LEGAL COUNSEL

ROLE OVERVIEW

The Corporate Counsel will support the Head of Legal in managing the Group’s legal matters across Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. This role focuses on delivering practical, business-oriented legal advice to support regional operations and commercial initiatives, working closely with country counsels and cross-functional stakeholders. The role is designed for a commercially minded lawyer who can operate in a fast-paced, multi-jurisdictional environment and collaborate effectively with local legal teams across the region.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Regional Legal Advisory & Support

• Provide legal advice on a broad range of corporate and commercial matters across Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand.
• Support regional business initiatives, product developments, and cross-border commercial arrangements from a legal perspective.
• Advise on legal risks and issues arising from day-to-day operations and strategic initiatives.

2. Commercial Contracting

• Draft, review, and negotiate a wide range of commercial agreements, including vendor, customer, partnership, technology, and intercompany agreements across multiple jurisdictions.
• Develop and maintain standard form agreements and legal templates for regional use.
• Ensure consistency of legal positions across jurisdictions while accommodating local legal requirements.

3. Cross-Border Transactions & Projects

• Support regional M&A, joint ventures, investments, and restructuring projects, including due diligence and transaction documentation.
• Provide legal input on structuring cross-border arrangements and commercial models.
• Coordinate legal support across jurisdictions for regional projects.

4. Coordination with Country Counsels

• Work closely with country counsels in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand to ensure alignment on legal positions and approaches.
• Act as a central legal support point for regional matters escalated by country legal teams.
• Facilitate knowledge sharing and consistency of legal standards across jurisdictions.

5. Stakeholder Management

• Partner with regional business, product, finance, and operations teams to provide timely and practical legal support.
• Act as a trusted legal advisor to internal stakeholders across the region.
• Liaise with external counsel where required, including coordination across multiple jurisdictions.

6. Legal Risk Management

• Identify and assess legal risks in regional business activities and propose practical mitigation strategies.
• Provide clear, solution-oriented advice balancing legal risk with commercial objectives.
• Support resolution of legal disputes or issues arising in the region, in coordination with country counsels and external counsel.

7. Corporate Governance & Entity Management

• Support corporate governance matters for regional subsidiaries, including board and shareholder documentation.
• Assist in maintaining statutory records and ensuring compliance with corporate secretarial requirements across jurisdictions (in coordination with company secretarial teams, where applicable).

8. Legal Operations & Process Improvement

• Develop and maintain legal templates, playbooks, and standard form agreements for regional use.
• Contribute to the improvement and standardisation of legal processes across jurisdictions.
• Support legal technology and automation initiatives within the regional legal function.

KEY REQUIREMENTS

1. Qualifications

• LLB degree (or equivalent legal qualification).
• Called to the Bar in Malaysia (or other relevant common law jurisdiction).
• Minimum 5–7 years of post-qualification experience in corporate and commercial law.
• Regional in-house or cross-border legal experience strongly preferred.

2. Technical Skills

• Strong experience in drafting and negotiating commercial contracts.
• Solid understanding of corporate and commercial legal frameworks across Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand).
• Experience in cross-border transactions, M&A, or complex commercial structuring is an advantage.

3. Soft Skills

• Strong commercial judgment and ability to translate legal issues into practical business advice.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills across cultures and jurisdictions.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating closely with distributed legal teams.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, regional environment.

4. Key Attributes

• Strong regional mindset and cross-border legal awareness
• Commercially pragmatic and solution-oriented
• Collaborative and team-oriented, especially with country legal teams
• Proactive, accountable, and detail-oriented