Senior Legal Officer (Administration of Justice)

Before submitting an application, UNHCR staff members intending to apply to this Job Opening are requested to consult the Recruitment and Assignments Policy (RAP, UNHCR/HCP/2017/2 and the Recruitment and Assignments Administrative Instruction (RAAI), UNHCR/AI/2017/7 OF 15 August 2017.

Senior Legal Officer (Administration of Justice)

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The Senior Legal Officer (Administration of Justice), P4, serves under the supervision of the Senior Legal Officer (non-refugee matters), P5, who is the focal point within the Legal Affairs Service (LAS) to plan, coordinate and manage UNHCR¿s (non-refugee law related) legal affairs, with emphasis on international public service law, interpretation and application of HR policies, and disputes primarily but not exclusively before the United Nations Dispute and Appeals Tribunal. However, the incumbent will function on a largely autonomous basis and may supervise any interns, consultants and junior staff.  He/she provides senior level support on all matters relating to the UN internal justice system, including preparation of legal opinions and advice on requests for management evaluation, drafting legal pleadings and representing the Organization at oral hearings before international tribunals, including the United Nations Dispute Tribunal (UNDT). In particular, the incumbent will be responsible for representing the Organization in UNDT cases. The incumbent is also responsible for providing expert advice on legal issues relating to investigations and disciplinary proceedings. He/she also liaises with the Office of Legal Affairs in the UN Secretariat on legal issues relating to cases before the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT) following an appeal of a UNDT judgment. The incumbent also provides substantive input regarding the drafting of legal opinions and policies on HR-related matters. As the only LAS lawyer in Bangkok, the incumbent may be requested to give advice on other non-refugee matters including contracts and the status, privileges and immunities of UNHCR and its personnel. In a particularly demanding environment, the incumbent, in addition to solid generalist legal background, will demonstrate expert written and oral advocacy skills acquired before judicial or arbitral courts or administrative tribunals.  The Senior Legal Officer must have an in-depth knowledge of the jurisprudence of the United Nations Dispute and Appeals Tribunals. The incumbent must also understand how the UN statutory framework functions.  

FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT

Accountability

- UNHCR is provided with clear and consistent legal advice on all aspects of administrative and personnel matters, including, but not limited to requests for management evaluation, cases brought before the UNDT and UNAT and in disciplinary proceedings resulting in high level of compliance with legal advice.
- Legal opinions, pleadings and other legal advice are drafted in accordance with established legal policy, standards and procedures.
- UNHCR is adequately represented before the UNDT and UNAT.

Responsibility

- Provide expert advice and guidance on a wide array of legal matters, with a special emphasis on the UN internal justice system and human resources legal issues.
- Analyse and advise on requests for management evaluations by UNHCR staff.
- Prepare legal pleadings and represent the Organization at oral hearings before the United Nations Dispute Tribunal.
- Liaise with the Office of Legal Affairs in the UN Secretariat on legal issues relating to claims before the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT).
- Liaise with the UNHCR Ombudsperson in connection with cases referred to mediation.
- Provide legal advice, as necessary, to the Inspector General's Office on investigation procedures and to the Director, DHRM on disciplinary proceedings.
- Provide legal interpretation of UN Regulations and Rules and relevant instructions, guidance and policy issues.
- Review draft human resources policies and ensure that they are aligned with established policy and standards; guide offices in the field to ensure that personnel matters are dealt with in accordance with relevant procedural guidelines.
- Analyse UNHCR¿s internal regulatory framework, as appropriate, and propose initiatives and measures to enhance existing policies and practices and ensure compliance with relevant rules and regulations.
- Manage personnel through regular performance appraisals, coaching, and assessments of staff training and development needs.
- Perform other related tasks as required.

Authority

- Initiate and issue legal opinions for the Office of the Deputy High Commissioner on, inter alia, requests for management evaluation and draft pleadings and represent the Organization at oral hearings before the UNDT.
- Initiate and issue legal opinions on all aspects of administrative and personnel matters, including HR policy initiatives and implementation.
- Enforce legal policy and standards pertaining to relevant areas of responsibility.
- In coordination with, and as delegated by, the Head, Legal Affairs Service, represent LAS in meetings within UNHCR and represent UNHCR with external counterparts on the above issues.

ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

- Graduate degree (equivalent of Master¿s) in law preferably with emphasis in the area of international law. Undergraduate degree (equivalent of a BA/BS), in combination with the required work experience plus an additional one year of work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
- Bar exam or equivalent qualification to practice law in at least one national jurisdiction.
- Minimum 8 years (9 years for BA holders) of previous relevant work experience including at least five years of experience in the field of litigation. To fulfil this requirement, the incumbent must demonstrate experience not only in written but also oral advocacy acquired before judicial courts or arbitral and administrative tribunal.
- In-depth knowledge and experience of international law, including, international administrative law as practiced in international organizations (in particular in the United Nations).
- Thorough understanding of the UN system.
- Strong analytical skills and ability to conduct legal research on a range of complex and intricate issues.
- Excellent skills in drafting a broad range of documents of a legal nature, including legal opinions, pleadings, contracts and briefing notes.
- Demonstrated ability to provide oral briefings on complex legal issues to legal and non-legal audiences.
- Fluency in English (both oral and written).

In the absence of a sufficient number of applicants possessing all essential minimum qualifications and professional experience, individual requirements may be waived.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES

- Experience with alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.
- Prior exposure to, and demonstrated competence in, the conceptual development of strategic HR approaches and corporate HR policies.
- Knowledge of the privileges and immunities of UN/HCR and its staff.
- Knowledge of the principles of international commercial law and contract law as applied by the UN.
- Knowledge of UN/HCR field operational realities.
- Substantial experience (of at least four years) in dealing with issues related to the internal justice system of the United Nations, knowledge of the jurisprudence of the UNDT and UNAT as well as organizational regulatory frameworks and policies.
- Fluency in French.
- Solid computer skills, including good knowledge of databases. C001L3 - Accountability Level 3
C002L3 - Teamwork & Collaboration Level 3
C003L3 - Communication Level 3
C004L3 - Commitment to Continuous Learning Level 3
C005L3 - Client & Result Orientation Level 3
C006L3 - Organizational Awareness Level 3
M001L3 - Empowering and Building Trust Level 3
M005L3 - Leadership Level 3
M004L3 - Strategic Planning and Vision Level 3
M002L3 - Managing Performance Level 3
M003L3 - Judgement and Decision Making Level 3
X004L3 - Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Level 3
X001L3 - Analytical Thinking Level 3
X006L3 - Policy Development & Research Level 3

Before applying to this position, we strongly encourage colleagues to read the country specific FAQs information leaflets which can be found  on the Intranet under Staff Resources > Duty of Care. The information leaflets are specifically designed to answer some of the key questions potential applicants might have before deciding to apply. 

-  Advanced court advocacy skills and substantive litigation experience obtained as an attorney in a law firm and/or a legal officer in an international organization.

-  In-depth knowledge and experience of international law, including, international administrative law as practiced in international organizations (in particular in the United Nations).

-  Proven expertise in the law of the international civil service and current knowledge of the jurisprudence of the UN Dispute and Appeals Tribunals (UNDT/UNAT).

-  Thorough understanding of the UN system and UNHCR's mandate, operational structure and admin processes.

-  Comprehensive understanding of UN staff regulations and rules and UNHCR internal regulatory framework.

-  Highly developed analytical skills and ability to effectively conduct legal research on a range of complex and intricate issues.

-  Demonstrated negotiation skills and ability to provide oral briefings on complex legal issues to lawyers and not legally trained audiences.

-  Excellent skills in drafting legal documents, such as legal opinions, pleadings and briefing notes.

-  Fluency in English (both oral and written). French desirable. LAS is a team of 14 lawyers 10 located at HQ in Geneva, 1 at UNHCR's Global Service Centre in Budapest, 1 at UNHCR's Global Service Centre in Copenhagen, 1 in Nairobi and 1 in Bangkok. LAS is a small and dynamic team whose workload and resources have significantly increased and diversified in the last years.

The position of Senior Legal Officer (Administration of Justice), P4, will be reporting to the Senior Legal Officer (non-refugee matters), P5. The incumbent will function on a largely autonomous basis given that the post is located in Bangkok. Ability to operate with minimal supervision is therefore a requirement.

At the same time, the incumbent will need to be immediately operational on the legal aspects of Administration of Justice.  Therefore the incumbent should have existing expertise in this area through prior experience. The incumbent might be required to travel to Geneva, Nairobi or New York for meetings or hearings.

Bangkok is the capital and largest city of Thailand known to locals by the name KrungThep (City of Angels). It is in the central part of the country, on the Chao Phraya River near the Gulf of Thailand. Bangkok is Thailand's administrative, economic, and cultural centre, and a major commercial and transportation centre of Southeast Asia.

Bangkok has highly developed infrastructure, good public transport systems, high-end shopping, excellent healthcare facilities and excellent accommodation for all budgets.

Traffic congestion and pollution are the downside. Temperatures in Bangkok vary between 20 C in December and 38 C in April with an average humidity of 82 percent. It has excellent International educational facilities, however they are costly. Bangkok, Thailand is a category A, family duty station. According to UNDSS, the security level in Bangkok is low (2).

Whilst Thailand is classified as an A Duty station, due to ongoing insurgency violence in the South, staff travelling to the southern provinces must attend a security briefing before travel. UN staff are strongly advised to contact DSS Thailand before travelling anywhere in the south of the country, in order to obtain the latest information and advice. Staff travel to the areas under restriction are required to apply for a security clearance through TRIP.

Thailand has one of the highest motor vehicle accident rates in the world. It is mandatory that the incumbent possesses all the essential minimum qualifications and professional experience set out in the Job Description.

Please note that the closing date for all vacancies in the September 2017 Compendium is Monday 6 November 2017 (midnight Geneva time).