UNDP Moldova

National Legal Consultant.

Vacancy Number: Qu23/02734

Location:	Chisinau, Moldova
Application Deadline:	07 Jun 2023, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Application Extended deadline:	14 Jun 2023, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Application Extended deadline:	21 Jun 2023, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Application Extended deadline:	21 Jun 2023, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Type of Contract:	Individual Contract
Starting date:	15 Jun 2023
Reference to the project:	Enhancing Access to Justice for Living in Dignity
Expected Duration of Assignment:	June – November 2023 (30 working days)
Submission Instructions: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is currently implementing a project Enhancing access to justice for living in dignity (A2J4Dignity) that requires the services of an individual to provide legal support to the National ICT Consultant engaged within the Project and the A2J4Dignity Project team, in the context of developing the Vision Document of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova. In consideration of your qualifications, we are hereby inviting you to submit an offer for this particular assignment. To assist you in understanding the requirements of this assignment, we have attached hereto the following : The Terms of Reference for the assignment described above; The standard Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability, which you must accomplish and submit to UNDP; The Individual Contract and its General Terms and Conditions, which you would be expected to sign in the event you are the selected Offeror in this procurement process. Should you be interested and decide to submit an offer for this assignment, kindly submit directly in the online supplier portal no later than the deadline indicated in the system. Offers must be submitted directly in the Quantum Supplier Portal following this link: http://supplier.quantum.partneragencies.org using the profile you may have in the portal (please log in using your username and password). Follow the instructions in the user guide to search for the competition using search filters, namely Negotiation ID: UNDP-MDA-00161 and subscribe to the competition in order to get notifications in case of amendments of the competition document and requirements. In case you have never registered before, follow this link to register a profile: https://estm.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/fscmUI/faces/PrcPosRegisterSupplier?prcBuId=300000127714247 based on the instructions in guides available in UNDP website: https://www.undp.org/procurement/business/resources-for-bidders. Please note that the access link to the registered profile is sent from Oracle within up to 3 days. Please make sure your computer does not have any firewall that blocks oracle or undp.org extension. Do not create a new profile if you already have one. Use the forgotten password feature in case you do not remember the password or the username from previous registration. Should you require further clarifications on the application through the Quantum online portal, kindly contact the Procurement Unit at sc.md@undp.org. Please pay attention that the proposal shall be submitted online through the Quantum system and any proposal sent to the above email shall be disqualified. Should you require further clarifications on the Notice, Terms of Reference or other requirements, kindly communicate using the messaging functionality in the portal. Deadline for Submission of Offers (Date and Time), which is visible in the online supplier portal will be final. The portal will not accept submission of any offer after that date and time. It is the responsibility of the applicant to make sure that the offer is submitted prior to this deadline for submission. Applicants are advised to upload offer documents and to submit their offer a day prior or well before the date and time indicated under the deadline for submission of Offers. Do not wait until last minute. If Applicant faces any issue during submitting offers at the last minutes prior to the deadline for submission, UNDP may not be able to assist on such a short notice and will not be held liable in such instance. UNDP will not accept any offer that is not submitted directly through the System. If any discrepancy between deadline in the system and in deadline indicated elsewhere, deadline in the system prevails. We look forward to your favourable response and thank you in advance for your interest in working with UNDP.
Supporting Documents: 19377883_TOR_A2J4Dignity_Legal_consultant_UAM UN_Supplier_Negotiation_UNDP-MDA-00161_English 19376877_UNDP GCCs for ICs 19376878_IC_Statement of Health_Individual Contractors 19376879_IC_Offerors_Letter_to_UNDP_Confirming_Interest_and_Availability 19377191_UNDP Quantum - User Guide for Suppliers - Russian 19377196_UNDP Quantum - User Guide for Suppliers - English 19377199_Self-registration guide for ICs

Contacts:

Ms. Victoria Muntean.

victoria.muntean@undp.org

Background

The UNDP project “Enhancing access to justice for living in dignity” is short term project designed to enhance the resilience of the rule of law system from the Republic of Moldova and strengthen its capacities to deliver effective remedies and provide access to public services. It is intended to address the multifaceted and interconnected challenges of the current poly crises through strengthening institutions, empowering vulnerable groups to access legal services, and unlocking the potential of digital transformation in support of better access to justice.

This project aims at providing rule of law institutions and other relevant actors (such as CSOs) with the adequate tools and knowledge to work across the humanitarian-development-peace nexus and to improve access of refugees, displaced populations and host communities to inclusive justice services, safety and security, and protection systems. At the same time, this intervention will seek to empower justice seekers to claim their rights and access legal services while seeking remedies for their grievances.

Although important efforts have been deployed at national level during the last years to advance the efficiency, transparency, fairness and accessibility of the justice sector, improvement is further required to ensure coherent coordination among law enforcement, security, and justice institutions for effective administration of justice, so that men and women, particularly from marginalized or minority groups, are able to claim their rights and access justice effectively.

The Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova (UAM) is the lawyers’ professional self-organization body, member of which are the lawyers licensed according to the Law on the Bar. Currently the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova has 2179 members out of which 1973 are active members. The UAM is a self-governing authority, which has the following governing bodies; Congress of Lawyers, Council of the Union of Lawyers, President of the Union of Lawyers, Secretary General of the Union of Lawyers. There are also 3 Commissions active in the UAM: the Licensing Commission, Commission on Ethics and Discipline and Commission of Censors. The supporting body of the Union of Lawyers is its Secretariat.

In addition to the Union of Lawyers there are four regional bars. Regional bars are established each of the districts of the courts of appeal. All lawyers of the respective district become members of that bar association. The highest governing body of a regional bar is the general meeting of lawyers of the respective district. The current activities are administered by the deans of the bars who are elected by the general meeting of the respective bar for the 2-years term.

In line with the objectives and activities related to digitalisation set out in the 2022-2025 Strategy for ensuring the independence and integrity of the justice sector and the priorities of the Ministry of Justice listed in the Justice Digital Agenda, the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova is envisaged as one of the stakeholders which will be affected by the digital transformation initiatives and will be come part of the overall IT architecture of the justice sector. Thus, a comprehensive analysis of the current situation in relation to digitalization endeavours of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova and visionary positioning in the context of sectorial initiatives is required to allow informed decision taking.

In this context, the Project is seeking to hire a national legal consultant to offer support to the ICT national consultant engaged within the “Enhancing access to justice for living in dignity” project to develop the Vision Document of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova.

Scope of work

The expected outcome of the assignment is to provide legal support to the National ICT Consultant engaged within Enhancing access to justice for living in dignity Project and the Project team, in the context of developing the Vision Document of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova

The key output of the assignment, the Vision Document shall:

be the main source of information and ensure a detailed depiction of the current technical infrastructure, applications, data within the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova;
include an inventory of the internal and external workflows within/of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, the description and analysis digitalisation potential thereof (grouped by area and remit of the association);
include an inventory of stakeholders and chain of coordination related to the remit of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, including relevant resources (systems, data, ICT services and infrastructure, as well as development projects / initiatives);
present the To Be vision (superior level for internal and external workflows, stakeholders and interoperability) of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova in support of e-transformation of legal profession and the Roadmap (list of the ICT projects) towards implementation of the Vision Document.

In order to achieve the stated objective, the National Legal Consultant will provide substantial support to the national ICT Consultant related to his following responsibilities:

Carry out a desk review of the national regulatory framework covering the scope of work, functions and responsibilities of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, of the national regulatory framework related to ITC solutions, data exchange and interoperability, current internal regulations, concepts and guidelines related to the ICT component within the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, previously developed assessments of the existing technical, infrastructural and functional capacities of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova. The consultant shall also analyse the best practices in digitalisation of national Bar Associations in the EU Members States, as well as study the internationally acknowledged best practices, in order to ensure transposition of available knowledge and experience in the process of developing the Vision Document of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova. As a result, the consultant shall draft a brief informative note covering the findings and recommendations of the desk review to be used by the UNDP National ICT Consultant in the process of preparation of his/her inception report, methodology and tools for the assignment;
Prepare in close coordination with the UNDP National ICT Consultant the detailed work plan to be applied for the respective assignment;
Conduct in collaboration with the UNDP National ICT Consultant the mapping of stakeholders and their roles and responsibilities, chain of coordination in the context of internal and external workflows of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova. The findings of the mapping will be presented during a workshop with the participation of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova representatives and UNDP Project team;
Develop in collaboration with the UNDP National ICT Consultant, the As is Workflows’ Analysis Report, aiming to ensure the legally accurate depiction, based on the inventory of internal and external workflows, roles, functions and accountabilities withing the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova and stakeholders identified following the mapping. The findings of the As is Workflows’ Analysis Report will be presented during a workshop with the participation of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova representatives and UNDP Project team;
Develop in collaboration with the UNDP National ICT Consultant, the To Be Workflows, depicting the roles, functions, and accountabilities of stakeholders in the context of a digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova in support of e-transformation of legal profession. The analysis is expected to provide recommendations on the existing workflows to be digitalised, as well as advise on new workflows, to be built within the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova business processes, or in connection to other stakeholders as to ensure interinstitutional data exchange and interoperability, as well as provide recommendations on the anticipated amendments to the normative framework, if any, necessary to allow the implementation of the To Be Workflows. The recommendations and scenarios of the To Be Workflows will be presented during a workshop with the participation of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova representatives and UNDP Project team;
Contribute to the development of the Vision Document of the digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, describing the current technical infrastructure, applications, data within the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, the As is Workflows’ and the To Be internal and external workflows, stakeholders and interoperability context of the future digitally enabled Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova and the Roadmap towards implementation of the Vision Document. In this context the consultant is expected to provide necessary legal advice and inputs to substantiate the accurate depiction of findings and formulation of recommendations, to allow the implementation of the Vision Document and Roadmap in the context of the national normative framework and provide, if necessary, recommendations to adjustment to the normative framework, including drafting the required amendments. The Vision Document will be closely coordinated with the Ministry of Justice, Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Moldova, E Governance Agency, National Center for Personal Data Protection of the Republic of Moldova (NCPDP) and other relevant state institutions;
Conduct in collaboration with the UNDP National ICT Consultant participatory consultations* to collect feedback and validate the Vision Document by means of workshops and/or individual discussions with Ministry of Justice, Union of Lawyers from Republic of Moldova, E-Governance Agency, National Center for Personal Data Protection of the Republic of Moldova (NCPDP) and other relevant state institutions.

* The responsibility for facilitating the consultation process for the purpose of completing the tasks outlined hereto will be borne primarily by the National ICT Consultant. The consultant shall be responsible for preparing working materials and agendas and will be supported by the UNDP National Legal Consultant and Project Team to ensure participation, communication, and coordination with invited stakeholders.

For detailed information, please refer to Annex 1 – Terms of Reference.

Requirements for experience

Academic Qualifications:

Master’s Degree (or 5 years university degree) in in Law, or another relevant field;

Work experience:

At least 5 years of experience in legal consulting, normative framework and public policies;
Previous proven experience (at least 2 proven previous assignments) in conducting legal analysis, research and assessment of institutional business processes and regulations;
Proven experience (at least 2 proven previous assignments) in drafting regulatory framework and or proposal for amendment of normative framework;
Previous experience in working with the Union of Lawyers is an asset;

Competencies:

Excellent knowledge and understanding of the national legislation and set-up and functioning of the lawyer’s profession and self-organization bodies;
Excellent understanding of the procedures within the Union of Lawyers remit (licensing, training, membership, sanctioning);
Ability to analyse, plan and communicate effectively orally and in writing;
Demonstrated interpersonal and diplomatic skills, as well as the ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders at all levels and to present ideas clearly and effectively;
Fluency in Romanian and English. Knowledge of Russian will be an asset.
Proven commitment to the core values of the United Nations, in particular, respecting differences of culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language, age, HIV status, disability, and sexual orientation, or other status. Please mention in CV if you belong to the group(s) under-represented in the UN Moldova and/or the area of assignment.

UNDP Moldova is committed to workforce diversity. Women, persons with disabilities, Roma and other ethnic or religious minorities, persons living with HIV, as well as refugees and other non-citizens legally entitled to work in the Republic of Moldova, are particularly encouraged to apply.

Documents to be included

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/ information to demonstrate their qualifications:

Offeror’s letter to UNDP confirming interest and availability for the individual contractor (IC) assignment, incorporating Financial proposal in Annex 2

Upload the signed version of the filled in Offeror’s letter to UNDP confirming interest and availability for the individual contractor (IC) assignment. Annex 2 to the Offeror's letter, incorporating the Financial Proposal, shall be filled in mandatorily and includes the detailed breakdown of costs supporting the all-inclusive financial proposal.

The Financial Proposal shall be additionally submitted directly in the system. Please ensure there are no mathematical errors and that amounts from Offeror's Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability match with your offer in the system.

Proposal (Motivation Letter) explaining why they are the most suitable for the work including previous experience in similar Projects (please provide brief information on each of the above qualifications, item by item, including information, links/copies of documents supporting the required competences and experience);
Duly completed and updated personal CV with at least 3 references;
Technical proposal (incl. brief description of experience, approach, and methodology for the completion of the assignment).

Important notice: The applicants who have the statute of Government Official / Public Servant prior to appointment will be asked to submit the following documentation:

a no-objection letter in respect of the applicant received from the Government, and;
the applicant is certified in writing by the Government to be on official leave without pay for the entire duration of the Individual Contract.

Financial proposal

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables (i.e., whether payments fall in instalments or upon completion of the entire contract). Payments are based upon output, i.e., upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals the financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (including fee, taxes, communication costs and number of anticipated working days).

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