About Public Counsel
What is Public Counsel?
Public Counsel describes itself as "a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy." It is "Founded on and strengthened by a pro bono legal service model": its staff give free legal help directly or match clients with volunteer lawyers, bring impact litigation, and push for policy change "in and beyond Los Angeles". The idea dates to 1968, when Fred Nicholas, then president of the Beverly Hills Bar Association, heard Ralph Nader criticize the legal profession for "not giving back". After two years of debate the bar association backed a pro bono law firm, which opened in 1970 in a one-room office on Beverly Drive as the Beverly Hills Bar Association Law Foundation. It became Public Counsel in 1975, when the Los Angeles County Bar Association joined as co-sponsor. Its work runs through seven legal teams: Child, Youth & Family Advocacy; Community Development; Consumer Rights & Economic Justice; Homelessness Prevention; Immigrants' Rights; Education Equity; and Opportunity Under Law, its impact litigation team. Calling itself "one of the nation's largest providers of pro bono services", it says thousands of volunteers, trained and mentored by its staff, help it represent thousands of individuals, families, nonprofits and small businesses each year.
Where will I work?
Mostly in Koreatown, on a hybrid schedule. The postings are candid: "Public Counsel is generally office-based, but remote work was launched during the pandemic. All employees with Public Counsel are now required to work in the office at least one day per week, at the discretion of the head of department. Some positions require additional in-office days." They add that the policy "is subject to redesign by leadership". The main office is at 610 South Ardmore Avenue, on the corner of 6th Street, with free on-site parking or public transportation reimbursement. Clinic staff also work from satellite offices in downtown courthouses: an Appellate Clinic office in the Ronald Reagan State Building, Bankruptcy and Federal Pro Se clinic offices in the Roybal Courthouse and Federal Building, and a Guardianship Clinic office in the Stanley Mosk Superior Court building. The Bankruptcy Clinic supervisor, for example, is on site at the main office on the team's in-office day (currently Thursdays) and staffs the clinic at the Roybal building typically at least once a week, while the Immigrants' Rights anti-detention attorney travels to detention centers and courts across Southern California.
What is the Public Counsel team like?
"Public Counsel has a staff of approximately 170," say its postings, and it works alongside thousands of pro bono attorneys, law students and community volunteers each year. Lawyers work beside social workers: Public Counsel "values an interdisciplinary approach to law and social work that strengthens trauma-informed legal advocacy", and it welcomed a new cohort of MSW interns for 2026–2027. President and CEO Kathryn Eidmann, a Public Counsel litigator promoted from within, was named a 2026 Leader of Influence by the Los Angeles Business Journal. When she was appointed, the director of social work said Eidmann "recognizes the impact of compassion fatigue, secondary trauma, and burnout on staff" and pointed to "full-day wellness retreats, guided mindfulness and meditation classes, and virtual yoga classes". The postings state a "long-term intention to provide competitive compensation, benefits, training, mentorship, and overall workplace wellness". Among the six roles open in September 2026, the staff attorney and paralegal roles sit in the bargaining unit and the supervising attorney and director roles do not; every posting publishes its pay, from $60,903 for a paralegal to $140,000–$175,000 for the Director of Communications. Four of the six are fixed-duration positions tied to specific funding.
Work-Life Balance
Time off is generous for a US employer. Full-time staff get "15 accrued vacation days that increase to 20 days after 3 years of employment", "2 personal observance days" and "11 paid holidays plus 2 one-week office closures (during the summer and winter)", plus "12 accrued sick days that may be used for physical and mental health needs". Not counting sick days, that is 28 days in the first year plus two weeks when the office closes, and exempt staff can also bank "Up to 60 hours of compensatory time per calendar year". The standard week is 37.5 hours, and the office is open Monday to Friday, 9 to 5. Attorney postings are frank that exempt staff "must work all additional time necessary to accomplish job duties in a timely and professional manner". Parental leave runs "Up to 6 months".
Perks and Benefits
- 15 vacation days a year, rising to 20 after three years
- 11 paid holidays, 2 personal observance days and two one-week office closures
- 12 sick days for physical and mental health needs
- Up to 60 hours of compensatory time a year for exempt staff
- Medical coverage with an option for 100% employer-paid premiums for employees and their children
- Dental and vision coverage, and an optional Flexible Spending Account
- Employer-paid life insurance and disability plans
- A 403(b) plan with a discretionary employer contribution after one year
- Up to 6 months of parental leave
- Free on-site parking or public transportation reimbursement
- $45 per pay period for using multilingual skills at work
- Professional development support, and state bar dues paid for attorneys
- Team wellness activities