The Department of Justice of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is inviting applications for the post of Law Draftsman.
The Law Draftsman is the head of the Law Drafting Division of the Department of Justice and is responsible to the Secretary for Justice for the following -
| (a) | overseeing the Law Drafting Division in its drafting and publishing of all Government legislation of the HKSAR and vetting of all proposed legislation initiated by persons or bodies other than the Government; |
| (b) | perusing drafts of legislation and attending before the committees and panels of the Executive and Legislative Councils to steer draft legislation through the legislative process; |
| (c) | advising on a wide range of complex and sensitive legal and other issues identified in the course of developing draft legislation; and |
| (d) | administering and managing the Law Drafting Division and assisting in the management of the Department of Justice as a whole; and developing the drafting skills of counsel in the Division to further raise the standard of legislative drafting in the HKSAR. |
The successful candidate will be appointed as Law Officer, initially to fill the post of Law Draftsman but may be subject to transfer to other Law Officer posts in the Department of Justice.
| (a) | be qualified either as barristers or solicitors in a recognised jurisdiction* as stipulated under Section 2A and Schedule 2 of the Legal Officers Ordinance (Cap. 87); * The recognised jurisdictions are Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, the States and Territories of the Commonwealth of Australia, the Territories and Provinces of Canada (except Quebec), New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, Zimbabwe and Singapore. |
| (b) | have substantial knowledge of and experience in legislative drafting work in Hong Kong or any one of the above jurisdictions at a senior level; |
| (c) | be able to put up constructive ideas in developing drafting policy; |
| (d) | have excellent judgement, leadership and management skills; |
| (e) | be strong in communication and people skills; and |
| (f) | have outstanding command of written and spoken English. An ability to speak, read and write in Chinese would be an advantage. |
Persons who are not permanent residents of the HKSAR may also apply but will be appointed only when no suitable and qualified candidates who are permanent residents are available.
The successful candidate is expected to take up the post in the first half of 2021.
The successful candidate will be appointed on civil service agreement terms for three years, which is renewable at Government’s discretion.
Law Officer is ranked at Point 6 on the Directorate (Legal) Pay Scale (DL6). On appointment, the successful candidate will receive a monthly salary of HK$265,150. The package includes an end-of-agreement gratuity, vacation leave with leave passage allowance, medical and dental benefits, housing benefits (subject to the eligibility criteria stipulated in the relevant civil service regulations) and other benefits commensurate with a position of such seniority. The appointee will be subject to the provisions of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance (Cap. 485) and will be required to make employee’s contribution to a Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) scheme.
Upon satisfactory completion of the agreement, the Law Draftsman will be eligible for an end-of-agreement gratuity which, when added together with the Government’s contribution to the MPF scheme, equals 25% of the total basic salary drawn as Law Officer during the agreement period.
Letter of application, which must state in detail why the applicant considers himself or herself suitable for the post, together with a full curriculum vitae, should be sent to Appointments Unit, 8/F, West Wing, Justice Place, 18 Lower Albert Road, Central, Hong Kong, or by email to dorisung@doj.gov.hk. For enquiries, please call Ms Doris Ung at (852) 3902 8729. The closing time and date of application is 6:00 p.m. on 21 October 2020 (Hong Kong time). Candidates are encouraged to provide their email addresses in their applications. Candidates who are selected for interview will normally receive an invitation (by email or by post) within six to eight weeks from the closing date of application. Those who are not invited for interview may assume that their applications are unsuccessful. To avoid delayed or unsuccessful delivery of applications by post, please ensure that the correct address is clearly printed or written on the envelope and sufficient postage has been affixed before posting. Mail items bearing insufficient postage will not be delivered to this Department and will be returned to the sender or disposed of by the Hongkong Post, where appropriate. Applicants will bear any consequences arising from paying insufficient postage.
ALL APPLICATIONS WILL BE HANDLED IN STRICT CONFIDENCE.
| (a) | Civil service vacancies are posts on the civil service establishment. Candidates selected for these vacancies will be appointed on civil service terms of appointment and conditions of service and will become civil servants on appointment. |
| (b) | As an Equal Opportunities Employer, the Government is committed to eliminating discrimination in employment. The vacancy advertised is open to all applicants meeting the basic entry requirement irrespective of their disability, sex, marital status, pregnancy, age, family status, sexual orientation and race. |
| (c) | The information on salary is for reference only and may be subject to changes. The entry pay, terms of appointment and conditions of service to be offered are subject to the provisions prevailing at the time the appointment is offered. |
| (d) | Where a large number of candidates meet the specified entry requirements, the Department of Justice may devise shortlisting criteria to select the better qualified candidates for further processing. In the circumstances, only shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend the selection interview. |
| (e) | It is Government policy to place people with a disability in appropriate jobs wherever possible. If a disabled candidate meets the entry requirements, he/she will be invited to attend the selection interview, without being subject to further shortlisting. Applicants who have declared disabilities found suitable for appointment may be given an appropriate degree of preference over other applicants whose suitability for appointment is considered comparable to that of the former. The Government policy and other related measures on employment of persons with disabilities are set out in the booklet “ Employ People Based on Their Abilities – Application for Government Jobs by Persons with Disabilities ” which is available for reference on the Civil Service Bureau's website at http://www.csb.gov.hk under “Administration of the Civil Service – Appointments”.. |
| (f) | Civil service vacancies information contained in this column is also available on GovHK at http://www.gov.hk. |