About the Clooney Foundation for Justice

The Clooney Foundation for Justice (CFJ) wages justice by providing free legal aid in defense of free speech and women’s rights in over 40 countries. CFJ’s work through the TrialWatch and Waging Justice for Women initiatives has led to dozens of journalists and others exercising their right to free speech being set free, and thousands of women receiving free legal support to defend their rights.

Job Summary

TrialWatch provides legal aid to support freedom of expression. It is the first initiative in the world that systematically monitors criminal trials and defends the rights of those who are unfairly imprisoned. TrialWatch trains and places monitors inside courtrooms across the globe, with a focus on abusive proceedings seeking to suppress speech, and then works with legal experts to grade the trials and expose those that are a sham. We partner with local lawyers to free people who are unjustly imprisoned and file cases before national, regional, and international courts and human rights bodies to overturn or reform unjust laws.

We are seeking a Legal Program Manager for the TrialWatch initiative to help support our global trial monitoring, collaborating closely with CFJ’s local, regional, and international partners, legal clinics, and pro bono law firms. The ideal candidate is an early to mid-career human rights lawyer with a commitment to promoting fair trial and free speech rights across the world and reforming unjust legal systems. This is an excellent opportunity to join a dynamic, international team at a growing NGO. The Legal Program Manager will report to a TrialWatch Senior Legal Program Manager.

Responsibilities 

• Consolidate and support further expansion of our trial monitoring, including across Central Asia and the Caucasus, by helping to develop and execute strategic plans for particular jurisdictions within the region and by building relationships with partners, trial monitors, and other relevant actors;

• Produce impactful reports on trials being monitored alongside TrialWatch’s legal experts, pro bono law firms, and partners;

• Design, propose, and help to execute strategic litigation work streams to leverage the monitoring work, and support other TrialWatch projects as needed, including through legal research and drafting of submissions to national, regional or international courts or bodies;

• Support the Legal Director and Senior Program Managers in developing and executing thematic work streams to further TrialWatch’s objectives;

• Serve as a point of contact for regional and local CFJ partners, including partner NGOs, to steward relationships in accordance with CFJ’s partnership principles and facilitate collaboration and information sharing on joint projects;

• Serve as point of contact for legal experts, legal clinics, and law firms to facilitate information sharing and manage outcomes of projects;

• Help to track measures and outcomes for responsible workstreams against expectations from TrialWatch’s major donors;

• Provide updates and reports to the TrialWatch Legal Director and Senior Legal Program Managers;

• Support security risk assessments and related procedures for supervised projects, and

participate in regional travel to support regional monitoring, training, and advocacy;

• Contribute to and support CFJ’s wider programming and organizational development;

• Support the management and supervision of interns and legal fellows;

• Represent CFJ and its work to governments, media, the global legal and human rights communities, academics, and other stakeholders, including engaging in advocacy on particular cases or initiatives arising under TrialWatch as determined by TrialWatch’s Legal Director and CFJ’s Communications Director;

• Other duties or tasks as may be assigned across TrialWatch and CFJ.

Required Qualifications

• J.D. or LL.M. from accredited law school;

• A minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible legal experience at a law firm or human rights non-profit;

• Demonstrated ability to work with an agile, international, and multi-cultural team;

• Willingness to supervise legal fellows and interns, providing mentorship and support;

• Outstanding written and oral communications skills;

• Desire or willingness to adopt an entrepreneurial mindset;

• Passion for and interest in CFJ’s mission; and

• Willingness to contribute across the board as an integral member of an agile, international, and multi-cultural team;

• Working fluency in Russian.

Preferred Qualifications

• Licensed to practice law in a relevant jurisdiction;

• Substantive experience promoting international fair trial rights;

• Previous exposure to regional or international human rights litigation and advocacy work or trial monitoring.

Location: Flexible with a preference for US, UK and Central European time zones. The applicant must possess authorization to work in the country from which they will be working and residing.

Deadline to apply: March 23, 2025

Start Date: June 2, 2025

Compensation: $85,000 - $95,000 USD or equivalent based on years of relevant experience

CFJ is committed to diversity in its workforce and is an equal opportunity employer. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religious beliefs, color, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability.