Development of a Bench Book on Family and Personal Laws Consultant at UN Women

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Under the supervision of the UN Women Team Lead, EVAW and the Presiding Judge of the Family Division of the High Court, and working in close collaboration with the Judiciary Technical working group. The Consultant will be responsible for the following:

• Conduct comprehensive desk research and literature review on Kenya’s family law statutes, case law, and comparative jurisprudence - including outcomes of the various policy dialogues with the Judiciary and LSK, wherein conflicting court decisions and emerging issues were highlighted.
• Draft and structure clear, well-referenced chapters covering key areas such as marriage, divorce, custody, succession, adoption, and protection against domestic violence and emerging issues.
• Integrate case law analyses, practical checklists, and international/regional human rights standards into the draft text.
• Work with the technical working group and subject matter experts to harmonize inputs.
• Present draft sections during validation workshops with Judiciary, KLRC, FIDA, LSK, civil society, and other stakeholders.
• Revise and finalize the Bench Book based on feedback

Required Qualifications

Education and Certification:

• Master’s Degree in Law or relevant Social Sciences with a bias to human rights or gender and development studiesor a related field is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. 
• Advocate of the High Court of Kenya

Experience:

• At least 7 years’ post admission experience in family, marriage and divorce, succession and inheritance matters in Kenya.
• Demonstrable experience in family law research, teaching/academia and legal practice in family, marriage and divorce, succession and inheritance matters in Kenya
• Experience in the development of practical tools and resources for the Judiciary or other justice actors, and facilitating High-Level consultative forums with justice actors and other key stakeholders.
• Knowledge and appreciating of the law reform process and the key stakeholders engaged therein.