Adviser to the Public Solicitor’s Office (Family, Criminal and Civil Law) – VAPJP At Palladium International

Company Overview:

About Palladium – Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact – the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value. We work with governments, businesses, and investors to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. With a team of more than 3,000 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of over 35,000 experts, we help improve economies, societies and, most importantly, people’s lives.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status.

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual or any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com

Safeguarding – We define Safeguarding as “the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm”. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.

Project Overview and Role:

The Program
The Vanuatu Australia Policing and Justice Program (VAPJP) is a long-standing and integral part of Australia’s aid investments in Vanuatu, delivering policing and justice sector support. It has a hybrid modality and a joint management approach between Palladium, as Managing Contractor for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), and the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
The program implements a ‘two-track’ strategy which involves pre-positioning resources to support the Government of Vanuatu (GoV) to respond to challenges to the maintenance of security and the rule of law; and building longer-term capability to provide the justice and policing services needed by communities. The program has a range of input modalities, including technical assistance, operational support and funding, training and professional development, community grants, infrastructure, and project delivery.

VAPJP entered its second 4-year phase (2021-2024) in January 2021. The implementation of VAPJP Phase Two is guided by a Design Update document.

The End of Program Outcomes (EOPOs) as articulated in the Design Update document[1] include:

Justice and policing agencies improve quality and reach of services to Vanuatu communities, particularly in their handling of cases involving women, children and youth.
Women, children and youth are increasingly accessing state policing, justice and community services.
Policing and Justice agencies maintain public security and the rule of law.

Purpose

Based in the PSO, support provided by the Adviser to the PSO is intended to achieve, but is not limited to, the following overarching role objectives:

To provide legal training, mentoring and professional development support to the PSO in the areas of family law, civil law and criminal law;
To coordinate VAPJP supported multi-agency legal training programs and conferences, for example the Vanuatu Criminal law Conference;
To support PSO and VAPJP legal outreach programs aimed at improving access to justice for women, children, and other vulnerable groups; and
To support PSO lawyers with input to law reform and legal policy activities as directed by the Public Solicitor.

The Adviser to the PSO will ensure that all work carried out is done in a manner that maintains the Public Solicitor’s independence and does not risk any perceived or actual conflict-of-interest. Key functions for the position in support of the objectives above are as follows:

On a day to day basis, build the capacity of lawyers from the PSO through modelling best practice, mentoring and skills training;
Build the capacity of PSO officers to support vulnerable clients;
Support the PSO to extend the reach of their lawyers to clients in provincial areas and consider other opportunities for outreach to fulfil their mandate;
Coordinate VAPJP-supported multi-agency legal training programs and conferences aimed at building legal skills and knowledge among justice sector lawyers;
Support the PSO to develop relationships with other Government agencies who can provide support or other therapeutic services to vulnerable clients;
Support improved business planning, case management and Human Resource systems across the sector; and
Collaboration as a member of a multi-disciplinary team of VAPJP Advisers with the collective responsibility of achieving the program’s EOPOs by mutually reinforcing strategies developed by the program as well as participating in processes that facilitate this

Required Qualifications:

Key qualifications and experience required are as follows:

A Law Degree and admission to practice in a relevant jurisdiction
At least 7 years’ experience practicing as a lawyer in a combination of criminal, civil or family law with:
Criminal law practice experience particularly with respect to sexual offences and domestic violence;
Experience in civil law processes and applications and laws relating to families and children; and
Extensive experience as a court advocate, legal aid lawyer, or barrister in either criminal, civil or family law in a relevant jurisdiction
Proven ability to build productive working relationships, particularly in a management setting, and work collaboratively and respectfully in a cross-cultural setting
Experience in case management and the mentoring and supervision of other legal officers
Understanding of and ability to design and implement capacity development training and skills transfer activities
Experience in preparation and delivery of legal training to lawyers
Demonstrated ability to exercise sound professional judgement in sensitive situations
Eligibility to obtain a Vanuatu visa
Understanding of gender equity, disability and social inclusion in a legal environment
Understanding of law and development issues
Previous experience working in Melanesian cultures (desirable)