About the position

Inland School of Business and Social Sciences, The PhD programme Innovation in Services in the Public and Private Sectors (INSEPP), 
invites candidates to apply for a 3-year PhD research fellowship to work with the broad field of innovation studies with particular focus on contracts and clear language. 

Depending on the department`s needs, and the candidate`s competence and preferences, the position may be transformed into a four-year position with 25% teaching duties.

The purpose of the PhD Research Fellowship for the admitted candidate is to undergo a research training programme that leads to the successful completion of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment. The candidate is expected to participate actively in INSEPP’s activities. After commencement, the candidate must apply for admission to the PhD programme within three months. An agreement for admission to the PhD programme must be in place within six months after commencement.

The candidate will be part of the Department of Law, Philosophy and International Studies and the Legal Development research group. In addition to INSEPP, these environments represent a valuable resource for PhD studies.

The workplace is Campus Lillehammer.

About the project

An increasing number of countries introduce special legal requirements that promote clear (or plain) language. The primary objective behind the provisions on clear language is to ensure legal certainty for an individual, the principle that requires that the law must be certain, foreseeable and easy to understand. Rather unsurprisingly, the requirement of clear language primarily finds its expression in the field of administrative law, where an individual meets a State and where, arguably, a potential power misbalance can be somehow counterbalanced if the language of communication is clear. Indeed, to ensure legal certainty, an individual mustbe able to find relevant information, understand it, and act based on it.

Yet, legal certainty does not only have a role to play in administrative law. The field of contract law, whether between private parties, between a private party and a state-related entity, or between state-related entities, also requires legal certainty. Especially within complex contractual structures, innovative solutions to enhance clarity can contribute to minimize efficiency-losses, avoid disputes, and improve accountability relations towards relevant stakeholders. Causing unnecessary burdens and provoking disputes, lack of clarity, in turn, slows down the potential, including innovation, that contracts can bring.

This PhD project seeks to critically assess the role of the requirement of clear language for contracts, contracting, and contract laws. While the core of the project lies within doctrinal legal studies, suggestions for exploring the topic from an empirical, a comparative, or an interdisciplinary perspective (philosophy, political science and language studies) are also welcome.

Suggested research areas, depending on the candidate’s expertise and interests, can include:
-    critically assessing the clear language ideal for contracts;
-    unpacking the connection between clear language in contracts and innovation;
-    examining the effects of statutory regulation on clear language and provisions with similar effect on contracts;
-    examining the effects of contractual provisions aiming to distribute risks between parties associated with the consequences of unclear language;
-    mapping different types of contracts necessitating legal regulation that would put a burden of clarity on one of the parties or otherwise allocate risks associated with lack of clarity;
-    exploring the role of clear language in contracts involving state, state-owned or otherwise state-related entities;
-    considering whether democratic accountability may be harmed due to a lack of clarity in public-private partnership-contracts;
-    advancing innovative solutions, including but not limited to visual means to enhance clarity such as contract design and information design, that could efficiently promote clarity in contracts. 
 

Qualifications

The appointed candidate must qualify for admission to the university's PhD programme Innovation in Services in the Public and Private Sectors (INSEPP). 

You must have the following qualifications:

• A master's degree or equivalent education in law.
• The master's degree must normally constitute 120 ECTS credits, including a master's thesis of at least 30 ECTS credits.
• A strong academic background from your previous studies. The average grade should normally be B or better from the master's program or equivalent education.

If you have an education from abroad, please attach documentation of recognition of foreign higher education from the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills. If the requested documentation is not possible to obtain within the application deadline, an equivalent assessment can be made by INN University in connection with the recruitment process.

Furthermore, emphasis will be placed on the applicant's:

• Academic and personal qualifications to complete doctoral education within the employment period.
• Ability to work independently and purposefully, as well as to collaborate on research and publishing tasks.
• Being structured and having a high work capacity.
• Demonstrating solid theoretical insight and interest.

Language:

• Good proficiency in English, both oral and written. Applicants from non-English speaking countries must document their English proficiency in accordance with the Supplementary Regulations for Admission to the PhD Programme at INN University.
• Applicants who cannot document skills in Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish at level A2 upon employment must complete language training equivalent to at least 15 ECTS credits during the fellowship period.
• Good oral and written proficiency in Norwegian or another Scandinavian language is preferable but not a requirement.

In the evaluation and ranking of qualified applicants, emphasis will be placed on:

• The quality of the project proposal
• Documented independent research and development work or experience relevant to the project

It is mandatory to attach a project proposal of 2000 words (see the section on "How to Apply" below).

The assessment of which candidate is best qualified will be a comprehensive evaluation of education, experience, and personal suitability, as well as motivation and other qualification requirements as formulated in the job advertisement.

The position and associated tasks must be carried out in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations for civil servants, including the Act on Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services, and Technology, etc. Candidates who, after evaluation of the application and attachments, are found to conflict with the criteria of the act will not be able to take up the position at INN University. Necessary approvals must be maintained throughout the entire employment period.

How to apply

Relevant applications will be considered by an expert committee. The application and all attachments are to be submitted electronically and should include the following:

• The applicant must submit a project proposal with a progress plan (in Norwegian or English, 2000 words) that explains how the research work will be carried out and addresses academic relevance, challenges and possibilities within the project. The project proposal should also outline the theories and methods intended to be used. The project proposal plays an important role in evaluating applicants and must demonstrate how the project will lead to the successful completion of a doctoral degree within three/four years. The PhD research fellow hired will, in collaboration with a supervisor, prepare a complete project proposal that will form the basis for admission to the PhD program.
• Application letter with a brief overview of the applicant's research interests and motivation for applying for the position.
• CV (summarizing education, job positions, and academic work)
• Certified copies of transcripts and diplomas. An English translation of all education documents is required unless the documents are in Norwegian.
• Other work that is relevant for the application
• Names and contact information of at least 2 reference persons.
• A copy of the master thesis (in PDF)

Attachments must be uploaded as separate files. If the attachments exceed 30 MB, they must be compressed prior to upload. It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that all attachments are uploaded. Documents submitted after expiry of the deadline will not be considered in the evaluation of your application.

We offer

• An academically stimulating and supportive work environment at a developing institution. 
• Possibility of professional development in an exciting academic research environment. 
• Position is paid and placed in position code 1017, PhD candidate in the Government Salary Scale
• Membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension, with among other things, good pension and insurance schemes.

For more information about INN University as an employer, please see here.

General information

INN believes that there is strength in inclusion and diversity. We desire employees with different competencies, professional combinations, life experiences and perspectives to contribute to an even better way of solving problems. We will facilitate for employees who need assitance to realise their goals. Relevant adaptations can be, for example, technical aids, adapting furniture or adjusting routines, work tasks and working hours.

If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, gaps in the CV or immigrant background, we shall call at least one applicant in each of these categories for an interview. In order to be considered as an applicant in these groups, the applicants must meet certain requirements. You can read more on this here: https://arbeidsgiver.difi.no/positivsaerbehandling.

We encourage applicants to tick in Jobbnorge if they have a disability, a gap in their CV or immigrant background. The ticks in the jobseeker portal form the basis for anonymised statistics that all state-owned enterprises report in their annual reports

Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked not to be named on the list of persons who have applied. The applicant must be notified if the request to be omitted is not met.