Legal Officer

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STAFF RECRUITED ON CONTRACTS In addition to permanent officials, the European Commission offers non-permanent positions. There are two categories of non-permanent staff:

• temporary agents are recruited to fill vacant positions for a set amount of time or to perform highly specialised tasks.
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For more information on different staff categories

Lawyer in DG DIGIT of the European Commission (2 posts) Job title: Legal Officer Domain: Information and Communication Technologies Where: Unit R.3 - Procurement and Legal Compliance, Brussels Function Group: FG IV Contract Type: 3b Express your interest until: 12.10.2026 - 12.00 (noon, Brussels time) WE ARE We are a dynamic team working in the highly challenging environment of information and communication technologies. Our Unit DIGIT R3 - Procurement and Legal Compliance - handles the ICT procurement and contracts (in the area of cloud, hardware, software and ICT services). The unit manages different types of procurement procedures (open, negotiated, restricted) and is at the forefront of implementing Dynamic Purchasing System procedures in the European Commission. Most of the contracts of general interest are used by other Directorates-General (DGs) of the European Commission and more than 70 other EU institutions, bodies and agencies (EUIBAs). We carry out the tendering processes, lead (co/lead) the negotiations with suppliers, draft the contracts and deal with pre-litigious situations. We are one of the largest awarding services in the Commission: in annual average the awarded amounts are above € 2,5 billion. The Unit also coordinates and supports DIGIT’s efforts to comply with its obligations in the fields of data protection, document management and access to documents, including by housing the functions of DIGIT Data Protection Coordinator, Access to Documents Coordinator and the Document Management Officer.

The unit is located in Brussels (ca. 95% of staff) and Luxembourg (ca. 5% of staff). The unit is composed of around 40 staff members (including the Head od unit and Deputy Head of Unit) and is organised in four sectors.

WE PROPOSE Unit DIGIT R.3 is seeking to hire two (2) legal officers.

A successful candidate will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Prepare, draft and manage procurement procedures, eensuring smooth execution of call for tenders and leading negotiations – whenever appropriate – with major ICT suppliers in close cooperation with IT engineers and specialists. This also entails the drafting of tendering documents and ICT contracts and the participation in evaluation committees.
• Participate actively in multidisciplinary meetings, negotiating and resolving differing viewpoints between legal, engineering and project management staff while keeping the procurement process on schedule.
• Management of interinstitutional contracts, dealing with procedural and legal matters including pre-litigious situations.
• Providing general legal advice linked to the works and mandate of the Directorate-General for Digital Services.

The work is very varied and intellectually challenging, while offering broad learning opportunities. It involves many contacts with outside companies, the technical services of DG Digital Services, other Directorates-General (DGs), EU institutions, agencies and bodies; as well as a close daily follow-up of large-scale procurement procedures. A successful candidate should thrive in high stakes environments, maintaining focus and delivering results even when faced with demanding workloads and strict deadlines.

WE LOOK FOR We are looking for a legal officer (two posts) – a dynamic and motivated colleague enjoying teamwork and able to maintain a constructive advisory role with numerous colleagues and stakeholders.

The candidate must possess a university diploma in law and at least 3 years of professional experience in public procurement, contract management, ICT law, contract law or other fields relevant for the post. S/he should be able to maintain a constructive advisory role with numerous colleagues and stakeholders.

Oral and written communication skills are very important for this job. The working language is English and the job requires excellent drafting skills in that language. Knowledge of French is desirable.

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

With a view to guaranteeing equal access to all, the Commission recruits from an open database of spontaneous applications. The present call for interests aims at helping the recruiters to identify potentially interested candidates within this database.

In practice, to express your interest, please follow the subsequent two steps:

1. If you are not registered yet in the open EPSO database, please do so at the following

address: CAST Permanent. Please select under selection procedures for contract agent the CAST permanent profile that best suits your education and experience.

2. You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:
3. your CV 2. completed application form.

Please send these documents by the publication deadline to DIGIT-CONTRACTS-INFO- sign up to see this e-mail indicating the call for interest reference EC/DIGIT/2026/441209/466075 in the subject.

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline.

ANNEX

1. Selection

 Am I eligible to apply?

You must meet the following eligibility criteria when you validate your application: Our rules provide that you can only be recruited as a contract agent at the European Commission if you: General criteria:

• Are a citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service;
• Are physically fit to perform the duties linked to the position;
• Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties.
• Have passed an EPSO CAST in the relevant Function Group for this position. At the stage of the application, it is sufficient to be registered in the EPSO CAST data base.

Qualifications: (a) Have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma.

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the Ministry of Education) will be accepted.

Languages:

• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1) of one of the 24 official languages of the

EU2

• AND have a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2)3 of a second official language of the EU, to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties.

 What about the selection steps?

The selecting unit chooses from the EPSO database candidates with the appropriate profile and invites them to an interview. For the interview a selection panel is set-up to assess the best candidates. Due to the large volume of applications that we may receive only candidates selected for the interview will be notified.

For operational reasons and in order to complete the selection procedure as quickly as possible in the interest of the candidates and of the institution, the selection procedure will be carried out in English and possibly in a second official language.

2. Recruitment

The candidate(s) selected for recruitment will be requested to provide documentary evidence in support of the statements made in the database and, where relevant, the call for interest. The successful candidate(s) will be required to undergo a mandatory pre-recruitment medical check-up carried out by the Commission.  Type of contract and working conditions The place of employment will be in Brussels.

The successful candidate(s) will be engaged as a contract agent under Article 3(b) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants, in function group FG IV. General information on Contract Agents can be found at this link.

The grade or proposed grade range, as well as the step in that grade, will be defined on the basis of the candidates’ previous professional experience, in accordance with Commission Decision C(2017)6760 laying down the criteria applicable to classification in step on engagement. The duration of the first contract will be 1 year. Subject to the interest of the service, the contract may be renewed one or more times up to a maximum duration of 6 years. The duration of the renewal(s) will be defined according to the General Implementing Rules in force at that moment (currently, Commission Decision C(2017)6760 on policies for the engagement and use of contract agents).

Contract agents recruited in Function Group IV have to successfully complete a 9-month probationary period.

The pay of staff members consists of a basic salary supplemented with specific allowances, including, where applicable, expatriation and family allowances. The provisions guiding the calculation of these allowances can be consulted in the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants. As a member of staff of the European institutions, your pay is subject to a tax raised by those institutions.

The European Commission applies a policy of equal opportunities and non-discrimination in accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations.

Should you need further information on working conditions, please refer to Working conditions and benefits of EU Careers.

For information related to Data Protection, please see the Specific Privacy Statement under “7. Information to data subjects on their rights”, to find your rights and how to exercise them in addition to the privacy statement, which summarises the processing of your data.