Staff Attorney At American Bar Association

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS:
Staff Attorney – ABA ROLI – Angola

Call Title: Staff Attorney – ABA ROLI Angola
Theme: Programmatic/Operations
Location: Luanda, Angola
Contract Type: Full-time (consultant)
Period of Performance: 12 months (renewable, subject to funding)
Anticipated start date: November 2023
Language Requirements: English and Portuguese
Applications to: africa-recruitment@americanbar.org with subject line “Angola Staff Attorney Application”
Deadline: 23 October 2023

Organization Overview:
The American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) is a non-profit organization that implements legal reform programs. ABA ROLI has worked for over 25 years in more than 100 countries to promote the rule of law, advance human rights, strengthen judicial institutions, support legal professionals, and advance understanding of the law and rights of citizens by the public. To this end, ABA ROLI has established partnerships with a wide range of actors, including institutions in the justice sector (judges, prosecutors, public defense offices, mediation offices and national human rights institutions, investigators, and police), civil society organizations, bar associations, legal aid organizations, and lawyers, among others.
ABA ROLI’s work in Africa spans a variety of programing around the rule of law, access to justice, atrocity prevention as well as human rights protection and promotion. ABA ROLI’s Africa Division has country offices across the continent, including in Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gambia, Liberia, Niger, South Africa, Sudan and Uganda.

Program Overview:
ABA ROLI is hiring a full-time Staff Attorney to support two programs in Angola aimed at promoting rule of law and press freedom in the country. A majority of the Staff Attorney’s efforts will be focused on the Promoting Rule of Law in Angola project, which aims to strengthen and foster trust in Angola’s judiciary, primarily by (1) strengthening Angola’s legal framework for judicial independence, (2) improving citizen abilities to demonstrate awareness of their legal rights and responsibilities, and (3)
increasing the ability of Angola’s judges and courts to manage and adjudicate cases fairly and effectively.
The secondary project the Staff Attorney will assist on, Promoting Press Freedom in Angola, is aimed at providing technical and financial support to civil society, especially journalists, to increase understanding of media rights and freedoms, including the context of how to understand, investigate, and hold corrupt acts and human rights violations accountable in Angolan society. Its principal objectives are to: (1) provide investigative training to journalists in the areas of anticorruption, human rights, social inclusion and recognized norms for journalism and press freedom, (2) empower journalists to be advocates for free speech engaging government as agents of change, and (3) provide journalists with strategies and methodologies for reaching populations in remote parts of Angola.

Job Summary:
Under the supervision of the Country Representative, the Staff Attorney will support the two aforementioned ABA ROLI programs through provision of technical, legal, and human rights assistance to local partners based in Angola and contribute related legal and technical assistance to the project on advancing the protection of the thematic issues covered by the project. The program has strong litigation, legal drafting, research, and civil society support components; therefore, the ideal candidate must have a strong background in these areas in addition to demonstrable experience and skills working in one or more of the target thematic areas (judicial systems strengthening, human rights advocacy, press freedom).
Principal Duties/Job Responsibilities:
• Lead on the technical delivery of the program through the development of trainings and materials, which includes
o Liaising with and overseeing consultants hired to produce legislative reviews.
o Undertaking legal and human rights research in one or more of the project’s thematic areas in Angola with an aim to provide strategic advice to project team on timely and strategic interventions.
o Leading training workshops, organizing/convening meetings and conferences when necessary.
o Supporting the development of the Know Your Rights campaigns.
• Support litigation in the thematic areas, including provision of case support through legal advice and legal research.
• Support internal and external meetings and missions through the provision of logistical support to the Program Team and partners.
• Build, strengthen and maintain partnerships with local CSO partners, as well as human rights organizations/defenders, governments and legal associations in Angola as well as regional and international intergovernmental bodies.
• Liaise with ABA ROLI’s sub awardees on the substantive aspects of their activities under the project.
• Assist with program administration including budget preparation, expenditure reports, program and mission reports, meeting minutes and compiling monitoring and evaluation information and reports.
• Performs other related duties as required.
Qualifications:
• Relevant university law degree. Master’s degree preferred.
• Minimum 5-7 years of experience working on legal and human rights issues, including relevant work in Angola.
• Ability to work with minimum supervision and in team settings whilst delivering exceptional results.
• Experience working in Angola and strong understanding of political and operating context, specifically surrounding project thematic areas (judicial processes, human rights advocacy, journalism, and press freedom, including extensive knowledge of Angolan civil society, judicial and media sectors).
• Strong facilitation, communication, collaboration, and leadership skills.
• Computer skills including Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint as well as other systems used for research, monitoring and evaluation, or data collection/storage.

• Extensive research and report writing skills.
• Legally permitted to practice law, live and work in Angola.
• Fluency in English and Portuguese (written and spoken) required.