Legal Specialist

The Legal Specialist will support the UNEP Law Division's pollution-related work, focusing on chemicals and waste management. The role involves legal research, policy support, capacity-building, and assisting developing countries with legal frameworks to promote sustainable chemicals and waste management.

Responsibilities

• Support the work of the Pollution Section through legal research, analysis, and the preparation of recommendations and legal options to support effective and sustainable policy and regulatory outcomes.
• Support the development of knowledge products and tools related to technical legal assistance and capacity-building activities.
• Assist in providing legal and technical support for the development and strengthening of policies, laws, regulations, and related legal frameworks in targeted developing countries.
• Assist in programme planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting, and coordination activities, as required.
• Support the preparation and formulation of project concepts and proposals, including legal and policy analyses and drafting inputs.
• Assist the development and delivery of training programmes for policymakers and other stakeholders on international best practices, legislative approaches, and regulatory measures.
• Undertake basic and in-depth reviews of legal documents, instruments, policies, legislation, and other materials related to environmental law, with a particular focus on pollution-related legal issues.
• Prepare, or assist in the preparation of, presentations, background papers, briefing notes, reports, correspondence, and other written materials on environmental law matters, with a particular focus on pollution-related legal issues.
• Collect, organize and analyse legal, policy and programme-related information, identify emerging trends and prepare analytical reports, presentations and data visualizations to support decision-making and reporting.

Requirements

• Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in environmental law, international law, human rights or a related field.
• A first-level university degree in law in combination with 2 additional qualifying years of experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in law, including legal analysis, research and writing is required.
• Prior experience working on international and/or national environmental law relating to pollution issues is required.
• Excellent research and analytical skills, in particular in legal analysis, and expertise in independent research and review is required.
• Excellent writing and communications skills is required.
• Prior experience working with the UN or similar international organizations is desirable.
• A minimum of two (2) years or more of experience in data analytics or related area is desirable.

Skills

• Environmental Law
• International Law
• Human Rights
• Legal Analysis
• Legal Research
• Legal Writing
• Pollution Law
• Chemical and Waste Management
• Policy Support
• Capacity Building
• Legal Framework
• Data Analytics
• UN Legal Procedures
• Legal Review

Languages

English, French