Recruitment Pack: Lawyer

Liberty is a high-profile campaigning organisation that has been fighting for human rights and civil liberties for over eighty years. Liberty works on a diverse array of issues, including non-discrimination, migrants’ rights, protest, privacy, digital rights, free speech, police misconduct and access to justice. We are a uniquely multi-disciplinary team, working to achieve change through a powerful combination of lobbying, strategic litigation, public campaigning, member activism, and providing free advice and information to the public. Liberty has been standing up for people and holding the powerful to account since 1934, and it is needed now more than ever.

For this position, Liberty is seeking a lawyer to join our team of strategic litigators handling cases on a broad range of human rights and public law issues. In particular, we are seeking a lawyer to take a leading role on our existing work on privacy, technology and human rights, including by finding creative and innovative ways to expand human rights in this complex, developing area of law. The candidate will have the flexibility and interest to take on work falling within other of Liberty’s strategic priorities as well as new priorities that may emerge over the course of a career here. The work of a Liberty lawyer primarily involves working on cases but also includes contributing to our policy and campaigns work, acting as a Liberty spokesperson, and supporting Liberty’s membership and development goals.

Position Description
Position title: / Lawyer
Salary band: / £37,266-£42,952 (Band G)
Reporting to / Head of Legal Casework
Employment status: / Permanent
Hours: / 35 hours per week plus occasional out of hours work.
Location: / Liberty House, Westminster, London
Closing date for applications: / 12noon Wednesday 28th February 2018
Interview dates: / First Round: Monday 12th March 2018
Second Round: Friday 16th March 2018
Role purpose
Lawyers at Liberty are responsible for running strategic litigation, conducting interventions, providing specialist human rights advice, and supporting policy work with legal expertise. They play an active role in Liberty's campaigns. For this position, Liberty is seeking a lawyer to, among others things, take a leading role on Liberty’s existing work on privacy, technology and human rights; find creative and innovative ways to expand human rights in this complex, developing area of law; and to take on cases falling within other of Liberty’s strategic priorities.
Key responsibilities
Litigation
  • Manage an active caseload of strategic litigation to the highest professional standard
  • Identify and seek out opportunities for strategic litigation, particularly but not exclusively in the area of privacy, technology, and human rights
  • Where appropriate, seek public funding for cases
  • Ensure that publicly funded cases are run efficiently and in compliance with the Legal Aid Agency’s standards
  • As appropriate, seek other types of funding for and cost management of cases (e.g. by crowd-funding and costs capping orders)
  • Ensure efficient financial administration of cases, including holding of client monies and the billing and receipt of money generally
  • Retain accurate and complete case files
Legal advice
  • Working with Liberty’s Advice and Information Team, provide advice directly to members of the public
  • Assist in the supervision of Liberty’s telephone advice line for members of the public (this involves out of hours work, usually on one or two evenings per month for which time off in lieu can be claimed)
  • Prepare occasional fact sheets or text on legal issues for Liberty’s website or for sharing with partners and members of public
Campaigning and policy work
  • Support campaigning and policy work within the areas of existing legal expertise, and with additional legal research and advice where needed
  • Contribute to the development of innovative approaches to addressing issues of technology, privacy and human rights—e.g., mass surveillance, the use of artificial intelligence and algorithms in decision-making, the intersection of technology and criminal justice, the rise of big data, and freedom of speech and expression on the internet
  • Keep informed and up to date with changes in legislation and case law relevant to the work of Liberty, especially in the area of privacy, technology, surveillance and human rights
  • Contribute directly to the campaigning work of Liberty through writing articles, public speaking, lobbying and media work
  • Provide briefings (oral and written) to other members of staff on relevant legal developments and the work of the legal department
General responsibilities
  • Contribute to the overall work of the legal department to ensure objectives are achieved
  • Act as a spokesperson for Liberty within the lawyer’s areas of expertise
  • Perform other duties at the request of the Director, Advocacy Director, and Head of Legal Casework

Professional standards
  • To work and behave in a professional manner and within the higher standards of the profession
  • Comply with procedures set out in the legal office manual, professional standards and any requirement set by the Legal Aid Agency
  • Treat all information about the organisation and its clients as wholly and strictly confidential

Selection Criteria / Essential / Desirable
Qualifications / Law degree or postgraduate diploma in law / 
Legal Practice Course or Bar Vocational Course / 
Knowledge & experience / Experience working on cases raising civil liberties and/or human rights issues and good grounding in domestic human rights law / 
Litigation experience including judicial review casework / 
Particular knowledge of the legal issues arising from the intersection of human rights (including privacy, equality, and free expression) and surveillance, technology, data collection, and/or national security issues / 
Good understanding of Liberty’s strategic objectives and ways of working / 
Competencies / Attention to detail – thorough, accurate and careful approach to work / 
Efficiency – Ability to manage multiple and competing priorities, follow instructions and meet deadlines / 
Communication skills - Ability to communicate, both orally and in writing, complex legal arguments and principles clearly and succinctly / 
Adaptable - able to work in a busy self-servicing environment, with a positive approach to problem solving / 
Driven and Collaborative - ability to work both independently and collaboratively with other staff at Liberty as required / 
Analysis – ability to research, scrutinise and compile complex legal arguments to a high standard / 
Learning and Reflection - Ability to take a reflective and evaluative approach to work / 
Values / Commitment to building a fair, respectful and diverse working environment / 
Commitment to working collaboratively with team members, other staff at Liberty and other organisations / 
Commitment to and passion for human rights issues and the work of Liberty / 
Important information
  1. Application forms should be returned by email as Word or PDF documents to no later than midday on .
Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. We also ask you to submit the diversity monitoring form, available from our website, but this is optional.
  1. You will receive an automatically generated response confirming receipt. If you DO NOT receive this response within one to two hours of sending, please call 020 7403 3888 to check whether your application has been received - be sure to do so before the closing date.
  1. First round Interviews are scheduled for Monday 12th March with second round interviews scheduled for Friday 16th March. Shortlisted applicants may be contacted by phone to arrange interview times. Details of the interview (location, members of panel etc) will be confirmed by email.
  1. Applicants who have not been short listed will be notified by email. Due to our limited resources we are unable to provide feedback on applications.
  1. Interview panels will be made up of two to four people who will each ask the candidates questions. The questions are intended to allow you to expand on your application and to demonstrate to the panel how far you meet the essential and desirable requirements of the post. All candidates are asked a uniform set of questions (usually 5 or 6) and may also be asked follow up questions to clarify or expand on individual answers. At the end of the interview candidates will also have an opportunity to ask questions about the job, conditions of service, etc.
  1. Shortlisted candidates may be asked to complete pre-interview tasks.
  1. Once all interviews have taken place, shortlisted applicants will be contacted and informed of the outcome either by email or phone and offered the opportunity to receive feedback.
  1. Liberty’s offices are wheelchair accessible. If you have a special requirement for completing a task or attending an interview due to a disability, please contact us on 020 7403 3888