Consultant - Development of new court rules and procedures, High Court of Kiribati

Job Description

Reference: PGKIR0690
Location: Kiribati
Closing date: 9th July 2015
Contract duration: 40 Consultant days
Fee: £25,200

The Judiciary of Kiribati is made up of Magistrates’ Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal. Limited right of appeal to the Privy Council still exists in certain matters only. The High Court has original jurisdiction as well as appellate

At present Kiribati’s 33 islands and a population of about 107,000, stretched over an area of 1.3 million square miles, are served a High Court comprised only of the Chief Justice, the Commissioner of the High Court (who is also the Chief Registrar) and a High Court Judge provided by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation (CFTC). There are also 150 magistrates in Kiribati sitting across the 21 courts of the islands of Kiribati. As there is no Chief Magistrate, the role of support to the magistrates falls to the Chief Registrar. Read more >>

Project purpose

The purpose of this assignment shall be the production new Civil Procedure Rules accompanied by Practice Directions for their implementation in the High Court of Kiribati.

Task of Expert

The expert will be required to:

• Review the current rules and acquaint herself/himself with their provisions;
• Consult with relevant stakeholders on the requirement of new rules
• Propose necessary components and additions for the new Civil Procedure Rules
• Review the model used in Belize (which has been selected as an appropriate format for Kiribati to follow)
• Prepare a working draft of the new rules based on the Belize model, which will be shared for consultation prior to finalisation
• Draft Practice Direction necessary to accompany and to give effect to the provisions of the new Civil Procedure Rules
• Undertake any other work necessary in order to complete the task of perfecting the Rules and Procedures;
• Development of a finalised draft to the Chief Justice for his approval preparatory to the promulgation of the new civil procedure rules.
• Work closely with and advise the Chief Justice and/or the Chief Justice’s nominated representative in the performance of these tasks;
• Support a three day workshop on working with the new rules for lawyers, court and registry staff and Judges.

Assignment deliverables

• An Inception Progress Report following the first visit
• Production on a first draft of the new rules, to be shared for consultation.
• Final Progress Report following the second visit
• Finalised draft of the Rules and Practice Directions
• Sensitisation and training material for lawyers, court and registry staff and Judges

Transfer of Expertise

The Commonwealth Secretariat attaches particular importance to the transfer of expertise and knowledge to counterparts. The Consultant in his/her discussions with the Reporting Officer should draw attention to the need for key staff to be assigned as counterparts at the beginning of the assignment. This should be reported in the Inception Report. Capacity development activities for key counterpart staff should also be specifically identified in the Inception Report. An update to these actions should be provided on this in all Progress Reports.

Required Experience and Qualifications

The successful candidate should possess:

Essential

• Degree and professional qualification in law
• Minimum of 10 years’ professional experience as a judge of a higher court in any Commonwealth jurisdiction, including a minimum of 5 years’ experience of hearing cases as a Judge of a higher court.
• Experience of revising Court Rules and Procedures in any Commonwealth jurisdiction in support of modern and efficient court systems;
• Strong presentation, communication and report writing skills
• Fluency in written and spoken English
• Computer skills: word processing, spread-sheets, and presentations.

Desirable

• Experience of developing and delivering capacity building inputs for the justice sector
• Experience of working in a Commonwealth Country or/ the Pacific region

How to Apply

Applicants who meet post criteria will need to complete an application online, attaching a detailed CV along with a covering letter and include the names and contact details of three referees.

Applicants should provide details of three referees, one including current or most recent/ last employer. If the current/ last employment has been less than 2 years, details of a previous employer should be provided. Referees should not be related to the applicant and should be able to give an assessment of the applicant’s professional abilities as well as their character.

Deadline for applications is 17:00 BST on 9 July 2015.

About the Organization

Commonwealth organisations are involved in diverse activities, from helping countries with trade negotiations to encouraging women’s leadership, building the small business sector, supporting youth participation at all levels of society and providing experts to write laws.

The Commonwealth continues to be a pioneer in many areas of development. Our work in maritime boundaries is leading strategic thinking on ocean governance internationally. The Commonwealth Youth Programme has championed rights of young people for more than 40 years.