Staff Attorney - La Crosse Office
- Compensation
- $65K–$129.2K / yr
- Location
- La Crosse, WI, USA
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Staff
- Employment
- Full time
- Experience
- Not specified
- Category
- Legal
- Posted
Must have
- • Juris Doctor.
- • Admission to Wisconsin Bar.
- • Strong oral and written communication and advocacy skills.
- • Experience working with low-income clients and/or victims of violence.
- • Ability to interact professionally and work cooperatively with staff, clients, and the public.
- • Ability to use basic computer systems, including email, word processing software, and internet-based applications.
- • Willingness and ability to learn job-specific procedures and systems during the probationary period.
- • Ability to manage multiple tasks and maintain accuracy in a busy office environment.
Nice to have
- •Prior experience in a role working with persons with disabilities, those living in poverty, or individuals with a minority status or affiliation.
- • Experience with client advocacy in a court setting.
- • Experience working in a nonprofit, client-facing environment or legal services.
- Salary/Compensation: Legal Action’s salaries are not negotiable: Our salary scales are based solely on years of experience with each step on the scale equivalent to one full year of experience. We str
- · Step 0 = $65,000 (Tier 1)/Not applicable for Tier 2
- · Step 5 = $76,000 (Tier 1)/$80,763 (Tier 2)
- · Step 10 = $86,000 (Tier 1)/$91,888 (Tier 2)
- · Step 20 = $104,000 (Tier 1)/$111,275 (Tier 2)
- · Step 30 = $114,000 (Tier 1)/$122,025 (Tier 2)
- · Step 36 = $120,720 (Tier 1)/$129,227 (Tier 2)
- * Step = years of experience.
- Tier 1 and tier 2 staff attorney description & scope of authority: All staff attorneys are required to utilize and follow Legal Action’s attorney performance standards in performing their duties.
- Tier 1 Staff Attorneys are:
- 1. Relatively new to providing legal services to low-income clients.
- 2. Closely supervised and practices law under close control and structure.
- 3. Closely adhering to Legal Action’s guidelines, rules, policies, and procedures and have little or no authority to deviate from them without supervisor’s approval.
- Tier 2 Staff Attorneys have:
- 1. At least 3 years of post-J.D. experience that includes work relevant to the skills required for staff attorneys and;
- 2. Skills and abilities to:
- a. consistently perform most Tier 1 Staff Attorney duties with minimal assistance or direction, a high level of efficiency and/or independent initiative, and less immediate, regular supervision than a
- b. consistently carry a caseload of substantial size and complexity suitable to an experienced attorney;
- c. consistently adhere to Legal Action administrative and programmatic procedures such as, but not limited to contemporaneous timekeeping and accurate completion of administrative and client service f
Full description
Full-time Staff Attorney PositionLa Crosse OfficeOctober 6, 2026Introduction: LAW is seeking applications for Staff Attorney in the La Crosse Office. This attorney will work primarily in the area of housing, but may work in other areas.
Legal Action of Wisconsin, Inc. (“Legal Action”) is a non-profit law firm, funded by the federal Legal Services Corporation, the Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation, and many other sources and supporters. Legal Action provides free civil legal aid to low-income persons in Wisconsin with offices in Milwaukee, Madsion, Racine, Oshkosh, Green Bay, La Crosse and Wausau. Legal Action attorneys and paralegals have expertise in a range of substantive areas, but most of our direct representation is in the areas of housing, public benefits, removing barriers to employment, consumer law, and family law.
Mission Statement: Legal Action’s mission is to deliver exceptional civil legal services and structural change advocacy, free of cost, to those most in need. Our core values (equity, advocacy, client-centered, integrity and community) guide our work and actions. Please see our website for a description of the core values and vision that guides our work.
Office Location: This position will be based in Legal Action’s La Crosse office, which currently consists of 3 Staff Attorneys, 1 Paralegal, and a Managing Attorney. Remote and Flex Schedule is available upon request.
Governance: Legal Action’s personnel policies govern this position.
Position Description: The staff attorney will advise and represent low-income clients in housing and other cases but could also include related legal work. All staff attorneys are expected to develop and maintain good working relationships with community groups, as well as with state and local bar associations. Staff attorneys may also be called on to provide training and assistance to community agencies. Between these traditional and non-traditional responsibilities, staff attorneys are expected to work a minimum of 40 hours per week.
Key Responsibilities: The staff attorney provides advice and full representation to clients in housing related matters, including but not limited to, evictions, security deposits, conditions cases, sealing evictions, etc. Other areas of law may be worked in as well as housing based on the need of the office and/or the interest of the staff attorney. Key responsibilities include:
- Provide high-quality representation of clients in individual service cases and impact work. Impact work is work expected to have long-term positive effects on low-income persons or improve systems that impact the low-income community.
- Perform all duties associated with such representation as defined by our attorney performance standards.