Legal Assistant for Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean, Global Legal Program
Posted on: December 17, 2014Application deadline: January 15, 2015
Posted by: Center for Reproductive Rights
CENTER BACKGROUND
Founded in 1992, the Center for Reproductive Rights (the Center) is a non-profit organization that promotes women's equality worldwide by securing reproductive rights in constitutional and international human rights law. Its mission is straightforward and ambitious: to advance reproductive health and rights as fundamental rights that all governments are legally obligated to protect, respect and fulfill. The Center is unmatched as a reproductive rights organization in its expertise in U.S. constitutional law, comparative law, and international human rights law.
The Center works across the globe on issues including access to life-saving obstetrics care, contraception, abortion services, and comprehensive sexuality information. In the U.S. Legal Program, the Center's preeminent litigation team has helped millions of women and their families by securing government funding for abortions, striking down abortion bans and other access restrictions, and protecting teens' access to emergency contraception and confidential reproductive healthcare services and information. The Center's complementary legislative advocacy initiatives and strategies have helped local advocates fight restrictive abortion legislation in over 25 states as well as promote reproductive rights and access to health care for millions of women. Through our human rights advocacy, the Center has been able to promote the integration and adoption of human rights principles in the domestic sphere while systematically norm-building and elevating local reproductive health issues within international treaty monitoring bodies and partner organizations.
The Center's Global Legal Program has brought groundbreaking cases before national courts, U.N. committees, and regional human rights bodies, and has built the legal capacity of women's rights advocates in over 50 countries. Our US Policy and Advocacy Program, based in Washington, DC, focuses on both U.S. domestic and foreign policy, providing leadership within the community of reproductive rights allies. In recent years, the Center has been able to dramatically expand its pro bono support from U.S. and non-U.S. based law firms, supporting not only the work of our U.S. Legal Program, but also our U.S. Policy and Advocacy Program (engaged in state and federal advocacy) and our Global Legal Program (engaged in advocacy and litigation before the United Nations and various regional and national bodies throughout the world).
The Legal Assistant for Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean will be joining the Center at a critical time for reproductive rights globally. As opponents of women's rights are mounting a scorched-earth campaign to turn back decades of hard-won progress, the Center is fighting back with short-, medium-, and long-term strategies, to reverse the erosion of reproductive rights protections across the U.S. and establish the right to affordable reproductive healthcare in the U.S. A key component of our strategic plan is to restore heightened protections for abortion rights, as promised to American women in the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade (1973).
To learn more about the Center for Reproductive Rights, go to www.reproductiverights.org.
The Center seeks a Legal Assistant for the Global Legal Program to the support the Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean regional programs. The position will be based in New York.
RESPONSIBILITIES
The Legal Assistant will work under the supervision of the Regional Director for Asia and the Regional Director for Latin American and the Caribbean, and will work closely with Legal Advisers and Fellows in these regional programs.
The Legal Assistant's main responsibilities will include:
- Drafting and mailing of correspondence
- Coordinating international travel arrangements and handling visa applications
- Scheduling meetings and handling the logistics of program-related events
- Drafting and monitoring partnership agreements
- Processing and monitoring financial transactions of staff in NY and in the regional offices, including preparation of reimbursement requests and travel expense reports
- Liaising with the Finance Department, Regional Directors and Regional Offices to assist with the preparation of budgets and regularly supporting budget-related planning and monitoring processes for the regional programs
- Assisting with research, drafting, and preparing materials for publication or submission to formal legal bodies
- Editing, fact-checking, and cite-checking letters, reports, legal submissions, and other institutional publications in accordance with the Center's style guide and the Bluebook and Chicago Manual of Style
- Liaising with the Communications Department in coordinating production schedules for publications and drafting web content in English
- Tracking and incorporating data for the organization's monitoring and evaluation system
- Reviewing documents in Spanish, translating documents from Spanish to English and vice-versa and occasionally corresponding with partners in Spanish
- Coordinating with staff in the Center's regional offices in Colombia and Nepal and providing critical support as needed
- Monitoring the schedules of UN and regional human rights bodies
KNOWLEGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES
- B.A. degree or foreign equivalent is required
- 2 years of experience in an administrative position
- Fluency in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and use of email
- Excellent research, writing and communication skills
- Experience in handling budgets and other financial transactions
- Experience in producing materials for publication
- Ability to balance multiple tasks and coordinate with different organizational departments
- Ability to speak, read and correspond in Spanish
A commitment to women's reproductive rights, international experience and general knowledge of women's rights issues in Asia and/or Latin America and the Caribbean are desirable. Familiarity with the United Nations system, regional human rights systems and experience working on legal issues, including familiarity with the Bluebook will be a plus. Knowledge of Portuguese will also be a plus.
DURATION OF POSITION
The position is full-time, beginning in February 2015. We are strongly interested in candidates who are able to make a two year commitment.
COMPENSATION
The Center offers a competitive salary commensurate with experience and a comprehensive benefits program.
HOW TO APPLY
lease click on the link below. A cover letter, résumé, one writing sample and contact information for three references is required. Please include these application materials as attachments.
Deadline for applications: Jan 15, 2015
The Center for Reproductive Rights is an equal opportunity employer, committed to inclusive hiring and dedicated to diversity in our work and staff. We strongly encourage candidates from all groups and communities to apply.
No comments:
Post a Comment