Legal Officer (P-3)

23441 | Registry 

A roster of suitable candidates may be established for this post as a result of this selection process for both fixed-term established and general temporary assistance posts.

Organisational Context

The Office of Public Counsel for the Defence provides support and assistance to defence teams of accused persons and suspects, including by providing legal research and advice. The Office also presents and protects the rights of the defence during the initial stages of the investigation. With leave from the judges, the Office may appear before the Chambers in respect of Specific Issues, and advance submissions on behalf of the suspect or accused when defence counsel has not been secured and assists the Defence teams of represented defendants, The Office is wholly independent and falls within the remit of the Registry solely for administrative purposes.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Legal Advisor/Counsel and under the overall supervision of the Principal Counsel, the Legal Officer will be primarily responsible for the following duties:

• Providing legal research and advice on international criminal law, international humanitarian law, comparative criminal law and procedure, and evidence to assist defence teams in accordance with OPCD's mandate under Regulation 77(4)(b) and reviews and guides research conducted by other OPCD staff or interns;
• Formulating and advancing legal submissions when the Office is engaged in direct litigation, usually to represent and protect the general interests of the defence at the Situation-level, in respect of specific defence issues or on behalf of an unrepresented suspect under Regulation 77(4)(a), (c), and (d). This could entail conducting background legal and factual research, drafting legal submissions, supervising drafting by other OPCD staff, and appearing in court as required;
• Advising the Legal Advisor/Counsel on legal and policy issues affecting the Office and the defence, and formulating policy comments and documents to advance the interests of the Office and/or the defence in accordance with the mandate in Regulation 77(4);
• Serving as a focal point on dedicated issues;
• Assuming responsibility for the Office during any temporary absence of the Principal Counsel and Counsel; assisting with general administrative duties as required; and representing the Office at internal and external meetings and seminars.

Qualifications and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree in law from a recognised university, preferably with a specialization in criminal law, humanitarian or international Criminal Law is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of experience is accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

At least 5 years (7 with a first-level university degree) of relevant professional experience in the field of International Law / Criminal Law / human rights law is required.

Practical experience working in complex litigation, preferably international criminal cases.

Having the experience required to meet the requirements for admission to the ICC List of Counsel would be considered an asset.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Knowledge of fair trial rights.
• Excellent research, drafting, and advocacy skills.
• Excellent organisation skills, and ability to supervise other staff within the Office.
• Good computer skills. Familiarity with E-Court environment and litigation software would be desirable.
• Demonstrated ability to display initiative, prioritise and complete tasks in an efficient manner under short deadlines.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds with respect for diversity.

Knowledge of Languages

Proficiency in one of the working languages of the Court, English or French is required. Proficiency or working knowledge of the other is strongly desired. Knowledge of another official language of the Court (Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, Russian) would be considered as an asset.

ICC Core Competencies

Dedication to the mission and values

- Acts consistently in accordance with the mission and values of the Organisation;

- Maintains confidentiality, acts with integrity and shows respect for diversity;

- Shows commitment to the organisation;

- Presents a positive image of the organisation during external discussions.

Professionalism

- Applies professional and technical expertise;

- Keeps abreast of organisational issues;

- Produces workable solutions to a range of problems;

Teamwork

- Listens, consults and communicates proactively;

- Handles disagreements with tact and diplomacy;

- Recognises and rewards the contribution of others;

Learning and developing

- Identifies development strategies needed to achieve work and career goals and makes use of developmental or training opportunities;

- Learns from successes and failures;

- Seeks feedback and gives feedback to others to increase organisational effectiveness;

- Seeks opportunities for improvement of work;

- Has an open mind and contributes to innovation.

Handling uncertain situations

- Adapts to changing circumstances;

- Deals with ambiguity, making positive use of the opportunities it presents;

- Plans activities and projects well in advance and takes account of possible changing circumstances;

- Manages time effectively.

Interaction

- Expresses opinions, information and key points of an argument clearly;

- Handles contacts with diplomacy and tact;

- Communicates in a transparent and open way with internal and external contacts while complying with confidentiality requirements.

Realising objectives

- Accepts and tackles demanding goals with enthusiasm;

- Keeps to agreements with others;

- Focuses on client needs;

- Takes responsibility for actions, projects and people;
- Monitors and maintains quality and productivity.

General Information
- The selected candidate will be subject to a Personnel Security Clearance (PSC) process in accordance with ICC policy. The PSC process will include but will not be limited to, verification of the information provided in the personal history form and a criminal record check.
- Applicants may check the status of vacancies on ICC E-Recruitment web-site.
- Post to be filled preferably by a national of a State Party to the ICC Statute, or of a State which has signed and is engaged in the ratification process or which is engaged in the accession process, but nationals from non-state parties may also be considered.
- In accordance with the Rome Statute, the ICC aims to achieve fair representation of women and men for all positions, representation of the principal legal systems of the world for legal positions, and equitable geographical representation for positions in the professional category.
- Applications from female candidates are particularly encouraged.
- The Court reserves the right not to make any appointment to the vacancy, to make an appointment at a lower grade, or to make an appointment with a modified job description.
- The International Criminal Court is a member organization of the Inter-Organization Mobility Accord and is interested in secondment of staff from organizations of the United Nations Common System.