Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights (Director General level)

The European Court of Human Rights oversees the implementation of the European Convention on Human Rights in the member states. Individuals can bring complaints of human rights violations to the Strasbourg Court once all possibilities of appeal have been exhausted in the member state concerned.

The task of the Registry is to provide legal and administrative support to the Court in the exercise of its judicial functions. It is therefore composed of lawyers, administrative and technical staff and translators and comprises a workforce of approximately 700 people coming from 46 member states.

Under the authority of and in close cooperation with the President of the Court, the Registrar has overall responsibility for both the administrative and the judicial activities of the Registry.

As the Registry’s senior official, your role will focus on the key areas of judicial and administrative management of the Court and its Registry. 

Programme and Resource Management

• assist the Court in the performance of its functions and be responsible for the organisation and activities of the Registry;
• oversee the case-processing activities of the Registry, including the Grand Chamber;
• advise the judges on practice and procedures;
• determine the overall staff and budgetary policy; retain an overview of, and take decisions in, staff and budgetary matters.

Leadership and Staff Management

• provide leadership and direction to approximately 700 staff by maintaining a harmonious and efficient working environment within the Registry so as to ensure that the Registry provides effective assistance to the Court;
• lead, motivate, and guide staff within the Registry; foster effective team communication, teamwork, and a positive, collaborative work environment with a view to increasing efficiency.

Responsibility and Reporting

In the performance of your duties, you will work under the authority of the President of the Court and in close collaboration with him.

Communication and Representation

• • ensure the effective implementation of the Court’s communication activities, in accordance with the instructions of the Court, notably in relation to the media, the general and specialised public and other international and national courts; 
  • maintain contact and co-operate with the highest levels of authority in the Council of Europe, notably in relation to matters affecting staff and budget policy;  
  • represent the Registry and, on the instructions of the President, the Court.

• Managerial - Vision and Strategic Insight
• Managerial - Organisational and contextual awareness
• Managerial - Leadership
• Managerial - Management of teams
• Managerial - Decision making

• Operational - Analysis and problem solving
• Interpersonal - Negotiating
• Interpersonal - Influencing

This job vacancy is for an international external recruitment. You can consult the conditions of employment (salaries, allowances, pension scheme, social insurance, etc.) on the webpage What we offer. 

For more information on how we recruit, you can consult the page Our recruitment process. This recruitment is carried out in accordance with Articles 490 and 4150.2 of the Council of Europe Staff Rules. The deadline for applications is indicated in the General information section of this vacancy notice (see above) and is fixed at 23:59:59 (CET/CEST). When applying, make sure your motivation shows how your competencies make your profile the best for the role.

As an equal opportunity employer, the Council of Europe welcomes applications from all suitably qualified people, irrespective of sex, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic or social origin, disability, religion or belief. Under its equal opportunity policy, the Council of Europe is aiming to achieve gender parity in staff employed in each category and grade. At the time of appointment, preference between suitable people shall be given to the person of the gender which is under-represented in the relevant grades within the category to which the vacancy belongs.

Applicants with specific needs are encouraged to request reasonable accommodations at any stage during the recruitment process. Please contact us at talents@coe.int, we will ensure that your request is handled.

The information published on the CoE’s careers website regarding working conditions is correct at the time of publication of the vacancy notice. Any changes to these conditions during the recruitment process will be updated on our Portal and will apply at the time of the job offer. Our career's website is not intended to be exhaustive and may not address all questions you would have. Should you have remaining questions, please contact us at talents@coe.int.