The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) is one of two bodies in the inter-American legal system designed to promote and protect human rights. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the Commission represents all the member states of the Organization of American States. The other human rights body is the Inter-American Court of Human Rights located in San Jose, Costa Rica.

The IACHR is currently seeking a Human Rights Specialist to work in their D.C. office for 6 months. Here are the job’s responsibilities, as listed on PSJD:

1. Case processing and reporting

• Coordinate the preparation and presentation of contentious cases and requests for advisory opinions before the Inter-American Court: conduct legal research and analysis, draft briefs, manage case correspondence, identify and collect evidence, coordinate the presentation of witnesses, and may participate or help prepare arguments and witness testimony to be presented before the Court
• Manage a portfolio of cases according to procedural stage and complexity.
• Draft reports on cases for Commission review based on consultation with the Executive Secretariat and the IACHR.
• Issue pertinent drafts of documents in relation to evaluations of petitions and urgent measures concerning the Member States comprised in the Section’s portfolio.
• Provide policy advice and recommendations to the Supervisor and/or Section Chief on key issues relating to the processing of petitions and cases, the preparation of admissibility and merits reports, systemic issues and patters arising from the petitions and cases.
• Ensure that the Section’s electronic files (including the Section’s database records) are accurate, up to date, and in compliance with quality standards set by the Secretariat.

2. Researching and monitoring the situation (political, legal, human rights) in the Member States comprised in the Section’s mandate

• Provide advice to IACHR Country Rapporteurs for the Member States.
• Contribute to the deliveries of the Section to on-site visits, and country and special reports concerning the Member States. This requires gathering and evaluating data from a wide range of sources, legal research and analysis, editing and translating documents, and the drafting of reports for publication, pursuant to Commission approval.
• Prepare and deliver the materials necessary for the planning of public hearings during IACHR sessions.
• Maintain communications with representatives of the Member States comprised in the Section’s portfolio, as well as petitioners, organizations of civil society and other stakeholders; and warning the Section Coordinator of any communications requiring top management attention.

3. Other duties and responsibilities

• Carry out legal research and legal analyses requested by the Supervisor/Section Chief.
• Provide advice to the Supervisor/Section Chief in relation to the design and implementation of working methodologies common to all IACHR Sections.
• Issue drafts for the Section’s input to internal and external reports, among them, the IACHR’s Annual Report, the Executive Secretary’s reports, the inputs to General Secretariat reports, summit reports and reports to donor agencies.
• Participate in meetings, conferences and other academic or promotion activities.
• Perform other related duties as assigned, including replacing and backstopping for others.

The salary is $56,091.00, and the application deadline is March 1, 2013. For more information, view the full job listing at PSJD.org (log-in required).