Legal Officer: Solidarity and Reparation – Location: London (or possibly The Hague) (hybrid working)

REDRESS is recruiting a Legal Officer to deliver projects under our Solidarity and Reparation programmes, building expertise on reparations with partner NGOs around the world, and supporting strategic litigation to implement specific cases relating to sexual and gender based violence. We are seeking applications from mid-level lawyers with some previous experience in human rights law to contribute to this work.

REDRESS has a diverse team from different backgrounds and with different experiences. Under our Equality Policy, we welcome applications from people of colour, LGBTIQ+ people, and disabled people, who are currently under-represented. We will use positive action under the Equality Act 2010 to appoint from these groups if two candidates are equally qualified. We are also trying to recruit globally where UK immigration law permits it.

Who we are

REDRESS is an international human rights organisation based in London and The Hague that pursues legal claims on behalf of survivors of torture in the UK and around the world to obtain justice and reparation for violations against their human rights. We empower survivors to access justice through human rights cases against governments, civil cases against individuals, and cases where we advocate for law enforcement bodies to prosecute perpetrators under the principle of universal jurisdiction.

Our approach is strategic, so that as well as representing an individual we target the policy reasons that enabled the torture to take place, by building a campaign that uses advocacy, community engagement, and communications to influence change.

Our 2025 Strategy identifies torture related to dissent and discriminatory torture as our two thematic priorities. We also support the anti-torture movement through our solidarity programme.

REDRESS has undertaken a process of growth and modernization over the last few years. You can find information about the organization in the latest Trustees Annual Report. We currently have good reserves of nearly six months running costs, and a diverse funding base. We have grown to about 30 staff, and plan to remain at a similar size while we consolidate. We have upgraded our procedures and policies, and we are developing new commitments to improve staff development, further enhance our diversity, build our survivor-centred approach, and ensure people with lived experience are part of REDRESS.

The Programme

Under our Solidarity programme we support and strengthen the anti-torture movement. For 30 years REDRESS has worked with anti-torture NGOs across the world as REDRESS Solidarity Partners. This work includes engaging the anti-torture movement through networks, building its resilience, promoting the use of holistic strategic litigation as an effective technique against torture through training and mentoring, encouraging our volunteers, and working with academic experts.

Through the Reparation programme we work to secure the delivery of effective reparation for survivors of torture, including through compensation and the introduction of practical measures to implement international standards for satisfaction, rehabilitation, non-repetition, and restitution. Through litigation and policy advocacy we develop and implement national legal frameworks that deliver reparations for individuals and communities.

REDRESS will be delivering a new project to build reparations expertise and practice across our networks, and also to litigate and implement reparations in cases relating to sexual and gender based violence.

Position Profile

The main responsibilities of the role are:

Develop the REDRESS Solidarity Partnership, through network activities (including networks on international justice, reparations, and strategic litigation), producing practice notes on reparation, litigation workshops and mentoring on reparation good practice, and knowledge management and information sharing for Solidarity partners.
Develop strategic litigation for the implementation of reparations in cases relating to conflict-related sexual violence that have been litigated by REDRESS. Support partner NGOs also involved in such litigation.

General Responsibilities

The Legal Officer will contribute to the work of REDRESS as follows:

Assist in the preparation and delivery of strategic litigation on behalf of clients of REDRESS and partners, through (where necessary) client care, legal and factual research, questioning witnesses, evidential analysis, and drafting of submissions.
Legal Advocacy. Assist in the policy analysis and advocacy in support of the strategic objectives of REDRESS. Work with partners to advocate for legal and institutional reforms or to address systemic challenges. Draft reports, prepare submissions, and advocate to relevant stakeholders in national, regional, and international fora.
Project Management. Deliver innovative and effective projects that further the strategic objectives of the organization. Contribute to the drafting of funding proposals, financial reports, and donor reports.
Case Management. Assist with the management of our casework by keeping electronic and paper filing and carry forward systems up to date and maintaining casework statistics.
Professional Responsibility.Maintain the highest ethical standards, including for direct representation of clients, and case management.
Work collaboratively with other legal and programme staff. Supervise legal assistants and interns.
Assist in the delivery of training programs for specific projects where needed.
Foster relations with existing and potential new partners and counterparts around the world on ongoing litigation, advocacy, training, and policy initiatives.
Representing REDRESS. Contribute to the wider needs of the organisation, including communicating REDRESS’ work to a wide array of audiences.

The position is also expected to carry out such further duties as may reasonably be required from time to time by REDRESS.

Person Specification

This is a mid-level position, and so we expect candidates to have directly relevant experience.

Essential Competencies

The successful candidate will need to have the following competencies:

At least three years relevant post-qualification professional experience.
Degree in law.
Proficiency in international law, human rights law, or international criminal law.
Demonstrated proficiency in legal and non-legal drafting and editing.
Fluency in written and oral English.
Experience working with NGOs and other stakeholders globally, and with regional or international institutions.
Experience in public speaking to a variety of audiences.
Experience managing interns and volunteers.
Willingness to undertake frequent travel, including to countries with a history of systematic and severe human rights abuses.

Desirable Competencies

A strong candidate will also have other desirable competencies:

Language skills in one or more of our key languages (French, Spanish, Arabic, or Russian).
Previous experience working on conflict-related sexual violence.
Licensed to practice law through bar membership or equivalent.
Advanced degree specialised in international law, human rights law or equivalent experience.
Experience at delivering projects and managing project budgets.
Experience documenting cases of human rights violations or working with survivors, including survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.

Personal Attributes

To work for Redress, the candidate should have the following personal attributes:

Happy to work collaboratively as part of a small and energetic team with a wide range of personalities.
Highly efficient and organised, with an ability to multi-task, show initiative, solve problems, and take a hands-on role when necessary.
Able to think and work strategically, creatively, and under pressure.
Able to understand and support the aims, objectives and values of REDRESS and reflect them in all aspects of work.
Able to work with victims of human rights abuse with a range of specific needs.

Terms

Reporting. The position is part of the Solidarity and Reparation teams, and will report to the Programme Manager.

Hours. This is a full-time position at 35 hours a week. Evening and weekend work may be required from time to time.

Location. The position is based at the REDRESS office in London. We will also consider this position based in the Hague for candidates with the right to work in the Netherlands.

Flexible Working. REDRESS is an “in-person” organisation and we value team work, but we have a flexible working policy which allows for working from home. Staff are required to be in the office at least two days a week.

Salary. REDRESS has fixed salary scales, with annual cost of living increases, and the possibility of step increases with strong performance. This is a mid-level ‘officer’ position, and the salary is either B1 (£31,712) for those who meet the experience requirement, or potentially B2 (£34,091) for those who have more experience.

Duration. The contract is for a fixed-term of 12 months, but is expected to be extended, subject to funding.

Start date. The position would start December 2022 or January 2023.

Probation. There is a six-month probationary period.

Pension. REDRESS offers a pension contribution of 10% of salary (different terms for the Hague).

Holiday. There are 25 days of holiday per year, in addition to UK public holidays. The office is also closed between Christmas and New Year (different terms apply for the Hague).

Status. The candidate should have the right to live and work in the UK or the Netherlands. Where necessary, REDRESS will apply for a work visa for the United Kingdom for the successful candidate. REDRESS is not able to fund a full relocation package, but may be able to assist with some limited expenses. We are not able to support an application for a work visa for the Netherlands.

Interview process. We expect to do two rounds of interviews. We may ask candidates to make a short presentation as part of the process, but will provide information on that nearer the time.

First round Interviews will take place on Friday 11 November 2022 and will be on-line.
Final round interview will take place on Friday 18 November 2022 and may be in-person at our office in London.

How to Apply

Please upload to our recruitment portal a single PDF file with:

A cover letter of no more than one page explaining (a) why you would like to work for REDRESS, (b) how you fulfil the personal specification for the role, and (c) how you will contribute to the diversity of REDRESS.
Your CV or resume.

Please also complete the anonymous Diversity Monitoring Form. We use the information from the form to tell us about the diversity of the applicant pool for each of the positions that we advertise. We keep the conclusions of the analysis for our records, and the underlying data is destroyed three months after the recruitment closes.

Deadline: Wednesday 2 November 2022