[Hiring] Legal Counsel @Mashreq

Role Description

• Draft and review standard and recurring Islamic banking documentation, including Murabaha and commodity Murabaha, Ijarah, Wakala and related facility and security documents, working to templates and under the direction of the Senior Legal Counsel.
• Provide day-to-day legal support on business-as-usual Islamic queries from business teams, escalating novel, complex or high-risk matters to the Senior Legal Counsel.
• Support product updates and amendments arising from Shariah-driven structural changes, AAOIFI standards, regulatory developments and campaign launches.
• Monitor legal, regulatory and Shariah developments relevant to the Islamic product suite and flag their documentation impact.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of Islamic legal policies, procedures, precedents and templates.
• Build and maintain the Bank’s Islamic legal precedent bank, template library, clause library and position papers.
• Maintain matter trackers, documentation logs and turnaround reporting for Islamic legal work, including App4Legal records.
• Conduct legal research on Islamic finance structures, AAOIFI standards and comparative market practice to support the Senior Legal Counsel.
• Prepare first drafts of memoranda, product notes and briefing materials on Islamic legal matters.
• Collaborate with business teams and stakeholders to support commercially sound and legally robust Islamic documentation outcomes.
• Support the coordination of inputs between Business, Shariah Governance, Legal and external counsel, and follow through to closure.
• Assist in the preparation of instructions to external counsel and in the review and quality control of external work product.
• Identify legal risks in standard Islamic documentation and escalate appropriately.
• Support Islamic product development workstreams, including documentation gap analysis and comparison against market practice.

Qualifications

• Minimum 8–10 years’ post-qualification experience in banking and finance law, preferably with a leading law firm and/or a financial institution, including demonstrable exposure to Islamic banking products and Shariah-compliant documentation.
• Law degree from a reputable university; admission to practice law in a recognised jurisdiction (covering areas: banking and finance, financial services and regulation, and corporate and commercial).
• A certification in Islamic finance or Islamic banking, such as CIFE, AAOIFI CSAA or equivalent, is an advantage.

Requirements

• General working knowledge of core Islamic finance structures, including Murabaha, commodity Murabaha (Tawarruq), Ijarah, Wakala, Mudaraba, Musharaka and Sukuk.
• Familiarity with AAOIFI Shariah standards and their practical impact on documentation.
• Understanding of conventional banking documentation, including LMA-based facility agreements and security packages, and how Islamic equivalents differ.
• Strong legal drafting skills, with demonstrated accuracy and attention to detail.
• Strong legal research skills and the ability to produce clear, usable written analysis.
• Problem solving and analytical thinking.
• Experience building or maintaining precedent banks, template libraries or knowledge management tools.
• Comfortable operating in a remote delivery model supporting stakeholders in other jurisdictions.
• Proficiency with legal workflow and matter management systems; experience with Legal-AI tools.
• Effective collaboration with business units, support functions and multicultural teams across locations and time zones.
• Effective communication and people skills.
• Agile and proven ability to perform under pressure with composure and focus.
• Legal practice certificate or licence.

Company Description