Vacancy: Volunteer Legal Advisor (law students), Refugee Legal Aid Project
Founded in 1979, St Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS) is a refugee service provider in central Cairo that works to enhance the quality of life for refugees and vulnerable migrants through four programs: adult and children’s education, legal, and psychosocial services. We provide high-quality services meeting the unaddressed needs of refugees, and we provide a safe and inclusive space for displaced people to come together as a community. We work for refugees, with refugees, to make rights recognition a reality.
Our missionis to enable refugees and migrants to recognize their potential by encouraging self-motivation and independence through quality, client-centered programming.
Our visionis that every refugee and asylum seeker is entitled to health, security, dignity.
We serve people from many places, including Ethiopia, Iraq, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, and Syria.
Project Description: Refugee Legal Aid Project
The Refugee Legal Aid Project (RLAP) provides advice and representation to refugees seeking recognition by UNHCR through refugee status determination (RSD) procedures in Egypt and assists refugees in accessing resettlement to safe third countries. RLAP is seeking Volunteer Legal Advisors to assist vulnerable refugees in their applications. Read more at http://stars-egypt.org/rlap/
Role
Under the supervision of the RLAP Director and Staff Attorneys, Volunteer Legal Advisors are responsible for the provision of legal advice and representation to urban refugees in matters of protection, RSD, and resettlement. This includes: the screening of refugee cases to identify those of heightened vulnerability, specific need, or strategic importance; making assessments regarding legal services provision; the preparation of detailed written statements addressing accounts of persecution in countries of origin; drafting legal briefs in support of refugee claims at appeal, reopening, and resettlement; and effectively manage a caseload while communicating at all stages with supervisors. RLAP Volunteer Legal Advisors may have the opportunity to conduct workshops for urban refugees related to RSD and resettlement.
Responsibilities
All duties are carried out under the supervision of the RLAP Director and Staff Attorneys.
· To provide general legal counseling and assistance to refugees regarding their applications for registration, protection, RSD, and resettlement before UNHCR.
· To prepare and draft affidavits and statements on behalf of clients and witnesses.
· To prepare and draft requests for review to USCIS, and other resettlement applications.
· To prepare clients for registration and RSD interviews and represent clients in such interviews as needed.
· To undertake country of origin research in support of individual claims and for general organizational research purposes. To maintain good working knowledge of the current political and social situations in the countries of origin of StARS’ clients.
· To draft legal arguments in support of client applications at appeal, reopening, and resettlement.
· To maintain good working knowledge of UNHCR guidelines, processes, and procedures.
· To assess extra-legal client needs and refer to other StARS teams or external organizations as appropriate.
· To undertake comprehensive case management practices including maintaining and updating electronic databases and records for each client, and keeping detailed notes of all casework activities.
· To facilitate RSD preparation workshops and Know Your Rights trainings for refugee communities.
· To adhere to the Nairobi Code of Ethics, the StARS Policies and Procedures Manual, and the StARS Code of Conduct.
Qualifications & Experience
The ideal candidate will be energetic, articulate, and comfortable interacting with diverse segments of society. She or he will have demonstrated a firm commitment to human rights and refugee issues.
Essential qualifications:
· English being the official language of UNHCR Cairo and StARS, RLAP Volunteer Legal Advisors must be fluent in oral and written English.
· Fluency in Arabic or a refugee language is an advantage. Common refugee languages in Cairo include Amharic, Arabic (Sudanese and Levantine dialects), Oromo, Somali (Mahtiri dialect), Tigrinya, & Tigre.
· Current law student (J.D., LL.M, or S.J.D.).
· Excellent legal research and drafting skills.
· Ability to live and work in a fluid security environment.
· Proven experience drafting client affidavits, memoranda of law, and legal arguments.
· Knowledge of or familiarity with UNHCR guidelines and procedures, and UNHCR mandate RSD.
· Ability to exercise sound legal judgment, well organized, self-motivated, and reliable.
· Demonstrated commitment to and compassion for vulnerable refugees and displaced people.
· Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
· Demonstrated ability to work in a team as well as individually.
· A positive attitude and sensitive manner when dealing with clients including a range of interviewing skills for dealing with challenging scenarios, particularly in advocating for survivors of violence, trafficking, torture, and SGBV.
Desirable Characteristics:
· Life and work experience outside of the US/Canada.
· Experience working in any capacity with an urban refugee population.
· Exposure to asylum law or US immigration law.
HOW TO APPLY:
Interested applicants should send a cover letter, CV, and brief legal writing sample torlap.applications@stars-egypt.org. Please write “Volunteer Legal Advisor – law student” in the subject line.
Anticipated starting date: late May 2015 for a period of ten weeks.
RLAP Volunteer Legal Advisors are expected to work a minimum of 35 hours per week between the hours of 9am and 6pm from Sunday to Thursday.
