Source: Greenpeace Statement –
This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in either Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur. Candidates who have the legal right to work and live in the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are encouraged to apply.
© Shayne Robinson / Greenpeace
About the Role
The Senior Legal Advisor provides overarching strategic legal leadership and establishes GPSEA’s dedicated in-house legal capacity. Operating across Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, this role is accountable for mitigating organisational risk and ensuring regulatory compliance. The incumbent will provide high-level counsel on employment law, industrial relations, governance, and campaign risk, while coordinating with external legal counsel and overseeing litigation. The role ensures that legal considerations are seamlessly integrated into GPSEA’s strategic decision-making to protect the organisation’s staff, assets, and reputation.
The role is centered on three core performance domains:
Justice: Driving legal strategies that actively advance environmental campaigns while fiercely defending the fundamental right to organize and demonstrate.
Governance: Solidifying internal accountability, operational risk systems, and institutional compliance frameworks.
Performance: Equipping and enabling regional teams to achieve strategic victories with maximum efficiency.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Design and establish GPSEA’s in-house legal and risk management framework, ensuring alignment with the organisation’s strategic goals across four operating countries.
- Formulate policies and provide guidance to ensure GPSEA’s adherence to local laws, regulatory frameworks, and international governance standards.
- Provide high-level legal counsel regarding anti-protest or restrictive NGO/charity laws to safeguard GPSEA’s operational freedom and civic advocacy environment.
- Construct and deploy internal workflows and processes to guarantee the agile, high-quality execution of legal services across the organization.
- Proactively review campaign strategies, direct actions and public communications to assess and mitigate legal, regulatory, and litigation exposure, specifically evaluating media liabilities such as defamation and libel.
- Provide expert legal advice on complex employment matters, including organisational restructuring, workforce transitions, collective bargaining and engagement with labor unions.
- Direct and manage a regional network of external legal partners across Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, aligning their specialized expertise to secure robust organizational defense and strategic advice.
- Cultivate, grow, and coordinate collaborative relationships with volunteer legal networks, activist legal communities, and pro bono providers.
- Act as the chief trusted legal advisor to the Executive Director and Senior Management Team, using risk-based insights to shape top-level strategic paths.
- Negotiate consensus and resolve complex disputes across regional campaign, finance, and P&C teams regarding policy updates and organizational re-alignments without having direct line-management authority.
- Lead formal settlement negotiations and defend GPSEA’s institutional interests in external employment tribunals, labor union stalemates, or interactions with state regulatory bodies.
- Maintain strict adherence to all judicial calendars, court-mandated windows, and statutory filing deadlines for every active regional lawsuit and defensive proceeding
- Ensure prompt turnaround times for legal inquiries, contract vetting requests and commercial agreement reviews through the optimization of the contract management repository.
- Ensure absolute precision, evidentiary depth, and accuracy across all case folders, defensive strategies, and court-ready documentation involving GPSEA.
- Draft and review commercial agreements and MoUs to completely eliminate organizational liability, ensure rigorous adherence to data privacy, and defend Greenpeace’s intellectual property.
- Deliver high-standard legal risk profiles to governance boards, and ensure structurally sound, legally compliant handling of intricate donor legacies, estates, and complex bequests.
- Guarantee the strategic accuracy and structural quality of all compliance training modules provided to internal personnel, interns, and volunteers.
Skills and Experience Requirements:
- Law Degree (Juris Doctor, LLB, or equivalent). Admission to the Bar in at least one GPSEA operating country (Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, or Thailand) is highly preferred.
- Minimum 8–10 years of progressive post-qualification experience, preferably with a mix of top-tier law firm and in-house counsel experience, preferably within an INGO or regional corporate environment.
- Deep expertise in employment law, industrial relations, and corporate governance. Familiarity with the legal and regulatory landscapes of Southeast Asia.
- Competencies: Exceptional strategic thinking and risk management skills.
- Strong ability to translate complex legal jargon into actionable business/operational advice for non-legal leaders.
- High emotional intelligence, cultural awareness, and ability to navigate politically sensitive and high-pressure situations (such as campaign-related litigation).
Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion
Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.