Legal Counsel

Job description / Role

Under the supervision of the HOL, the Legal Counsel will be in charge of:
-Reviewing, drafting, negotiating and advising on the structuring and developing of master legal documentation for Islamic derivative products, including but not limited to, structured Islamic options, profit rate swaps, cross currency swaps, FX swap, FX options and other derivative products. This will involve working directly with the business teams, Islamic banking team and with other legal teams (some of which are located outside of the Gulf region).
-Dealing with all negotiations relevant to Shari’a-compliant treasury transactions and documentation (including Murabaha and Reverse Murabaha arrangements, and related brokerage arrangements).
-Reviewing, drafting and negotiating ISDA Master Agreements with emphasis on complex derivatives and structured products.
-Assisting the HOL in standardising contracts, developing standard templates and contributing to the approval of new activities and products, complex and cross border transactions (with emphasis on Islamic capital markets).
-Preparing, reviewing, drafting, and negotiating other legal documentation (conventional and Islamic) in relation to the banks Gulf’s day-to-day operations and activities as and when required.
-Developing awareness and training programs related to legal risk aspects for the banks Gulf’s employees.
-Performing any other duties as may be assigned by the HOL from time to time

Requirements

-At least 8 years of post qualification relevant legal experience, either from private practice or in-house (in a financial institution) with extensive exposure to ISDA derivatives documentation and Islamic derivative transactions.
-Strong experience in treasury arrangements with particular focus on Shari’a-compliant structuring and documentation.
-Familiar with Islamic structures, products and arrangements (i.e. Murabaha, Salam, Istisna, Ijara, Wekala etc.)
-Familiar with conventional loan documentation, guarantees and other financing documents.
-Familiar with the legal aspects of general banking activities.
-Familiarity with the laws of the UAE and DIFC would be viewed favourably but is not essential.

About the Company

The McNair Partnership is a specialist executive search firm providing a range of recruitment solutions to global industry. Using traditional and proprietary search methods, our team of recruitment experts have unrivalled market intelligence across a variety of industry sectors. We have successfully searched and recruited top-tier candidates for jobs in Financial Services, Energy, Construction, hospitality and General Commerce throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific, over the last 21 years.

We are the trusted recruitment partners of some of the most successful businesses and brands, large and small, delivering effective search, selection, and Interim services.