ABA Rule of Law Initiative Seeks Program Officer

 The American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative seeks a Program Officer for its Africa Division.

Responsibilities include:
Monitors overseas technical assistance programs and provides administrative and financial support to program managers and field-based staff. Writes and edits reports for funders. Prepares funding proposals, including budgets, and monitors program expenditures. Occasionally supervises interns or temporaries. Makes detailed financial and programmatic recommendations to program managers.

Education:
Bachelors Degree from four-year College or University. JD or Masters degree is preferred.

Experience:
Applicant must have a minimum of 2-3 years experience in international development and be a fluent French speaker. Candidates without French language skills will not be considered. In addition, applicant should possess strong research and writing skills and a working knowledge of excel. Knowledge and experience in proposal writing and working on US government grants (particularly USAID) is a plus. Knowledge of the African region and/or gender based violence and experience living or working in sub-saharan Africa is also strongly preferred.

To apply for this job, please visit

http://abanet.devhire.devex.com/jobs/325526.
Please note that due to the high volume of applications recieved we are only able to follow up with short listed candidates selected for interviews

International Association of LGBT Judges Student Writing Competition

International Association of LGBT Judges Student Writing Competition Deadline Extended to June 30!

 

For the first time, the International Association of LGBT Judges will be sponsoring a writing competition for law students attending the 2012 Lavender Law® Conference & Career Fair. This is an exciting opportunity for law students to speak directly to members of the United States judiciary. Students may choose one of the following topics to write about:

• Diversity on the Bench
• Judicial Ethics around LGBT Issues

Click here to read full competition details.

Please send all submissions to nominations@LGBTbar.org with the subject line "Judges Writing Competition" by June 30, 2012. The winner of the writing competition will be posted on the American Judges Association's webpage, receive a $1,500 prize and will be recognized at the 2012 Lavender Law® Conference & Career Fair.

If you have any questions regarding the writing competition or Lavender Law, please send your inquiries to info@LGBTbar.org.

JURIST Call for Papers

JURIST is currently looking for student commentary pieces on the 10-year anniversary of the International Criminal Court for our upcoming feature (Please see our current feature: http://jurist.org/feature/featured/same-sex-marriage/). While there are many topics student can pursue, some suggested ideas are critiquing the efficacy of the Rome Statute, proposed changes to the process and scope of the ICC, etc. However, students are encouraged to pursue their own topics as well. (Please see our current series: http://jurist.org/jurist_search.php?q=14-part+series).

JURIST authors, including their academic and professional authors, generally list their JURIST articles on their resumes along with journal, law review, and other publications. Articles are approximately 1200 words in length and do not require Bluebook citations. For examples of recent articles please see: http://jurist.org/dateline/

International Rights Advocates Law Clerk/Legal Internship - Volunteer/Intern Fall 2012

International Rights Advocates (IRAdvocates) Law Clerk/Legal Internship - Volunteer/Intern Fall 2012

International Rights Advocates (IRAdvocates) builds and supports the capacity of women, human rights, labor, and legal organizations to develop and promote innovative legal strategies to hold multinational corporations accountable for labor, human rights, and environmental violations. IRAdvocates does so by supporting direct legal advocacy both in the U.S. and abroad, and by working with local partner organizations to develop and undertake precedent-setting legal actions in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. IRAdvocates believes that only when multinational corporate actors are subject to meaningful and enforceable legal mechanisms both in the country where the violation occurs and abroad can individual human rights be fully realized.

Position Responsibilities:

• Research legal issues particular to multinational corporate accountability litigation, including specifically the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), the Torture Victims Protection Act (TVPA), and state law claims.
• Draft legal memoranda concerning relevant issues in pending cases.
• Conduct factual research to assist in filing complaints against multinational corporations and further case development.
• Assist in preparations for conducting and defending depositions. - Other tasks as necessary to further IRAdvocates’ mission and goal in holding multinational corporations accountable for international human rights abuses.

Preferred Position Qualifications:

• ONLY J.D. candidates may apply for this position (2L and above).
• Posses a strong interest in using the law as a vehicle for social change - Experience or course work relating to the research of jurisdictional, tort, corporate and international law issues
• Some study or experience with human rights law
• Strong writing and analytical skills.

Salary and Benefits:

This is an unpaid position. However, IRAdvocates can facilitate externship credit if this is available through the intern’s law school. Interns or volunteers can also work virtually or remotely, depending on the needs of IRAdvocates.

Please send resume and cover letter, addressed to mcrosby@conradscherer.com, identifying "Law Clerk/Legal Intern Position Summer 2012" in the subject line of your email. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. You must be a J.D. candidate (2L and above) in order to apply for this position. Start & end dates are flexible as per intern's academic schedule.

Research Associate at the Centre for Rights and Justice at the Chinese University of Hong Kong

The Centre for Rights and Justice at the Faculty of Law, Chinese University of Hong Kong is seeking a research associate. The Centre for Rights and Justice (CRJ) was established in December 2010 as a platform for the Faculty of Law’s research, teaching and advocacy on rights and justice (http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/research/crj/). Members of the Centre teach and research in the areas of constitutional, administrative, criminal and international law and related fields. At present, the Centre has the following areas of focus: human rights; security and terror; transitional justice; and criminal justice. The appointee will help to facilitate the Centre’s work.

Applicants should have (i) a postgraduate degree in law or a related field; (ii) excellent written and spoken English; (iii) experience in positions that required the use of organizational and communication skills, and (iv) a demonstrable interest in one or more of the research areas on which CRJ will focus its work. A good command of Chinese will be an advantage.

Duties include (i) initiating and coordinating seminars and conferences; (ii) liaising with NGOs and think tanks about internships for students at the Faculty of Law; (iii) advising students on internships focused on human rights and public interest law; (iv) helping with arrangements for academic visitors and visiting scholars at CRJ; (v) fundraising for the Centre (vi) managing and updating the CRJ website with technical help from the Faculty IT team; (vii) engaging in research both independently and in collaboration with other Centre members; (viii) overseeing the CRJ Occasional Paper Series. An appointment will initially be made on a contract basis for two years, renewable subject to mutual agreement.

Salary and Fringe Benefits

Salary will be highly competitive, commensurate with qualifications and experience. The University offers a comprehensive fringe benefit package, including medical care plus a contract-end gratuity for appointment of two years. Further information about the University and the general terms of service for appointments is available at http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/personnel. The terms mentioned herein are for reference only and are subject to revision by the University. Start date negotiable.

Application Procedure

Applicants should submit an application form with a covering letter and a writing sample in English of up to 2500 words. 

Application forms are obtainable (a) at http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/personnel, or (b) in person/by mail with a stamped, self-addressed envelope from the Personnel Office, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong, or (c) by fax polling at (852) 2696 1461.

Completed applications should be sent to the Centre for Rights and Justice, Faculty of Law, CUHK at law-crj@cuhk.edu.hk The Personal Information Collection Statement will be provided upon request. Please quote the reference number and mark ‘Application – Confidential’ on cover.

Consideration of applications/nominations will begin in August 2012 and will continue until the post is filled. The University reserves the right to fill the post by invitation.

Legal Officer at PILnet

Legal Officer
New York

PILnet: The Global Network for Public Interest Law is an international human rights organization devoted to building a global network to activate, empower and connect those who use legal tools to work in the public interest (www.pilnet.org). Originally established through Columbia Law School in 1997, PILnet is now in its fifteenth year, operating from offices in New York, Budapest, Moscow and Beijing.

The Position PILnet is seeking a legal officer to work on PILnet’s activities to support the development of public interest advocacy in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Reporting to the Program Director, the full-time legal officer will be based in New York, and will be responsible for developing and executing projects in countries of the region, including Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia, and possibly Jordan and Egypt.

Responsibilities

• Undertake primary responsibility for implementing project activities
• Coordinate with and provide technical assistance to partner organizations in the region
• Identify new initiatives and partners to support
• Identify and coordinate with resource groups from outside the region
• Draft reports on the proceedings of project meetings, including recommendations for follow-up activities
• Generate and resource new strategies to meet the needs identified in the course of planning and executing the activities
• Provide technical assistance to participating organizations in the region
• Perform other tasks assigned by the Program Director that are consistent with the overall position

Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in law; a graduate degree in law is desirable
• Fluency in Arabic and English languages, both spoken and written
• The ability and willingness to travel to the region as needed
• A minimum of four years of experience in designing, implementing and managing projects
• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of human rights and civil society development issues in MENA region
• Experience developing solid working relationships with NGO partners in the region
• The capacity to exercise sound judgment in managing relationships with partners and third parties
• The ability to take initiative and to manage multiple tasks in a fast changing environment
• The ability to excel while working both independently and within international teams functioning across PILnet’s offices
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills

Salary is commensurate with experience; generous benefits package included (possible flexible working hours)

Interested candidates should submit in English a CV and a cover letter that specifically addresses the candidate's suitability to perform the job responsibilities detailed above to: legalofficer-NY@pilnet.org

Deadline: July 1, 2012

Only those offered interviews will be contacted.

PILnet™ is an equal opportunity employer and encourages candidates of all racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds to apply. Personnel are chosen on the basis of ability without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, national origin, disability, marital status or sexual orientation.

10 Year Anniversary of the International Criminal Court focuses on the U.S. and The Hague Tradition

10 Year Anniversary of the International Criminal Court focuses on the U.S. and The Hague Tradition

On July 4, 2012, at 11:00 am, in honor of the 10 year anniversary of the International Criminal Court, U.S. students, citizens and diplomats will convene a celebration at Grotius’ Tomb, The Nieuwe Kerk, Delft, the Netherlands.  The event mirrors, in part, the historic July 4, 1899 ‘Grotius commemoration” led by the U.S. delegation to the 1899 Hague Peace Conference.
 
U.S. Ambassador for Global Criminal Justice, Stephen J. Rapp, and Convenor of the American NGO Coalition of the International Criminal Court, John Washburn, will lay a wreath at Grotius’ tomb.  Renowned historian of international law and the Hague tradition, Dr. Arthur Eyffinger, will deliver a lecture on the role of the United States in the development of the “Grotian Project” of international law. Dr. Eyffinger’s company, Judicap, will curate an educational exhibition, displayed in the Nieuwe Kerk, that complements his lecture.   A cleaning of the sterling silver engraved wreath, laid in 1899 by the U.S. delegation, has been arranged for this special occasion.  Luncheon to follow.
 
The event is open to the public, but registration is required.  Register by sending an email with name, nationality, and affiliation of each guest to:  register@grotianmoment.com.  

Event website is http://www.grotianmoment.com

Send questions about the event to Hope Elizabeth May (hope@grotianmoment.com)