Counsel, Washington (GF) World Bank Closing date: Tuesday, 17 March 2015 (added 25 February)

Closing date: Tuesday, 17 March 2015

Background / General description

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID or the Centre) is one of the five intergovernmental organizations that make up the World Bank Group (Bank Group). It was established in 1966 by the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (the ICSID Convention). To date, 150 countries are ICSID members.

ICSID consists of an Administrative Council and a Secretariat. The Administrative Council is the governing body of ICSID. It is composed of one representative of each ICSID member State and is chaired by the President of the Bank Group. The Secretariat carries out the day-to-day work of ICSID. It consists of a Secretary-General and 55 staff who are organized into five teams. Three legal teams administer the more than 200 cases pending before the Centre. A fourth team oversees the Centre's institutional affairs, including membership, publications, outreach and technical assistance. The fifth team manages the institution's administrative and financial operations.

The mandate of ICSID is to foster increased flows of international investment by providing an impartial and effective international forum for the resolution of disputes between host governments and foreign investors. The Centre administers arbitration and conciliation under the ICSID Convention and the ICSID Additional Facility Rules. ICSID also administers investor-State proceedings under other sets of rules such as the Arbitration Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, and acts as an appointing authority under various arbitral rules and international treaties.

In addition to its dispute settlement activities, ICSID has an active publications program in the areas of foreign investment law and international dispute resolution. Its publications include a semi-annual law journal and multi-volume collections of investment laws and treaties. The Centre also maintains a website providing access to extensive information on ICSID operations and cases, including ICSID arbitral awards and decisions.

ICSID wishes to hire experienced Counsel to join its legal teams. The selected candidates will operate under the general guidance of the ICSID Secretary-General and will work under the supervision of a Team Leader. As legal team members, the Counsel will act as Secretaries in arbitration and conciliation cases, offering a wide range of support and expertise to disputing parties, arbitrators, conciliators and ad hoc committee members. As Secretaries, the selected candidates will be involved in all aspects of the process and assist at hearings. Counsel will also participate in and lead a variety of institutional projects, and will represent ICSID at conferences and meetings.

Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment. All others will be offered a 3 year term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities

Analyze requests for conciliation and arbitration, and applications for post-award remedies.
Assist in the constitution of conciliation commissions, arbitral tribunals and ad hoc committees.
Administer the subsequent proceedings, which may be conducted in English, French or Spanish, or a combination of such languages, including complex and novel proceedings.
Supervise the financial aspects of proceedings, including advances of funds, reimbursement of arbitrator and other costs, and refunds to parties.
Provide procedural advice to conciliators, arbitrators, committee members and parties.
Assist conciliators, arbitrators and committee members in the preparation of procedural orders, and review of decisions and awards, as well as translations.
Assist conciliators, arbitrators and committee members to identify necessary legal and practice materials.
Assist parties in ICSID proceedings with information about proceedings.
Participate in and lead institutional projects.
Deliver presentations and represent ICSID at conferences and meetings with State representatives and the public.
Undertake legal research in the fields of conciliation, arbitration and foreign investment law.
Assist in the development and implementation of internal best practices.
Assist with identification of trends and issues in cases, and where appropriate, develop and implement measures to address such issues.
Contribute to knowledge creation and knowledge sharing related to ICSID's activities, both within and outside the Bank Group.
Mentor and oversee the work of junior staff.
Work on other matters, initiatives and programs as the Secretary-General or Team Leader may assign.

Selection Criteria

Law degree (JD, LLB, LLM or equivalent) and admission to the Bar (or equivalent) in at least one jurisdiction.
Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience. Experience as arbitration counsel or as a tribunal secretary is an advantage.
Advanced knowledge of international investment law and public international law.
Advanced knowledge of arbitration practice and procedure.
Excellent skills in organizing, prioritizing and coordinating work.
Capacity to deliver a substantial and proficient level of work independently.
Sense of responsibility, integrity and positive attitude.

Initiative

Volunteers to undertake tasks and lead projects.

Professional Maturity

Listens well to others and communicates in a respectful manner.
Takes the time to clarify others' points of view and reach consensus.

Leadership and Mentoring

Strong leadership skills and ability to lead by example.
Shares own expertise with others regarding task accomplishment and general legal and ICSID knowledge.
Ability to supervise more junior colleagues and provide constructive feedback.

Legal Drafting and Research

Excellent legal drafting skills
Demonstrated ability to research complex arbitration and investment law questions, and draft documents in a clear and precise manner with limited supervision.

Legal Reasoning

Able to anticipate and address complex and novel issues.
Able to analyze a problem or situation by breaking it down into its component parts and articulating its implications in a step-by-step manner.

Flexibility

Demonstrates the ability to adapt plans, tasks and resources to meet objectives and work with others.
Ability to adapt effectively to shifting work demands and institutional directives in a rapidly changing work environment.
Willingness to work flexible hours to meet client needs.

Service Orientation

Is accountable for timely responses to internal and external queries, requests or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success.
Tact and discretion in dealing with internal and external stakeholders.

Drive for Results

Pro-active approach to case management and is accountable for meeting deadlines and achieving agreed-upon results.

Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion

Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to work effectively in a team.
Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team's work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view.
Ability to deal sensitively in multicultural environments and build effective working relationships with clients and colleagues.

Communication, Knowledge and Learning

Excellent oral and written communication skills in English;
excellent oral and written communication skills in Spanish and/or French is a significant advantage.
Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner.

Judgment and Analytical Decision Making