Legal Specialist; Development Law

Legal Specialist (Development Law)

Job Posting Number: 2502886

08/Dec/2025

22/Dec/2025, 10:59:00 PM

Organizational Unit: LEGN

Non-staff opportunities (Consultant / PSA)

Home-Based;
Duration:
Various locations

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture.
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non- and under-represented Members and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values.
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination.
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.

FAO’s commitment to environmental sustainability is integral to our strategic objectives and operations.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life, leaving no one behind.

FAO is a specialized agency of the UN that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. FAO's goal is to achieve food security for all and ensure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With 195 Members (194 countries and the European Union), FAO works in over 130 countries worldwide.

FAO Country Offices, working under overall corporate guidance and in line with the Strategic Framework, offer policy advice and support to countries in the mandated areas of FAO, facilitated through partnerships, resources and an active country programme to provide technical assistance, develop capacities and deliver core services while fully observing international standards of accountability to establish leadership and strengthen impact at the country level.

The Development Law Branch of the FAO Legal Office (LEGN) provides assistance to FAO members for the review and revision of their national and regional legislation, to conduct legal research on matters under the FAO mandate and to collect and disseminate legal information, including national and regional legislation through FAOLEX.

The purpose of this Call is to identify suitably qualified and experienced consultants and/or PSA subscribers to populate a roster for legal experts with different levels of expertise and experience in various areas of food and agriculture legislation, including veterinary and phytosanitary legislation, food law, food loss and waste, soil, water, pastoralism, pollution and environmental law, climate change, legislation on contracts and financial mechanisms in the agriculture sector.

The consultants can be recruited for assignments that may go from a few days to 11 months and may involve travel or be home based.

The Legal Specialists will be under the general supervision of the Chief – Development Law Branch of the FAO Legal Office.

This Call for expression of interest (EOI) seeks to identify legal specialists and legal experts with knowledge in different areas of food and agriculture legislation.

• Support the implementation of development law projects:
  • Assist and collaborate with national and international consultants.
  • Travel to countries when required, and liaise with national counterparts and stakeholders.
  • Contribute to participatory legal drafting processes.
  • Assist in drafting national and regional legislation, legal opinions and legal analyses.
  • Support the drafting, analysis and negotiation of international instruments.
  • Conduct research on food and agriculture law, write papers, studies and develop legal…