Job Description

Frontline Partner - Sunset Office, Bilingual Cantonese 

Full-time, Non-exempt

In office 5 days a week

About Us: 

“It always seems impossible until it's done.” - Nelson Mandela

We believe that even the biggest problems can be broken down into small, achievable steps. Poverty and access to justice are part of the same problem. And we're solving this problem together. At Open Door Legal (ODL), we're pioneering the country's first system of universal access to civil legal representation to dramatically reduce poverty and prove that the law really can belong to all of us. We've grown 150x in 10 years, and in the next 2 years, we hope to finish scaling across San Francisco. To achieve this goal, we've created an award-winning and best-in-class legal aid organization full of passionate, motivated, gritty, thoughtful, and team-oriented people. We believe that injustice is the heart of poverty, and we're looking for someone to join us in ensuring justice for all.

Overview of Position 

The key goal for the Frontline is to ensure all guests get appropriate service in a timely manner. The Frontline Partner position is the first point of contact for all current and prospective clients; thus, they are ultimately responsible for displaying our values of support and access. Overall, this position is intended for someone with a customer support, administrative, social work, or non-profit background who is looking to learn more about the law and make a difference in clients' lives with an innovative, results-oriented, and fast-growing organization. 

This position will be based in our Sunset office (1722 Irving St., San Francisco, CA 94122). We are looking for a local community member who can connect residents of D1 (the Richmond), D4 (the Sunset), and D7 (West Portal) with our services. We expect this office to be specifically utilized by guests who are monolingual Cantonese-speaking, over the age of 65, have disabilities and/or are unhoused. Guests who come to see us have often experienced trauma, are deeply distraught, and commonly come to us as a last resort. We see access to the justice system as essential for alleviating poverty, preventing displacement, and ensuring justice in the community. Our Frontline Partner should be passionate about working with these communities and advocating for universal legal access.

The Frontline Partner also provides essential administrative support for the organization. You will be responsible for general office management and will set up creative and efficient solutions for organizing and managing a high-volume, fast-paced workflow at our new office. 

Throughout all of this, you will embody our values (passion, grit, dynamic, team-oriented, and caring) and have them guide your work and the way you relate within our team and with all who enter the office. You will report directly to our Senior Frontline Attorney. 

Front Desk Administration/Guest Support Responsibilities:

• Cover the front desk Monday through Friday, from 8:45 AM to 5:15 PM, at our Sunset office location, and ensure the needs of the physical office are met.
• Assist guests with accessing our services, including scheduling their appointments and gathering documents in a trauma-informed, culturally humble manner.
• Manage the information flow coming into the office (phones, email, voicemail, text messages, faxes, physical mail, etc) to ensure everything is properly recorded, scanned, and that the right staff member receives the information in a timely manner.

Assisting Cantonese-Speaking Guests/Outreach Responsibilities:

• Ensure Open Door Legal is accessible to Cantonese-speaking guests, including scheduling intakes, gathering documents, and answering the Cantonese phone line. 
• Coordinate with our four other Cantonese-speaking staff to provide interpretation of intakes and if possible translation (written Chinese is not required).
• Help ensure that everyone at ODL provides cultural-competent services to the AAPI community.
• Form and maintain referral relationships with other Community-Based Organizations that serve the AAPI community. 

Requirements:

• Daily work schedule of 8:45-5:15, plus an unpaid 30-minute meal break and two paid 15-minute rest breaks in our Sunset Office. Please note that there are no remote work options for this role.
• Bilingual in Cantonese
• Exhibits cultural humility and genuinely enjoys working with members of the community, including those experiencing trauma and/or who have mental health conditions. 
• The ability to create a welcoming and enthusiastic atmosphere. 
• Willing to learn basic legal concepts.
• Flexibility and ability to design new policies and systems for increased effectiveness and capacity in our new office space. 
• Highly functional computer and typing skills, including a WPM greater than 45 WPM.
• Must have some experience working in an office environment.
• Must be self-directed, able to work independently, and able to solve difficult problems.
• Authorized to work in the U.S. without sponsorship.

Bonus Points:

• Currently lives in, or has previously lived or worked in the West Side neighborhoods of San Francisco.
• Completion of an associate's or bachelor's degree in social work or similar field.
• Experience working with low-income and vulnerable populations.
• Experience working with individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders.
• Experience using Salesforce.

This is a non-exempt position. Starting compensation is $29.57/hour (approximately $61,500 annually) with the potential for additional salary based on experience. 

Benefits:

• Loan Repayment Assistance - for staff pursuing 10-year public interest debt forgiveness, we will pay the minimum payment on all qualifying loans so that you don't need to worry about student loan debt (this is a conditional benefit).
• Medical/Dental/Vision Plan offerings at 100% coverage
• Generous paid time off (four weeks vacation and two weeks sick/care)
• Generous paid parental leave
• 401K/Retirement Account
• We believe everyone is always learning. We financially invest in individual professional development for each staff member and provide many internal and external mentorships, coaching, and learning opportunities (conferences, workshops, etc.).
• We are a fun and hard-working office with best-in-class technology solutions for anyone who's passionate about making a meaningful and measurable difference.

Applications submitted prior to April 17, 2026 will receive priority consideration.

Ideal Start Date: May 15, 2026

To apply, submit your cover letter and resume.

Open Door Legal is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or any other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law, including the San Francisco Fair chance Ordinance.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our recruiting process. If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, please let us know at whitney[at]opendoorlegal[dot]org. 

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