Reporting to the Director-General, the Legal Service is charged with the protection of the Organization in all legal aspects and with ensuring that its activities and decisions comply with the applicable legal framework.

The Legal Service advises the CERN Council and its subordinate bodies, the Director-General and CERN management, the CERN Pension Fund and the Groups and Services of CERN in the following primary domains:

• CERN's fundamental texts/Institutional Law, i.e., interpretation and application of the Convention and the Financial Protocol, Agreements with the Host States, the Protocol on CERN's Privileges and Immunities and Rules of Procedure for Council
• CERN's internal rules/Administrative Law, i.e., interpretation and application of CERN Staff Rules and Regulations including Administrative and Operational Circulars, CERN Financial Rules and Regulations, Rules and Regulations of the Pension Fund and Safety Rules
• International Co-operation, i.e., drafting Protocols and Addenda, Memoranda of Understanding of the Experiments, EU framework and collaboration agreements
• Finance and commercial transactions, i.e., review of calls for tender, contracts and financial agreements
• Litigation and dispute resolution, i.e., representing the Organization in personnel and pension cases before the ILOAT and in arbitration and settlement of commercial disputes
• Intellectual property, i.e., protection of the Organization's name and emblem, development of IP and publishing policies and drafting of related terms and conditions