Head of Casework Unit, AD 9

Eurojust - European Union's Judicial Cooperation Unit

The Hague, Netherlands

Reference: 24/EJ/17
Deadline for applications: 06/01/2025 at 11:59:59 CET
Type and duration of contract: Temporary Agent AD, Up to five years, with possibility of renewal
Security clearance level: EU SECRET
Monthly basic salary: € 9 296,39

About Eurojust

Eurojust is the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation. Through its unique expertise, Eurojust supports, strengthens and improves the coordination of investigations and prosecutions among the competent judicial authorities of EU Member States in the fight against serious and organised cross-border crime.

Eurojust is facing considerable change, including the adoption of a new EU Regulation governing Eurojust and a rising caseload.

Eurojust seeks to recruit dynamic, flexible, highly qualified staff to support its mission and further enhancement of the digitalisation of justice information systems and their use to enhance judicial cooperation and coordination.

More information on the mission and mandate of Eurojust is available on its website: www.eurojust.europa.eu.

The position

Eurojust is launching a selection procedure to establish a reserve list for the profile of Head of Casework Unit.

Casework in judicial cooperation and coordination matters is at the core of Eurojust’s mandate. In order for Eurojust to deliver quick and quality support to competent authorities, consistent operational and legal expertise is needed. At the same time, it is crucial to retain the lessons learned from cases at organisational level, so that they can be applied to future requests and shared with practitioners and policy makers at a strategic level.

The Casework Unit supports in this endeavour National Desks, College Teams and Liaison prosecutors, by:

Providing analysis and advice to specific cases taking into account all involved countries;
Organising coordination centres in support to joint actions, ensuring overview of targets and prompt communication to all parties involved;
Facilitating operational cooperation with Europol (and other relevant JHA agencies);
Enhancing internal capabilities for organisational knowledge retention (including by filling in Case Information Forms to record lessons learned and operational successes);
Developing experience and tools for practitioners in relation to identified obstacles to judicial cooperation and possible solutions, on the basis of Eurojust casework (e.g. casework reports and guidelines on judicial cooperation tools);
Analysing relevant national and European (CJEU and ECtHR) case-law for the use of practitioners in key judicial cooperation and crime areas.

Key accountabilities

Supervise and coordinate the provision of operational, legal and analysis support to Eurojust’s casework;
Support the College and National Desks by facilitating the exchange of case-related information, together with information from other relevant sources, ensuring compliance with provisions concerning the processing of personal and case-related data;
Optimise the use of judicial data included in Eurojust case-related databases (e.g. CICED, CMS, CTR) and other information collected by Eurojust itself to support Eurojust’s casework and provide tailored case-related advice to National Desks and Liaison Prosecutors;
Supervise and coordinate the collection and analysis of qualitative data from Eurojust’s casework, for strategic and outreach purposes;
Design and implement case analysis policies and procedures to improve casework support, in line with the Eurojust strategy and objectives; evaluate the outcomes of the strategy and ensure it remains relevant and effective;
Lead, and implement projects in the area of expertise;
Advise the Administrative Director, the Head of Operations Department and the College on strategic and operational casework issues;
Supervise and coordinate support provided by the Unit to the EU Policy Cycle;
Represent Eurojust externally on matters falling within the remit of the Unit and liaise with stakeholders; Represent the Unit internally, communicate changes in policies and processes, in an effective and timely manner.

Management duties:

Implement the unit strategy and align its objectives and KPIs with the overall strategic framework and priorities of Eurojust; monitor and evaluate progress against the set objectives and KPIs;
Oversee the provision of the Unit’s services in a timely, professional and customer-friendly manner;
Manage the performance of direct reports: set performance objectives, empower and motivate, provide feedback, appraise, address performance issues, as well to develop annual learning and development plan;
Identify the mix of skills required for the Unit and identify the resource needs to bridge the gap;
Deputise for the Head of Operations Department and other Heads of Unit;
Perform any other duties required by the job.

Eligibility criteria

The selection procedure is open to applicants who satisfy the following eligibility criteria on the closing date for application:

1. General requirements:

The applicant must:

Be a national of one of the Member States of the European Union (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden);
Enjoy full rights as a citizen;
Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the laws concerning military service;
Produce the appropriate character references as to their suitability for the performance of their duties¹;
Be physically fit to perform their duties; and
Have a thorough knowledge (C1) of one of the languages of the European Union² and a satisfactory knowledge (B2) of another language of the European Union to the extent necessary for the performance of their duties.

2. Minimum qualifications and professional experience:

A level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university education is four years or more and, after having obtained the diploma, at least 12 years of appropriate professional experience;
OR
A level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university education is at least three years and, after having obtained the diploma, at least 13 years of appropriate professional experience;
Only qualifications that have been awarded in EU Member States or that are subject to the equivalence certificates issued by the authorities in the EU Member States will be taken into consideration;
If your diploma was issued outside the EU, you must provide a certificate of equivalency from an EU Member State to recruitment@eurojust.europa.eu in case you are invited to proceed further in the selection process;
If you do not provide this certificate when requested, Eurojust will not be able to assess your eligibility. More information is available here.

Selection process

1. Shortlisting:

The Selection Board will assess all eligible applications on the basis of the following criteria:

Required experience and knowledge:

Proven professional experience of at least 8 years in comparable tasks to those listed under “Key accountabilities”. In particular, the Selection Board will assess the range of duties covered, the type and level of work done and its relevance to the vacancy;
Management experience in leading multidisciplinary teams in a similar role (e.g. head of unit, head of sector/secretariat/office, etc.) of minimum 5 years;
Professional experience in judicial cooperation or in analysis of judicial data for judicial coordination purposes, preferably within the EU.

Advantageous:

Knowledge of Eurojust’s institutional framework;
Work experience gained in a similar multicultural environment. Preference will be given to work experience abroad.

The Selection Board will score applications against the above criteria. The academic and professional qualifications, required experience and knowledge considered as requirements or advantageous must be described as precisely as possible in your application.

2. Interview and written test:

Following this assessment, the highest ranking candidates will be invited for an interview and written test, during which the following competencies will be evaluated:

Knowledge and understanding in your areas of experience that are most relevant to the tasks listed under “Key accountabilities”;
Ability to lead and motivate a multidisciplinary team;
Ability to make timely decisions and set priorities;
Ability to align strategies with organisational objectives while focusing on delivering results and goal orientation;
Strong sense of accountability and customer service orientation;
Strong analytical and problem solving aptitudes;
Ability to work cooperatively in multidisciplinary teams;
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including good command of spoken and written English, the working language of Eurojust.

Applicants invited to the interview must be able to provide copies of all the supporting documents concerning their educational qualifications and employment record.

Following the (online) interview and written test, the Pre-selection Board will make a proposal to the Administrative Director on the establishment of a reserve list of suitable candidates. Candidates placed on the reserve list will undertake an assessment centre and final interview with the Administrative Director and another staff member in a management function. The reserve list will be valid until 31 December 2026. Inclusion in the reserve list does not guarantee recruitment.

If you consider yourself to have a physical, mental, intellectual or sensory disability, including any medical conditions that may require special adjustments to the recruitment process (e.g. written test, interview), please indicate any adjustments or arrangements needed to recruitment@eurojust.europa.eu. In light of Eurojust's commitment to equal treatment each request will be assessed on a case by case basis.

Submission of applications

You must submit your application through eRecruitment using the Apply Now button below. Eurojust does not accept applications submitted by any other means.

All sections of the application must be completed in English. In order to be considered, applications must be received by 11:59:59 CET on the closing date. We advise you to submit your application well ahead of the deadline, in order to avoid potential problems due to heavy traffic on the website.

Please consult the Applicant Guidelines for instructions on completing your application.

Once you have successfully submitted your application online, you will receive an automatic email acknowledging receipt of your application. Please note that all correspondence will take place by email, so please ensure that the email address associated with your applicant account is correct and that you check your email regularly.

Eurojust applies a policy of equal opportunity and non-discrimination³ and is dedicated to recruit, develop and retain a diverse workforce. Employment at Eurojust is open to nationals of EU Member States. There is no nationality quota system, but Eurojust strives to recruit a broad range of nationalities in order to keep a well-balanced geographical distribution among its staff members. To further enhance the diversity of its workforce, we encourage the application of female candidates for management positions where they are currently under-represented.

Information about selection procedures at Eurojust and application guidelines can be found here: http://www.eurojust.europa.eu/careers/Pages/recruitment-process.aspx.

Request for review and appeal process

If an applicant is found ineligible, or is not invited for an interview, he/she may submit a request for review to the Selection Board within 10 calendar days of the notification of the decision, quoting the reference number of the vacancy.

Candidates may submit an administrative complaint under Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations addressed to the Appointing Authority at Eurojust where the rules governing the selection procedure have been infringed. Please note that the Appointing Authority of Eurojust cannot overturn a value judgment made by a Selection Board.

Candidates in a selection procedure may also submit a judicial appeal to the General Court, under Article 270 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 91 of the Staff Regulations, within 3 months of the date of the notification of the decision or of outcome of the complaint. More details can be found here.

Applicants are reminded that the work of the Selection Board is confidential. It is forbidden for applicants to make direct or indirect contact with the members of the Selection Board, or for anyone to do so on their behalf.

Contractual conditions

The Administrative Director will appoint the successful applicant as a member of the temporary staff pursuant to Article 2(f) of the Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Union, for a period of up to five years. The contract may be renewed.

Temporary staff are required to serve a probationary period of nine months.

For further information on contractual and working conditions, please refer to the EU Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union and CEOS.

The required level of security clearance for this post is EU Secret.

Protection of personal data

Eurojust will ensure that applicants’ personal data are processed as defined in Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of 23 October 2018 and the data protection rules of Eurojust. More information on how Eurojust processes your personal information or how to exercise your rights as a data subject, please consult our Data Protection Notice.

¹Before appointment, successful applicants will be required to produce an official document showing that they do not have a criminal record;
²The 24 official languages of the European Union are: Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Irish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish;
³Article 1(d) of EU Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union and CEOS.

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