Legal Officer - Competition

The EFTA Surveillance Authority

Søknadsfrist

The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) monitors compliance with the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement) in Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, enabling those States to participate in the Internal Market of the European Union.

ESA is an international organisation, independent of the States, which safeguards the rights of individuals and undertakings under the EEA Agreement, ensuring free movement, fair competition and control of state aid. ESA's work helps remove barriers to trade and open up new opportunities to over 500 million Europeans, creating jobs and growth and adding to the international competitiveness of the States. 
ESA is based in Brussels. It currently employs 76 staff members of 19 nationalities.  ESA is led by a College consisting of three members, each appointed for a period of four years by the three participating EFTA States.

Role Description

ESA is recruiting a Legal Officer to join its Competition and State Aid Directorate (CSA).

Additional qualified candidates will also be considered for vacancies foreseen in the Directorate over the next 12-18 months.   

CSA is a multi-disciplinary team, comprising both economists and lawyers, that enforces the competition and state aid rules of the EEA Agreement. These rules largely mirror the competition rules in the EU, both with regard to antitrust and state aid control. In the field of competition, the bigger share of CSA’s work is currently focused on cases of abuse of dominance. In state aid, CSA’s portfolio is broad and diverse.

The successful candidate will be assigned responsibility for assessing and handling competition cases. Tasks include examination of complaints/submissions, examination of evidence and other documentation, drafting of reports/analyses, legal opinions and decisions on the application of the EEA competition rules and procedures.  

The majority of cases currently handled by CSA’s competition team involve Norway and Norwegian undertakings and often involve the need to handle considerable amounts of documentation in the Norwegian language.  As such, we are looking for lawyers with experience within the field of competition law and knowledge of the language, legal system, economy and national administration of Norway.  

The following are essential:

•    University degree in law, or recognised equivalent qualification in law
•    Solid knowledge of the legal framework of the EEA/EU
•    Expert knowledge in EEA/EU competition law
•    Relevant professional experience
•    Solid knowledge of the legal system, economy and national administration of Norway
•    Excellent command of written and spoken Norwegian (native speaker or equivalent)
•    Excellent command of written and spoken English (the working language of the Authority) 
•    Excellent organisational, analytical, interpersonal and communication skills
•    Initiative and the ability to work both independently and in a multi-disciplinary team in an international environment
Any of the following would be advantageous:

•    Postgraduate degree in EU law
•    Professional experience with competition matters from a national competition authority or administration, an EU institution or an international organisation

Conditions:

This position will be filled in accordance with ESA’s Recruitment Policy available at: https://jobs.eftasurv.int.  Former ESA staff members are eligible to apply provided the closing date is at least three years after their departure date. In exceptional circumstances, this requirement may be waived. The three-year requirement does not apply in the case of applications from current or former ESA temporary staff, trainees and seconded national experts. Current and former EFTA Secretariat and EFTA Court staff may apply for positions in ESA at any time. 

The position is placed at grade A4 of ESA’s salary scale, the precise step being determined depending on the relevant experience of the successful candidate, with a likely starting salary of between €92 000 and €97 000 per annum.  Depending on personal situation and family status, additional allowances and benefits may apply. Tax conditions are favourable. 

Type and duration of appointment: fixed-term contract of three years, renewable for a further three years if desirable and in the interest of ESA.  Applicants must be nationals of the States party to the EEA Agreement (EU 28 + EEA EFTA 3).  

ESA actively seeks to promote a healthy work/life balance and a working environment allowing its staff members to develop their professional skills and interests.
    
Application process: 
-    All applications must be made online at: https://jobs.eftasurv.int
-    Deadline for applications: 17 March 2019
-    Interviews: April 2019
-    Start date: September 2019
Applications submitted in response to this vacancy notice may also be taken into account for the purpose of filling other vacancies arising for similar positions within ESA.  

Questions regarding the post may be addressed to Gjermund Mathisen, CSA Director, on +32 (0)2 286 1860 / gma@eftasurv.int or Emily O’Reilly, Deputy Director – Competition, on +32 (0)2 286 1886 / eor@eftasurv.int

Questions regarding the recruitment process may be addressed to Kathryn Bryan, Head of HR, on +32 (0)2 286 1832 / kbr@eftasurv.int. 

Job Reference 04/2019

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