Mid-Level Associate Attorney - Real Estate & Landlord-Tenant Litigation

The Opportunity: Texas Tenant Law is a growing litigation practice with offices in Austin and Houston, serving clients throughout Texas. Our work centers on real estate litigation, with a heavy concentration in landlord-tenant matters. We represent primarily tenants, and we also serve a select group of residential and commercial landlord clients. We are seeking an experienced trial attorney to take ownership of an active and varied docket. The role suits a lawyer who values range: our matters run from modest disputes to multimillion-dollar litigation, and our associates work across the full landlord-tenant spectrum. That work includes habitability and conditions claims such as mold and pest infestation, security deposit disputes, debt defense and consumer protection, contract termination, negotiation, and drafting, foreclosures, post-judgment collection, and eviction defense for nonpayment and other alleged breaches. The firm also litigates real estate fraud and conversion, landlord trespass, and premises liability. We find that the variety keeps the work genuinely engaging, and no two files look alike. We practice as a team. Cases are worked collaboratively and reviewed together in group strategy sessions, so associates are supported in their decision-making rather than left to navigate difficult calls alone. At the same time, each attorney holds full ownership of, and responsibility for, their own files. Beyond litigation, each associate conducts intake consultations, evaluates prospective matters, and helps bring in the right cases for the firm. Our Mission: We are, at our core, an access-to-justice firm. We structure our engagements so that people who could not otherwise afford strong representation can still get it, which means our attorneys spend their days doing work that genuinely matters. Under the Texas Property Code, tenants are the underdogs, and they often come to us facing landlords with far greater resources. We level that fight. Our attorneys step in as the advocate a client never thought they could have, hold landlords to every protection the law provides, and win real results for people who had nowhere else to turn. There are few things more satisfying than being the person who turns a client's situation around, and here you get to do it every day. Many of the tenants who most need that advocacy are Spanish-speaking, a community that has long gone underserved in Texas. Reaching them is central to our mission, which is why we especially value Spanish-language fluency. An attorney who can stand up for Spanish-speaking clients in their own language will make an outsized difference here. Who Thrives Here: The attorneys who do best with us are advocates at heart. If you are drawn to public-interest or prosecutorial work because you love standing up for people and winning for the underdog, but you would rather not give up fair compensation to do it, this is your kind of firm. We want competitive, self-directed lawyers who relish the fight, take pride in meticulous and detail-oriented work, and want to end each day knowing it counted. What We Value Most: Above all, we value meticulous, detail-oriented work. Careful drafting and thorough legal research are the foundation of our practice, and a candidate's ability to demonstrate those qualities will be the strongest factor in our hiring decision. We encourage applicants to submit their most polished, precise writing sample and to treat the application itself as a reflection of the care they bring to their work. Qualifications: The ideal candidate is appearance-ready and brings first-chair trial experience, or at minimum significant second-chair experience, sufficient to handle court appearances and to move a case forward independently. Active membership in the State Bar of Texas is required. Applicants should have a strong working command of the Texas Property Code, the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, and the Texas Rules of Evidence, along with excellent written and verbal advocacy skills. We also expect a strong work ethic, a firm sense of accountability, the ability to manage a caseload independently, and an excellent record of attendance and integrity. Proficiency with the firm's technology platforms is mandatory. Candidates should be comfortable working in, or able to quickly master, Smokeball, Lawmatics, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Teams, LexisNexis, Trainual, and Box or Dropbox. Location: Austin-based candidates are strongly preferred. We will consider well-qualified attorneys located outside the Austin area who wish to work remotely, provided they are able to appear in court as required and to cover their own travel expenses for those appearances. Compensation and Flexibility: This posting is calibrated to a mid-level associate, and the base reflects that level. We nonetheless welcome applications from more experienced attorneys. Because a meaningful part of compensation comes from performance bonuses tied to your collected billings, both base and total pay scale with your experience and billing rate, and we are glad to discuss a package that reflects a stronger candidate's earning potential. Base compensation currently ranges from approximately $91,000 for attorneys with two to three years of experience to $100,000 for those with three to five years, with additional compensation available for more senior candidates. Performance bonuses tied to collected billings can bring total annual compensation to approximately $150,000 or more. In place of the punishing billable targets common in this field, the position is built around a minimum of 1,000 collected hours per year, billed at your full rate and actually collected. That is roughly half of what most firms require. It reflects our conviction that experienced attorneys should be trusted to run their own docket and, within reason, to manage their own schedule. Meeting that minimum is a condition of the role. So long as you remain available and responsive to your clients, the courts, and opposing counsel, and meet your obligations to your cases, you have real latitude over how and when you work. Benefits: The firm offers paid vacation, health insurance reimbursement, and a 401(k), along with supplemental health coverage that includes Accident and Short-Term Disability plans paid by the firm. Texas Tenant Law is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Veterans are encouraged to apply. #J-18808-Ljbffr MacGeorge Law Firm