Lawyer, Environment and Climate

ClientEarth is a public interest environmental law group that brings together law, science and policy to create practical solutions to key environmental challenges. Working in partnership with civil society and policy-makers, ClientEarth is committed to securing the rights of citizens and civil society to participation, information and justice in environmental matters.

This role offers a law professional the opportunity to support further building a portfolio of judicial capacity building initiatives in China.

Main duties

• Regularly interacting with Chinese government officials, legal researchers, judges and prosecutors, to support their efforts to enhance environmental and climate rule of law.
• Providing information about the latest developments in environmental legislation, governance efforts, public interest litigation and law enforcement and adjudication from around the world, covering a wide range of topics such as climate litigation, green finance, ecology, marine and biodiversity protection, pollution control, plastics, greening overseas trade and investment, etc.
• Conducting research on environmental law related topics to build stronger environmental rule of law in China. Specifically, focus on providing technical support to the research needs of Chinese legal experts and judiciaries, including drafting of recommendations, short reports, policy briefs and other research outputs when needed.

See the job description (below) for a full list of duties for this role.

Role requirements

• Fluent (CEFR level C2) in Mandarin
• Fluent (CEFR level C2) in English
• Masters degree in Law or equivalent, preferably in environmental law
• A legal professional qualification;
• Sound knowledge of legal frameworks in China including environmental legislation.
• In-depth experience and/or knowledge of Chinese working, business and legal principles and practices, either in a legal or business context in government, corporate or non-profit sectors spheres.

See the job description (below) for a full list of requirements for this role.

Note to candidates: We know that long lists of criteria can be daunting and that some candidates will not apply for a role unless they feel they are 100% qualified. If you feel you meet at least some of the essential criteria, we still encourage you to apply.

Further Information

Important dates to note: Applications close on the 10th of August 2026 and if you are requested to submit additional information, the deadline to have this submitted is the 12th of August for your application to be fully considered.

Please also remember to check our recruitment process section at the bottom of the advert to get acquainted with our recruitment process for this role.

First interviews will be starting on the week of the 19th of August.

Have a question about this job? Please visit our Careers site for advice on applying, FAQs, and more.

Flexible working: We are proud to be a Flexa accredited Employer. Visit our Flexa Employer page for more information on our approach to flexible working. Our flexible working policy allows our people the choice to decide to work from home/another location in the country where their contract of employment is issued for 80% of their month, with the other 20% of their month being office-based See our Benefits page for more as well as our flexible working FAQ.

ClientEarth values diversity and inclusion and the benefits this brings. We aim to appoint the most suitable candidate at all times and welcome applications from people from all different backgrounds. See our equity, diversity and inclusion journey page for more.

Please note that ClientEarth is only able to employ those who have the pre-existing legal right to work in China.

ClientEarth is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice or legal services to third parties.