Lawyer "SAWA"

SAWA for Development and Aid is a Civil Society Organization founded initially as a spontaneous initiative in December 2011 to respond to the arrival of the first 40 Syrian families displaced from Syria into the North of Lebanon.
This initiative then grew to include individual activists, locals and internationals, who worked together (literally meaning ‘SAWA’ in Arabic) to share their knowledge and exchange their experiences in order to support Syrians, internally displaced or refugees in neighboring countries, united by their belief in their right to live in dignity, freedom, and to be active individuals in their communities and wherever they are.
SAWA sees itself as part and parcel of the society, and that it is on a continuous learning journey based on a participatory relationship at all levels with the communities that it works with, whether host or displaced, as well as with local and international partners.

SAWA believes that humanitarian, developmental, and civic work has to always strive to achieve social justice, and so it aims to work with individuals and communities through holistic interventions towards a society based on democracy, pluralism, and the values of citizenship and human rights.

About the Job:

The lawyer must be able to work individually and remotely as well as be able to coordinate and work closely within an effective and motivated team. The lawyer will be based in Beirut, Lebanon. The lawyer will be responsible for a range of legal and administrative duties, including providing direct legal aid services to participants to every extent possible, working with participants' associations, and building the capacity of lawyers.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Legal 

•    Design and deliver outreach activities, such as awareness-raising sessions.
•    Provision of direct legal aid services including information, assistance and representation.
•    Work with participants’ associations to develop a justice strategy, and implement said strategy in line with participants’ wishes.
•    Capacity-building of participants’ associations.
•    Coordinate with relevant actors in the field, including UN working groups and sub-clusters.
•    Facilitate participants’ engagement with relevant international or regional justice mechanisms.
•    Organise and participate in workshops and panels related to project activities.
•    Assist with trainings on gendered crimes and relevant legal frameworks.
•    Fulfil monthly reporting requirements.

In carrying out these responsibilities, the lawyer will perform the duties and tasks outlined below:

•    Undertake outreach activities, such as awareness-raising sessions, to identify and engage with individuals in need of legal aid services and participants’ associations in need of support.
•    Provide legal information, assistance and, where possible, representation to victims of gendered crimes and survivors who need legal identity and/or any other relevant document in Lebanon.
•    Undertake ad hoc field research on legal issues such as access to justice and gaps in legal aid provision.
•    Attend relevant coordination meetings, including meetings of UN working groups and sub-clusters.
•    Coordinate activities with other actors to strengthen the prevention of SGBV through increased access to justice.
•    Organize and facilitate roundtables.
•    Submit a monthly report on the implementation of the program, including a comprehensive overview of the main challenges and programme impact, using a pre-prepared reporting template.
•    Submit requests for release of funds to cover programme-related activities.
•    Submit receipts for programme-related expenditures in a timely manner. 

Competencies and Skills

Required

•    Qualified lawyer with 3 years’ work experience in criminal law, family law, immigration law, or relevant field.
•    Excellent written and oral Arabic.
•    Experience working with vulnerable groups.
•    Demonstrable interest in human rights and/or justice.
•    Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and strong technical literacy.
•    Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
•    Ability to work independently and to act effectively on one’s own initiative.
•    Ability to meet deadlines and see tasks through from beginning to fulfilment.
•    An adaptive approach obtained through experience of working in volatile and unpredictable settings, such as post-conflict settings.
•    Ability to manage relationships at all levels through excellent mediation, negotiation and client relationship skills.

Prefered

•    Proficiency in written and oral English.
•    Knowledge of international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and/or international criminal law.
•    Experience of human rights advocacy.