Sr Specialist, Global Prosecutions

Who We Are 

International Justice Mission (IJM) is the global leader in protecting vulnerable people from violence around the world. Our team of over 1,200 professionals are at work worldwide in over 30 offices. Together we are on a mission to rescue millions, protect half a billion, and make justice unstoppable. 

We are a global community that cares for one another. We believe that the way we work is as important as the results we achieve. We provide professional excellence with joy and celebration to all those we serve.   

The Need 

For over 25 years, IJM has pioneered the work to protect vulnerable people from violence. 9 out of 9 times in the last decade, IJM’s Justice System Strengthening Projects have reduced slavery and violence between 50 and 85% for very large populations of people in poverty. As we grow to expand our impact to protect 500 million people from violence, we are seeking a Senior Specialist, Global Prosecutions. 

The Senior Specialist, Global Prosecutions serves within the Global Programs Center for Excellence, collaborating with regional and global teams across the world to lead, advise, and support implementation of IJM’s Prosecution vision and strategy to strengthen perpetrator accountability through criminal justice systems. The Senior Specialist will (1) lead the development of a global prosecutions strategy aligned with IJM’s Protection Model, (2) ensure that frontline legal teams are aligned and empowered with the tools, guidance, and frameworks necessary to drive protection through the strengthening of prosecutions, (3) lead the development and dissemination of products, resources, and training that equip staff and partners to strengthen prosecutions and legal services, and (4) contribute to Global Programs’ work to identify and build evidence for replicable interventions.   

This job is open to anywhere IJM has operations. Required in office time will be dependent upon local country office guidelines. Candidate must have correct work authorization in respective country, no sponsorship is offered for this position. It reports to the Global Vice President, Program Excellence.

Responsibilities: 

Strategy, Knowledge Development, & Implementation:  

• Design, develop, and train teams on the resources to implement the Global Prosecutions strategy.  

• Develop tools, guidance, and resources for regional teams to implement prosecutions/legal casework and justice system transformation activities. 

• Lead the development of resources and guidance for teams to effectively utilize the legal services components of JDS and the Protection Collaborative platform. 

• Contribute to grant and proposal development, donor engagement, and consultation for global (including North America), regional, and field teams. 

• Remain up to date on innovative trends and developments in perpetrator accountability in developing contexts globally and regionally through research, shared learning across global teams, and networking; propose enhancements or integration of best practices into existing IJM programs, including survivor voice. 

Networking & Partnership:  

• Develop relationships with global legal organizations and prosecutions groups that are likely to add value to IJM’s mission; 

• Identify potential implementing partner organizations/legal collectives/coalitions for frontline teams;  

• Participate in global and regional panels, conferences, and working groups as key representative of IJM Prosecutions and legal service work. 

Policies and Procedures:  

• Design, develop, and train teams on the best practices and processes as related to the Global Prosecutions strategy. Collaborate with regional leaders to disseminate global standards for hubs, national offices, field offices, and partners. 

• Develop replicable guidelines and processes to ensure global implementation of the legal components of JDS. 

• Lead the update of new Global Prosecutions policies, procedures, and competencies as required.  

Communication:  

• Act as a liaison between Global Programs’ Center for Excellence and regional legal/prosecutions teams and leaders on global projects, strategy, and resource development. 

• Development of briefs, papers, fact sheets, and other communication resources as necessary that articulates IJM’s approach and strategy for prosecutions, housing these on an accessible centralized library. 

• Ensure knowledge sharing and lessons learned across IJM regional legal teams, promoting avenues for shared learnings, collaboration, and product development.  

• Responsible for all administrative Global Prosecutions tasks including responding to email inquiries, managing donor and partner requests globally, supporting other Global and North America projects, and representing IJM Prosecutions as needed in key stakeholder and donor meetings. 

Training and Development:  

• Lead a Community of Practice to share learning across global teams to identify, package, and replicate best practices for prosecutions and legal services. 

• Develop and distribute resources and products to equip teams to implement the Global Prosecutions strategy. 

• Develop or adapt external capacity building training resources and curricula for implementing partners and service providers. Lead and supervise curriculum consultants. 

• Lead pilot trainings and internal capacity building trainings for IJM legal staff and partners to build capacity for regional and field teams to implement their part of the Protection Model. 

• Contribute to Global Programs curriculum, training, and product development.  

• Assist regional teams in recruiting for key legal positions as requested. Mentor and build capacity of regional prosecutions specialists in leadership roles. 

• Research, Program Management, and M&E:  

• Lead the implementation and ongoing development of Standardized Indicators, including tool and training development globally. 

• In collaboration with the MERL team, support the data collection and analysis of prosecutions-focused standardized indicators. 

• Provide consultation and technical expertise into regional and field level prosecutions research projects, as needed. 

Qualifications:  

Education & Experience:   

• LLB / JD law degree; 

• Minimum of 10+ years of relevant work experience. Experienced criminal law practitioner strongly preferred. Engagement with IJM prosecutions/legal programming strongly preferred; 

• Significant experience in working with state justice systems in reforms and improvements of prosecutions and/or legal services for victims of crime;  

• Significant experience developing resources and curricula in cross-cultural settings.   

Technical Competencies:   

• Demonstrated ability to design and support implementation of legal services program development and capacity building; 

• Prosecutions and legal services for people in poverty and other vulnerable populations; 

• Understanding and implementation of trauma-informed and victim-centered prosecutions;  

• Expertise and proven success with training, resource, and curriculum development and implementation; 

• Proven success with product development to address needs and gaps; 

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; and 

• Demonstrated ability to provide remote support to global teams in multiple country contexts.  

Non-Technical Competencies:   

• Demonstrated ability to inspire and equip matrixed team members toward common goals; 

• Exceptional collaboration skills and customer service orientation; 

• Proven success working well with others and managing complex relationships and negotiations with others; 

• Demonstrated ability to manage competing deadlines through time management and prioritization; 

• Demonstrated patience, calmness, and flexibility under pressure; 

• Skilled communicator, presenter, and public speaker, and ability to lead internal and external meetings and present on behalf of IJM; and 

• Ability to travel domestically and internationally, as needed.  

Critical Qualities: 

• Eager commitment to IJM's Core Values: Christian, Professional and Bridge-Building; 

• Self-starter with strong initiative;  

• Disciplined with priorities; 

• Strong interpersonal skills and self-awareness; 

• Exceptional verbal and written communication; 

• Flexible, collaborative and eager to support others; 

• Effective team player who fosters collaborative environment; and 

• Adept at creative problem solving. 

Application Process:  

Upload Resume, Cover Letter & Statement of Faith* in one PDF document. 

*What is a statement of faith? 
A statement of faith should describe your Christian faith and how you see it as relevant to your involvement with IJM. The statement can either be incorporated into the cover letter or submitted as a separate document and should include, at a minimum, a description of your spiritual disciplines (prayer, study, etc.) and your current fellowship or place of worship. 

What does IJM have to offer? 

• Comprehensive Medical/Dental/Vision benefits 

• Monthly commuter and parking benefits in the DC metro area 

• Retirement benefit options  

• Paid leave starting at 23 days 

• 12 holidays (plus early release the day prior) 

• Daily, quarterly, and annual community spiritual formation 

• Robust staff care resources 

IJM holds strict safeguarding principles and a zero tolerance to violations of the Safeguarding Policy, Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment Policy, and Code of Ethics. Candidate selection is based on technical competence, recruitment, selection and hiring criteria subject to assessing the candidate’s value congruence and thorough background, police clearance, and reference check processes. 

At IJM, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce through fair and equitable employment practices. IJM encourages people of any race, color, age, sex, marital status or political ideology to apply for employment. While we welcome everyone into this work, we truly believe that the work we are doing is God’s work, not our own, and practice spiritual disciplines together daily. That’s why we legally require under SEC. 2000e-1 [Section702] of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that all employees practice a mature orthodox Christian faith, as defined by the Apostles’ Creed. 

IJM requires a background check, police clearance and thorough review of references with an employment offer and/or employment contract. 

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