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COSTS AND FUNDING

¡°OSLA always responds promptly and provides excellent service with knowledgeable and professional legal officers, including in emergency circumstances. I am impressed and satisfied with the dedication, efficiency, empathy, and professionalism of the legal professionals who have been and are still assisting my case [¡­] I do not regret having opted in as a payroll contributor of OSLA years ago, when I [became] aware of its existence, without knowing I would need its assistance one day, and I do encourage all staff member to contribute and support OSLA.¡±

Staff Member, 2024

OSLA¡¯S SERVICES ARE FREE

You will not be charged a fee for consultation, advice, or representation by OSLA.

HOW OSLA IS FUNDED

Staff are encouraged to contribute to OSLA to support and enhance this essential service for staff, through the Voluntary Supplemental Funding Mechanism or the Trust Fund for OSLA. Whether you do this or not, OSLA will consider your Request for Assistance impartially, and with your best interests always in mind.

VOLUNTARY SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING MECHANISM

OSLA was established as part of the new Â鶹APP internal justice system, by General Assembly Resolution 63/253 of 24 December 2008, to provide legal advice and representation to around 79,000 staff (and former staff) worldwide. OSLA's regular budget staffing consists of seven lawyers and three legal assistants, with one lawyer working in each of Addis Ababa, Beirut, Geneva and Nairobi and a small team in New York. As the system has become more established and better known, more and more staff have come to OSLA for legal assistance. In 2011, the team was augmented by the addition of another lawyer funded from the Peacekeeping Support Account, which increases our capacity in the very busy Nairobi office.

In 2013, the General Assembly established the Voluntary Supplemental Funding Mechanism through which staff members could contribute to the additional resources OSLA requires, through a small monthly payroll deduction, amounting to 0.05% of net base salary (excluding post adjustment and other allowances). This Mechanism has allowed OSLA to almost double its number of lawyers available to provide services to staff. In 2024, the General Assembly decided to extend the Mechanism for 10 years.

If you opted out of the Mechanism but now wish to opt in (which is strongly encouraged), and you are a UN Secretariat Staff Member you can complete this form and give it to your Executive Office or local human resources office. Staff of other UN entities should contact their HR office for advice on how to opt back into the scheme.

All staff members are urged to contribute to the Mechanism, which provides the additional funding OSLA needs to be able to help the staff members in need of advice and assistance.

TRUST FUND FOR OSLA

The Office of Staff Legal Assistance additionally has a Trust Fund, to which one-off donations can be made. (See the terms of reference for the fund.) If you would like to donate to this fund, please complete this Contribution Form.