Head, Legal Aid And Community Justice at Uganda Network on Law, Ethics and HIV/AIDS (UGANET)

Job Description

Over the past 14 years, UGANET has run 5 nationally distributed legal aid clinics. It has registered successes but recognized areas it could have done better. Through this strategic period, UGANET hopes to build on the gains of the past period and draw lessons to running a more effective legal aid program.

It has proposed a beam light model of legal aid – where a legal team of lawyers and advocates based at UGANET secretariat and district field offices will harness team effort, talents, work through cases together and make strategies to better enrich the clients and communities that are spread all through the 5 regions of UGANETs focus. UGANET has 133 paralegals in the 54 communities that will ensure vibrant engagement at community level, interface of complaints in the first instance and refer them for action to this team of lawyers.

The beam light model will require a strong head of department, able to build a team and work with it to deliver a strong legal aid program.

The Head Legal aid and community Justice will have the primary responsibility to technically backstop all legal officers, set standards for legal aid, initiate training and capacity building for the team and, rejuvenate community systems

Specific functions
• Provide leadership and technical Support for Legal aid and community justice program through building a team, working with it to enhance their capacity to carry out their roles. In this case the leader is expected to provide Litigation support to legal officers on client files by researching on difficult cases and providing legal strategy.
• Lead the Development of manuals and training material to be used in all UGANET legal aid training programs
• Support, Monitor and evaluate performance of Legal Officers to the extent of their fulfilling their terms of contract and furtherance of UGANET’s objectives. The head will take lead in managing results – reports and performance plans for the legal aid program.
• Proofread each project’s quarterly donor report prior to its submission to the donor and make suggestions to the projects, as needed, for improving the quarterly report, focusing on monitoring and evaluation of each project per its specific goals and objectives
• Work in close collaboration with the project staff and UGANET’s management team to ensure the successful and timely completion of the program according to its stated objectives
• Ensure that UGANET meets all legal requirements as an institution licensed to practice law. This includes ensuring that regional and secretariat offices are equipped with appropriate Legal Resources.
• Ensure staff have all legal requirements to practice law i.e. valid licenses, Practicing certificates, professional attire and Identification, etc.
• Ensure that Lawyers conduct themselves in a professional, ethical and honest manner, giving attention to UGANET outputs and clients. (i) Work towards promoting UGANET’s visibility of Legal Aid Services amongst donors, partners and Government.
• Give attention to daily running of the legal aid program based legal services in terms of Human resource affairs, logistical requirements, and actual legal aid service delivery.
• Represent UGANET when needed, with partners, donors and government office
• Identify and inform the Executive Director of any concerns and/or issues as soon as possible and recommend action for resolution.
• Maintain comprehensive electronic and hard copy files of all cases, Partners correspondences and a clear record of all activities carried out by you.
• Prepare material for the Website and other Public relational documents

Required Academic Qualifications, Experience and Person specifications:
• Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree in Law from an accredited Institution.
• Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice; MUST be an Enrolled Advocate of the High Court with a VALID Practicing Certificate.
• Minimum of 5 years’ relevant experience in legal practice/ Court room experience
• At least three year’s experience in provision of Legal Aid Services with team leadership experience.

Skills:
• Proven team leadership experience, Excellent communication skills, knowledge of other languages and experience in community work is of an added advantage.
• He/she should have advanced working knowledge of Microsoft word, PowerPoint, excel and publisher