Senior Resident Fellow & Research Fellow – Law & Technology Research

The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy (Vidhi) invites applications for the post of a Senior Resident Fellow and Research Fellow for its work on law and technology, at its New Delhi Office.

ABOUT VIDHI

Vidhi is an independent think-tank doing legal research to make better laws and improve governance for the public good. Vidhi is committed to producing legal research of the highest standard with the aim of informing public debate and contributing to improved governance. Vidhi works with Ministries of the Government of India and State Governments, as well as other public institutions, providing research and drafting support at various stages of law-making. Vidhi also conducts and freely disseminates independent research in areas of legal reform which it believes is critical to India’s future.

Vidhi is an equal opportunity employer and neither practices, nor tolerates any kind of discriminatory behaviour.

ROLE DESCRIPTION

General: Vidhi is looking to hire a Senior Resident Fellow and a Research Fellow for its research work on legal and policy issues emerging from leveraging technology for the public good. This is done through original and independent pieces of research and engagements with key stakeholders (including the government) on critical areas of reform in the tech policy space. Vidhi’s work in the law and technology space covers issues ranging from privacy, data governance, artificial intelligence (AI) ethics and governance, general information technology governance, fintech regulation and also other areas of law necessary to design legal reforms for the digital economy. The expected output from the work typically involves reports, policies, draft laws, rules and regulations. 

Vidhi’s work in the law and technology space can be accessed from its website.

Senior Resident Fellow 

The Senior Resident Fellow will be primarily responsible for the following: 

• Undertake high quality research on Indian and international legal and policy frameworks. 
• Lead and execute legislative research and drafting assistance engagements with government stakeholders.  
• Prepare and review quality reports, research notes, presentations and such other material necessary to execute and disseminate (as may be applicable) Vidhi’s work. 
• Lead meetings and presentations for meetings with government officials, academics, researchers, and other stakeholders for discussing and presenting Vidhi’s research work.
• Conceptualise, develop and execute origination projects, including dissemination. 

Research Fellow 

The Research Fellow will be primarily responsible for the following: 

• Undertake high quality research on Indian and international legal and policy frameworks. 
• Provide research and legislative drafting assistance for engagements in critical areas of tech policy reform. 
• Prepare quality reports, research notes, presentations, and such other material necessary for implementation and dissemination (as may be applicable) of Vidhi’s work.  
• Coordinate and attend meetings with government officials, academics, researchers, and other stakeholders for discussing and presenting Vidhi’s research work. 
• Organise and attend consultations with key stakeholders for informing and disseminating Vidhi’s research.    
• Develop, and execute independent research projects. 

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Essential Requirements (Senior Resident Fellow)

• Undergraduate and/or postgraduate degree in Law 
• At least 4 years of demonstrable work experience (an LLM will be considered as work experience) 
• Excellent research and writing skills
• Excellent communication skills
• Ability to lead a small team 

Essential Requirements (Research Fellow)  

• An undergraduate and/or postgraduate degree in law. 
• At least 1-2 years of demonstrable work experience (a master’s degree will be counted as one year of work experience). 
• Excellent research and writing skills
• Excellent communication skill

Preferable Requirements (Senior Resident Fellow and Research Fellow) 

Applicants who meet the following requirements will be preferred: 

• Prior demonstrable work experience in the domain of law and technology or public policy.  

LOCATION AND SALARY 

• This is a full-time position based out of New Delhi. 
• The Senior Resident Fellow and Research Fellow will be engaged in this position for a duration of one year, and renewal shall be subject to performance. 
• Remuneration will be commensurate to the level of skills and experience.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Interested candidates should apply through our online portal and must submit following documents merged in one document:

• Latest Curriculum Vitae (CV) in not more than two A4 pages.
• Any piece of published or unpublished original writing as a sample, of not more than 500-800 words on an issue relevant to tech policy showcasing the candidate’s legal research and analysis skillset. Any submission exceeding the prescribed word count will not be considered.
• A brief statement of motivation in applying for the position, in not more than 500 words. 
• Names and contact details of two professional referees who may be contacted for references. 

The deadline to submit applications is 25th August 2024.  

Queries may be sent only through e-mail titled ‘Law & Technology: Application for Research Fellow’, OR Law & Technology: Application for Senior Resident Fellow (as may be applicable) addressed to careers@vidhilegalpolicy.in. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.