Secondments at the Permanent Bureau

Please note that secondments at the Permanent Bureau are arrangements for temporary position by which a public servant from the government of a Member State of the Hague Conference comes to work for our Organisation while being paid by its government.

Setting up such an arrangement requires discussions with the interested government and ultimately the conclusion of an agreement to that effect. The conclusion of an arrangement can take between 4 to 8 months or more and the time of implementation depends on the space available at the Permanent Bureau.

Description of qualifications and duties

Qualifications required

  • Law school education (in a system based on civil law, common law and equity, or other), including conflicts of laws, familiarity with comparative law (substantive and procedural law); knowledge of public international law, particularly the law of treaties, is desirable.
  • Good command, both written and spoken, of at least one of the official languages of the Conference (French or English); knowledge of another language an asset.
  • Good drafting capabilities (dissertation, academic essay, law review or other publication experience will be taken into account).

Duties

  • Carry out research on particular points of private international law or comparative law, relevant either to the operation of existing Hague Conventions or to the future work of the Conference.
  • Prepare and take part in the various meetings organised by the Permanent Bureau (working groups, training seminars, Special Commissions, Diplomatic Sessions).
  • Carry out preparatory work of translation or documentary research in accordance with the agenda of the Conference.

Other duties may be determined in accordance with the needs of the Permanent Bureau and of the interests of the candidate.