareaandcollege.Serviceorientedwithabilitytomakeallvisitorsfeelwelcome. Mustbecomputerliteratewithproficiency inMSOfficeapplications(Word,ExcelandPowerPoint),someWordPerfectwithabilitytolearnnewprogramsasnecessary. Mustbedetail-orientedandable towork inafast-paced multi-taskingenvironment. EDUCATIONand/orEXPERIENCE Must have a JD from an ABA-accredited law school, be licensed to practice law in at least one state in the United States and have experience in tax law. Qualified applicants must be authorized to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service, and either be admitted to practice or become admitted to practice before the United States Tax Court. Fluency in a second language and a demonstrated commitment to the needs of low-income taxpayers are highly desirable. LANGUAGESKILLS Abilitytoread,analyze,andinterpretgeneralbusinessperiodicals,professionaljournals,technicalprocedures,orgovernmentalregulations. Abilitytowritereports,businesscorrespondence,andproceduremanuals.Abilitytoeffectivelypresentinformation andrespondtoquestionsfromgroupsofmanagers,clients,customers,andthegeneral public. MATHEMATICALSKILLS Abilitytoperformbasicto intermediatemathessential.Mustpossesstheabilitytoanalyze numericaldataanddetectpatterns,errorsandtrends. REASONINGABILITY Abilitytodefineroutineproblems,collectdata,establishfacts,anddrawvalidconclusionsto solveroutineproblemsand/ordealwithavarietyofvariablesinsituations,especiallywhen departmentheadmaybeoutofofficeorunavailable. Abilitytointerpretavarietyof instructionsfurnishedin written,oral, diagram,orscheduleform. CERTIFICATES,LICENSES,REGISTRATIONS Must be licensed to practice law in at least one state in the United States and have experience in tax law. PHYSICALDEMANDS Thephysicaldemandsdescribedherearerepresentativeofthosethatmust bemetbyanemployeetosuccessfullyperformtheessentialfunctionsofthisjob.Reasonableaccommodationsmaybemadetoenableindividualswithdisabilitiestoperformtheessentialfunctions. Whileperformingthedutiesof thisjob,theemployeeisregularlyrequiredtositandtalkorhear.Theemployeeisregularlyrequiredtostandandwalk. Ability toliftupto20lbs.isrequired. Liftingfromfloorlevel,atwaist,andaboveshouldersrequired. Infrequentbendingandstoopingnecessary. Specificvisionabilitiesrequiredbythisjobincludeclosevisionin ordertoaccuratelyinputdataandproofread;distancevision inordertorecognizeandassistvisitorstothedepartment. WORKENVIRONMENT The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Extremelyfastpaced,multi-tasking,non-smokingworkenvironment. Must beabletoworkthe generalbusinessscheduleofthe law school(9:00a.m.to5:30p.m.)plusoccasionaleveningsandweekendsasnecessary. Work will entail some local travel around the Houston area. Application Instructions Applications must contain a CV or resume and a cover letter describing the applicant's interest in public interest law, and clinical legal education. Position is not eligible for employee benefits.