OPBP prepares free, high quality, international and comparative law research for lawyers and organisations around the world on important public interest matters. In recognition of our work, OPBP received the prestigious ‘Best Contribution by a Team of Students’ award at the 2013 LawWorks & Attorney General Student Pro Bono Awards.

Serving on the OPBP Executive Committee presents an incredible opportunity to work at the forefront of public interest law. In 2013-14, OPBP has been involved with the American Civil Liberties Union for drafting a new ICCPR general comment on privacy; the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with the Constitutional Review Committee for Sierra Leone and the Department for International Development, providing research on executive powers to assist their work on drafting a new Sierra Leonean Constitution; and assisting the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Arbitrary Detention and the Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights in their mandates. OPBP Executive Committee members are responsible for leading and coordinating such cutting-edge projects in the academic year.

Applications are now open for the following positions on the Executive Committee:

1. Chairperson

Responsible for coordinating the OPBP committee.

2. Deputy Chairperson

Responsible for monitoring and evaluating OPBP projects and assisting the Chairperson.

3. Communications and Website Officer

Responsible for official OPBP communications, branding, and maintaining the OPBP website.

4. Treasurer

Responsible for monitoring OPBP finances, coordinating fundraising, and reporting to donors.

5. Events Officer and Liaison

Responsible for organising OPBP social events and liaising with other pro bono organisations.

6. Internships Coordination and Development Officer

Responsible for coordinating and raising funds for the OPBP Internship Fund and the Internship Placement Programme.

More information on these roles and their requirements can be found here.  Past projects that OPBP has completed can be found here.

The new committee will be in office from Michaelmas 2014 to Trinity 2015 (ie the end of the 2015 long vacation). Committee members work an average of 5 to 8 hours each week, including vacation period.

Applications should contain a curriculum vitae and a short statement of interest, including reference to whether you have volunteered for or contributed to OPBP in the past. Please email your applications to the OPBP Selection Panel at opbp@law.ox.ac.uk. Should you require further information about any of the positions and the responsibilities involved, please email Shreya Atrey or Kate Mitchell.

Applications close at 5pm on 10 October 2014 (Friday). Shortlisted candidates will be informed by Tuesday, 14 October and should be available for interviews on 17 October (Friday) and induction on 19 October (Sunday).

This Report was prepared for the United Nations Development Programme, in partnership with the Department for International Development (UK) and the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) for Sierra Leone.

The report focuses on Presidential executive powers, and in particular the relationship between the President and constitutional commissions.  The report provides support to the CRC in its task of drafting the new Constitution for Sierra Leone, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2014.  The report summarises the existing provisions relating to executive powers of the Presient and constitutional commissions in Sierra Leone, and contrasts these provisions with those of other Sub-Saharan African jurisdictions: South Africa, Ghana, Namibia, Kenya and Zimbabwe.  In light of this analysis, the report presents a series of recommendations to the CRC regarding constitutional provisions on executive powers of the President and constitutional commissions.

Further information about the CRC can be found here at their website.

Read the full report below, or download it here.  You can browse all of OPBP’s projects here.

The first panel – comprising Helen Mountfield QC (Matrix Chambers), Polly Glynn (Partner, Deighton Pierce Glynn Solictors) and Jo Renshaw (Partner and Head of Immigration, Turpin & Miller LLP), and chaired by Associate Professor Liora Lazarus – discussed ‘Public Interest Lawyering in Times of Austerity in the United Kingdom’. The discussion centred around the impact of recent cuts to the civil legal aid budget in the UK. A sombre picture was painted: the recent cuts, made ostensibly on the grounds of ‘austerity’, are shutting out deserving individuals from the civil justice system and significantly impairing the ability of public interest lawyers to take on important cases and provide assistance to those most in need. In the face of these challenges, our panellists and conference attendees canvassed a range of ideas about how lawyers could continue to promote the public interest and support those no longer eligible for legal aid, including fostering partnerships with civil society organisations and the private sector, rethinking the court costs system, and not shying away from being ‘activist’ lawyers.

After lunch, the second panel discussed stories of impact from those at the forefront of public interest lawyering, focussing on right to education litigation in South Africa. Chaired by Chris McConnachie, Former Chairperson at OPBP (2012-13), the panel featured Sarah Sephton (Director, Grahamstown Office, Legal Resources Centre, South Africa) and Brad Brockman (General Secretary, Equal Education, South Africa). Panelists and conference attendees engaged in thought-provoking discussions on the relationship between civil society activism and public interest litigation, and on the role of comparative and international law research in LRC and Equal Education’s advocacy and campaigning.  OPBP would like to thank the Canon Collins Trust for generously sponsoring the second panel.

Justice Abella of the Supreme Court of Canada and Professor Sandra Fredman then discussed public interest litigation from the perspective of the judiciary. In an engaging and passionate discussion, Justice Abella spoke of the important role all lawyers play in promoting and protecting the public interest and access to justice, and shared her thoughts on the critical role of interveners in public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of Canada.

The final panel – featuring Jonathan Cooper OBE (Doughty Street Chambers and Human Dignity Trust) and Meghna Abraham (Head of Special Projects, Amnesty International) and chaired by Dr Miles Jackson, OPBP Executive Committee member and Former Chairperson (2009-10) – discussed the impact of comparative law research and advocacy. Jonathan and Meghna shared their experiences of how international and comparative law research has contributed to their work, and the particular role OPBP has played over the years. The panel provided an opportunity to reflect on methods of, approaches to and challenges for pro bono research, and to explore new ways in which OPBP and other pro bono organisations can maximise their impact.

Between panel discussions, two former Chairs of OPBP, Chris McConnachie (2012-2013) and Laura Hilly (2010-2011), gave a presentation outlining some of the key achievements of OPBP over the past fourteen years. Chris and Laura highlighted that during this time, OPBP has engaged over 500 graduate students to undertake more than 55 pro bono projects, entailing over 10,000 hours of pro bono work. Since 2010, OPBP has also provided grants toward unpaid or poorly paid internships, exposing Oxford graduate students to public interest law organisations around the world, and providing these organisations with the benefit of students’ outstanding legal skills. Thanks to the generous support from the Sigrid Rausing Trust, in 2014 OPBP has been able to award about £14,000 to nine Oxford graduate students to undertake internships over the summer. Associate Professor Liora Lazarus announced the recipients of these grants at the conclusion of the Symposium.

The Symposium was an incredibly valuable opportunity to discuss and reflect upon OPBP’s past and present achievements and future direction. Thank you to all of the past and present Executive Committee members who organised and hosted the event, to the wonderful speakers who shared their ideas and experiences, and to the Sigrid Rausing Trust and Canon Collins Trust for the generous grant which enabled the Symposium to take place.