Bench book developer/preparer on Active Case Management Topic, Justice Without Delays Initiative.
Alert
Vacancy
Background
Justice Without Delays (‘JWD’) project was conceived to improve the efficiency of district court proceedings in Albania, through the implementation of practical measures to improve court efficiency and by improving the knowledge of justice professionals on how to conduct efficient proceedings. The project is implemented between May 2016 and February 2019 by the OSCE Presence in Albania (‘the Presence’), with extra-budgetary funding from the Austrian Development Co-operation (‘the donor’), in partnership with USAID’s Justice For All Project. Beneficiaries include current and future judges, court administrators, lawyers and prosecutors, Ministry of Justice, High Council of Justice and agencies working with the courts and Albanian citizens.
One of the components of the Justice Without Delays (‘JWD’) project seeks to increase the knowledge of justice professionals on conducting efficient proceedings through training and publications. In this regard, the Presence will develop a Benchbook for judges and court staff on the topic of active case management. The Benchbook is conceived as a useful tool for judges, administrative staff, court administrators, but also young magistrates who aspire to become judges. Besides being disseminated to serving judges and court staff, this publication will be handled to the School of Magistrates in order to ensure sustainability of the principles of the Justice Without Delays Project.
The Benchbook will contain three main sections: on the one hand, a theoretical description of the active case management techniques, and on the other, a detailed compilation of concrete measures that have been implemented in courts to reduce lengthy proceedings and unproductive hearings, one part consisting of the measures that have been applied in criminal proceedings and the other one on civil proceedings. The theoretical section will consist of an introduction to the concept of active case management, best practices, and examples of application in other countries. Whereas the practical section will consist of examples of administrative and practical measures implemented by the courts across the country to reduce delays of proceedings and increase their efficiency, by detailing those accordingly for civil and criminal cases. The Benchbook will be developed by three national experts, one covering the theoretical section and two others the practical section of active case management.
Objective: Draft the theoretical section of a Benchbook on Active Case Management Techniques for judges and court administrative staff.
Tasks and responsibilities:
The consultant in co-ordination with the other two local consultants (responsible to draft the practical aspect of active case management) and under the guidance of the Presence’s point of contact, will be responsible to prepare the theoretical section of a Benchbook on Active Case Management Techniques for judges and court administrative staff. More specifically the consultant will be expected to:
1- Participate in a preparatory co-ordination meeting with the other local consultants on 18 October 2018, organised by the Presence’s point of contact to discuss about the content of respective sections of the Benchbook that each expert will develop.
2- Independently from the other experts, prepare the theoretical section of the Benchbook on Active Case Management in the Albanian language, which will consist of:
a. Introduction to active case management techniques
b. International standards on performance indicators in the courts
c. Best practices from various countries on the implementation of active case management techniques to reduce delays of proceedings
d. Domestic legal framework on use of performance indicators in the Albanian courts
3- Deliver a first draft of the theoretical section of the Benchbook on 31 October 2018 to the Presence’s point of contact of a minimum of 10 pages.
4- Reflect the comments provided by the Presence on the first draft delivered and submit a revised version of the draft by 07 November 2018.
5- Reflect any potential additional comments of the Presence on the revised draft and submit the final section of the Benchbook by 19 November 2018
6- Make an oral presentation of the theoretical section of a Benchbook on active case management techniques in a roundtable with judges and other justice professionals from other key justice institutions to be organized by the Presence on 14 September 2018.
Expected Output/Deliverable:
• First draft of the theoretical section of the Benchbook until 31 October 2018, in the Albanian language, to the Presence’s point of contact.
• Revised version of the draft until 07 November 2018
• Final version of the section of the Benchbook until 19 November 2018
• Personal presentation of the theoretical section of a Benchbook in a roundtable organized by the Presence.
Necessary Qualifications:
Training and Education
Master studies in law, justice or a related field or equivalent four years law degree;
Knowledge and Experience
• A minimum of ten years’ experience and expertise as a justice professional (judge preferred) in the field/sector of law and/or judiciary;
• A minimum of five years’ experience as a professor, researcher or trainer on court administration, in Albanian law educational/training institutions;
• Proven experience as a trainer of justice professionals, including judges and prosecutors;
• Knowledge of international best practices on court administration and performance indicators;
• Understanding of the principles applied under the Justice Without Delays Project in the Albania;
• Authorship of at least three publications or research carried out in the field of law;
• Excellent communication and drafting skills in Albanian;
• Demonstrated gender awareness and sensitivity, and ability to integrate a gender perspective into tasks and activities;
• Computer literate with practical experience in Microsoft applications.
Competencies
• Actively contributes to achieving the purpose of the assignment
• Demonstrated ability and willingness to work as a member of a team
• Actively works to achieve clear and transparent communication with the project staff and collaborators
• Works towards the achievement of goals in a structured and measured manner
• Analyses available information and draws well-founded conclusions
Remuneration
The fee will be paid upon submission of the final section of the Benchbook and upon completion of all deliverables in the described quality, cleared by the Presence and after the presentation of the Benchbook in the roundtable indicated above.
How to apply
All applications are due by 26 September 2018. If you wish to apply for this position, please use the OSCE's on line application link found under link https://jobs.osce.org/. The OSCE retains the discretion to re-advertise the vacancy, to cancel the recruitment, to offer a contract with modified Terms of Reference or for a different duration. The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious, ethnic and social backgrounds to apply to become a part of the organization. Please be aware that the OSCE does not request payment at any stage of the application and review process.