The Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) Law Clinic seeks the services of an admitted attorney, to be appointed either as an Attorney or as a Senior Attorney. An attorney with at least three years’ post-admission experience and a higher appearance right qualifies for the post of Senior Attorney. An attorney with less than three years’ experience qualifies for the post of Attorney.
The SERI Law Clinic has a first-rate human rights practice, which encompasses constitutional and administrative law, criminal defence, defamation, labour law, property law, contract law (insofar as it involves consumer protection) and actions against the police and other delictual claims. SERI concentrates its work in South Africa’s townships, informal settlements, the Johannesburg inner city and other poor and marginalised communities. SERI’s practitioners appear regularly at all levels of the courts system, up to and including the Constitutional Court. SERI has an enviable track record in obtaining and enforcing ground-breaking judgments. You can find out more about SERI on www.seri-sa.org and www.fightingforaliving.org.
Reporting to the Director of Litigation, the Attorney will be expected to develop a litigation practice across a wide range of work, encompassing trial, motion and appeal work, including criminal, constitutional, administrative, labour, property and delictual matters. The Senior Attorney will, in addition, be expected to mentor, train and act as principal to one or more of SERI’s candidate attorneys, to deputise for the Director of Litigation where necessary, and to share with the Director of Litigation the responsibility of managing SERI’s caseload and its team of attorneys and candidate attorneys.
The requirements for the position are as follows –
For Attorneys
- Admission as an Attorney of the High Court of South Africa.
- Interest in and, some prior engagement with, human rights law or litigation.
- Interest in, and experience of, research, writing and publication.
- Fluency in any of South Africa’s indigenous languages.
Additional Requirements for Appointment as a Senior Attorney
- At least 3 years’ post admission experience.
- Experience of practice in the Supreme Court of Appeal and Constitutional Court.
- Right of appearance in terms of s 25 (3) of the Legal Practice Act 28 of 2014
The salary for the post of Senior Attorney will be in the region of R500 000 – R580 000 per annum. For the post of Attorney, the salary range is R320 000 to R400 000 per annum. Salary determinations will depend on the successful candidate’s qualifications and experience.
If you are interested in this post, please send a CV, together with a covering letter to Princess Nkuna at princessn@seri-sa,org. In your covering letter, please specify why you’re interested in this post. Please also provide a detailed explanation of why you are interested in working for SERI in particular, and what qualities and experience you would bring to the post.
Generalised covering letters, which do not engage with SERI’s activities and purpose, will not be considered. The closing date for applications is Friday 28 June 2019. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted, and will be expected to make themselves available for interview in July or August 2019.