Legal Affairs Manager

Background/IRC Summary:

•  The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives.
• Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster.
• At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure.
• The IRC leads the way from harm to home.
• IRC has been working in Pakistan for over 40 years, and manages and delivers large, complex programs to meet the needs in health, education, protection, environmental health and livelihoods for displaced, poor and disaster affected communities.
• IRC works in partnership with local government and non-governmental organizations and currently works in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including NMDs(ex-FATA areas), Punjab, Baluchistan and Sindh provinces.

 Job Overview/Summary:

• The Manager-Legal Affairs is primarily responsible for managing the legal matters of the IRC and providing proactive high-quality advice and legal risk assessment to the organization in compliance with organizational policies and local laws and regulations to facilitate smooth implementation of its programs in Pakistan.
• He /she must have ability to guide the organization on prevailing and latest legislations for carrying out Organization’s routine business.
• He/she will be responsible for formulating the best possible legal solution after analyzing the legal issues in depth.
• He/she should be able to assist organization while dealing with some particular legal tasks, litigations, contracts, dispute resolution and guide the organization on taking an appropriate decision.
• He/she should be able to guide for a desired outcome from the organization's point of view.
• He/she would analyze and research the implication of laws, legislation of Pakistan that may affect the operations of the organization.

Major Responsibilities:

• Provide legal assistance in ensuring that organization’s regular business affairs are carried out as per relevant laws of Pakistan.
• Review staff/consultant employment contracts and their subsequent modifications/termination to ensure that these are legally enforceable in Pakistan and that fringe benefits offered are as per Labor laws of Pakistan.
• Draft, review and vet IRC Pakistan Program’s commercial contracts with services/goods providers ensuring that these are drafted in compliance with relevant laws currently in-force in Pakistan.
• Provide advice on different legal issues and assist in drafting legal opinions, memoranda and other briefing documents.
• Review and draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) entered with various Federal and Provincial Governments to facilitate the work of IRC in its program intervention areas. Liaise with relevant federal and provincial government authorities on contractual matters as and when needed.
• Represent and defend the Organization before the Courts of Law for cases filed by the Employees/Consultants/Contractors/ Suppliers/ Sub-Contractors etc. or vice versa.
• Negotiate and reply to legal notices and help the Organization in sorting out issues out of courts through Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism.
•  Liaise with management and relevant departmental leads to ensure that the legal risks have been identified and appropriate course of action to mitigate the risk has been taken
• Provide legal protection and risk management advice to management.
• Provide and interpret legal information, conduct training and disseminate appropriate legal requirements to the staff.

Other requirements

• Candidate should possess excellent analytical, research and drafting skills
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills are highly desirable.
• Ability to provide accurate and timely council based on judgment is essential.
• He/she should be able to take initiative and function with minimal supervision ensuring the confidentiality of information.
• He/she should be able to keep himself/herself updated with all the regulator/corporate/labour laws and  to apply them in the given situation to the advantage of organization.
• The Legal Consultant shall be willing to travel throughout Pakistan to represent the IRC and defend its cases in the courts of law as and when required.
• He/she will not plead any case, in any court of law, against the IRC.

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: 

• Deputy Director Operations

Position directly supervises:  N/A

Job Requirements:

Education:

• Law Graduate (L.L.B) from an HEC recognized University/Institution.

b) Work Experience:

• At least 10 years practicing relevant experience in Law, with 5 year of experience in providing legal advice to INGO /UN and other Development Sector organizations.
•  Proven track record of providing accurate and effective legal counsel.
• Proven track record of adding value to an organization through the development of comprehensive contract documents that mitigate risk and penalties.
• Experience in employee related cases will be an added advantage.

c) emonstrated Skills and Competencies:

• Good knowledge and understanding of labor laws, legal framework governing operations of INGOs in Pakistan.
• Good planning and organization skills.
• Have fluent spoken and written Urdu and English.
• The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct.
• These are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability.
• In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity Anti-Retaliation and Combating Trafficking in Persons.
• IRC is committed to ensuring that IRC staff is suitable to work with children and have the knowledge s/he needs to uphold and abide by the IRC’s Child Safeguarding Policy.
• IRC ensures that its staff must actively practice the roles and responsibilities related to client responsiveness, accountability to people in affected communities and must have competencies to solicits and listens to feedback and other’s perspectives, responds to feedback with maturity and sensitivity and takes appropriate decisions and makes changes to behavior or actions in response to feedback.
• IRC recognizes that gender equality is fundamental to the achievement of our organizational mission.
• As such, IRC is committed to the promotion of gender equality in all aspects of our operations and programs.
• Our organizational policies, procedures and actions demonstrate this commitment.