• Location: Australia-wide
• Term: Ongoing
• Full-time (Part time at 0.8 FTE will be considered)
• Remuneration: SCHADS Level 8: FTE $110-122k + 10% super + 17.5% Annual Leave Loading
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are particularly encouraged to apply
Job title: Managing Lawyer, Safe Climate (Corporate Commercial)
Reporting to: Director, Legal Strategy
Read the Position Description
Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) is the largest environmental legal centre in the Australia-Pacific, dedicated to protecting our climate, communities and shared environment by providing access to justice, running ground-breaking litigation and leading law reform advocacy.
As the region’s legal experts in our field, we aim to be a brave, unified, and focused team, committed to inclusion and excellence in all that we do. We strive to be a diverse and inclusive workplace supporting a highly skilled, engaged, and effective team, where everyone can feel that they belong.
The opportunity
The Managing Lawyer, Safe Climate (Corporate Commercial), is responsible for helping develop and delivering the relevant parts of the approved plan for the Safe Climate Program. The EDO’s Safe Climate Program seeks to advance our overarching vision of ‘a world where nature thrives’ by ‘scrutinising activities and actions which jeopardise a safe climate making them increasingly risky from a litigation and regulatory perspective’. The Managing Lawyer will have oversight of the Corporate Commercial Team and will determine the team’s workflow and priorities.
The Managing Lawyer will play a key strategic role within the Systemic Change Team and, with the Director of Legal Strategy, will be pre-eminently responsible for the design of the annual operational plan agreed to achieve the EDOs 3YR Goals in respect of our Safe Climate corporate and commercial work.
Candidate Profile
We are looking for an independent and strategic thinker, a skilled communicator and litigator, and someone who can demonstrate an ability to think outside the box and deliver effective results for clients. At a personal level you will be comfortable working with diverse communities, and in remote and isolated areas. You will have resilience, tenacity, and compassion.
You will have the ability to lead a team and work collaboratively with solicitors across Australia. You will have strong relationship building skills and be confident in developing trusted relationships with a diverse range of clients and other stakeholders, including government, partner organisations and local media.
Key selection criteria
Strategic thinking and technical skills
- 8 years + work as a lawyer with demonstrated experience using law as a tool for positive change.
- Strong practice management skills and practice management training.
- The ability to think creatively and ambitiously about how we achieve systemic change.
- An instinct for how legal tools can be best used, alongside other non-legal tools, to effect legal change and a willingness to push their team to advance the law.
- An instinct for the effective use of strategic litigation as part of a broader change strategy.
- The ability to plan and implement a Transformative Legal Strategy. Specifically, an ability to demonstrate an understanding of and the strategic potential of law reform, education and litigation work.
- Strong problem-solving skills and abilities to make sound judgments and decisions based on consideration of different views.
Subject matter expertise
- Sound knowledge of domestic and international laws relevant to corporate conduct and action, including but not limited to the Corporations Act 2001 and the Australian Consumer Law
- A strong and detailed understanding of the legal frameworks which operate within the Region in respect of a Safe Climate and a demonstrated capacity to think about how those frameworks can be used, and improved, to drive the changes sought by the EDO’s strategic plan.
Personal qualities, cultural competency and leadership and management skills
- Demonstrated ambition, strong initiative and self motivation.
- A strong sense of ethics and understanding of professional obligations.
- Experience in staff supervision and ability to demonstrate:
- an ability to lead, to bring others along;
- an ability to bring out the best in others and mentor other lawyers;
- excellent emotional intelligence.
- The ability to manage a team with diverse skill sets and experience to effectively achieve results.
- The ability to give and receive regular formal and informal feedback in a timely, constructive, respectful and consistent manner.
- An ability to engage non-legal audiences – including funders – to help them interpret and understand our goals.
- A desire to work in a collaborative and team-based environment.
- Commitment to EDO’s stated values.
Our Values
Commitment – We are committed to; a united organisation, to each other, to collaboration, to justice, to our communities and to creating a world where nature thrives.
Diversity – We are respectful of and welcome diversity of staff, volunteers, offices, environmental regions, communities, stakeholders.
Integrity – We work effectively, efficiently, strategically, professionally, and ethically; “justice is in our nature”.
Vision – We lead change and environmental empowerment using innovation, creativity, and courage.
Our Culture and Benefits:
- We care deeply about creating a workplace where our team members feel valued, respected, and empowered. We are committed to providing equal opportunity regardless of gender identity, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, or life stage.
- The chance to be part of the largest environmental legal practice in the Australia-Pacific
- A very flexible and family-friendly workplace
- Option to work from home and the office
- Paid parental leave
- 15 Days personal/carer’s leave
- Extra leave over the Christmas period
- Access to Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- Ongoing professional development opportunities
- EDO proudly has a JEDI (Justice, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion), and a Mental Health Ambassador Committee, and is developing a First Nations Indigenous Peoples Program with the aid of indigenous-led consultancies
How to Apply
All offers of employment may be subject to satisfactory background checks including a National Police Check, disclosure of previous or current disciplinary action, referee checks, proof of eligibility to work in Australia and qualification checks.
EDO welcome applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, workers of all ages, people with disabilities and people who identify as LGBTQIA+.
Applications must include a CV and a letter that clearly addresses each of the selection criteria.
Applications which do not address the selection criteria will not be considered.
Applications close on Monday 4 April 2022 and are to be forwarded to [email protected] with ‘Application for position of Managing Lawyer, Safe Climate (Corporate Commercial).
