Legal & Contract Manager MEA

Harmattan AI; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 260,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Harmattan AI seeks a commercially minded Legal Counsel to join the Abu Dhabi legal team. The role partners with Sales and business units, focusing on Arabic-speaking markets, including defence and AI-regulated technology.

You will draft, review and negotiate complex agreements, navigate export controls and sanctions, and help scale the company’s legal processes on a global expansion path. You will report to the General Counsel and work closely with senior stakeholders in a fast-moving,

Qualifications

• Qualified attorney or in-house counsel with ~5 years' experience across a law firm and in-house/tech or defence environment.
• Native-level Arabic and fluent professional English.
• Strong track record drafting and negotiating complex commercial contracts.
• Genuine interest in defence, dual-use tech, AI or other regulated sectors.
• Comfortable with senior stakeholders and fast-moving, high-stakes work.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain any security clearance or authorization required for the role, subject to applicable law.
• LL.M. from a US or UK institution, or exposure to defence/public-procurement/export-control matters, is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Draft, review and negotiate customer, partnership, supply and procurement agreements, including defence-procurement documentation.
• Support complex negotiations with defence ministries, armed forces, public-sector bodies and industrial partners.
• Build scalable contracting standards, playbooks and approval processes.
• Advise on legal and regulatory issues around autonomous and AI-enabled defence systems.
• Work with the General Counsel on export-control, sanctions and trade-compliance matters.
• Advise on AI, data, cybersecurity and IP issues as they affect the business.
• Support entity governance, board documentation and statutory filings across Arabic-speaking markets.
• Support employment matters alongside the People team and external counsel.
• Manage disputes and pre-litigation matters with a focus on early risk assessment.
• Act as principal legal advisor for expansion across Arabic-speaking markets.
• Coordinate external local counsel and manage legal spend.
• Help build the legal processes and templates that let the business scale.

Skills

Arabic & English

Commercial contracts

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Regulated sectors

Education

LL.M. (US/UK)

Job description

About Us

Harmattan AI is a next-generation defense prime building autonomous and scalable defense systems. Following the close of a $200M Series B, valuing the company at $1.4 billion, we are expanding our teams and capabilities to deliver mission-critical systems to allied forces.

Our work is guided by clear values: building technologies with real-world impact, pursuing excellence in everything we do, setting ambitious goals, and taking on the hardest technical challenges. We operate in a demanding environment where rigor, ownership, and execution are expected.

About the Role

We're looking for a commercially minded Legal Counsel to join our legal team in Abu Dhabi. Reporting to the General Counsel, you'll be a hands-on legal business partner to Sales and teams across the company, with a particular focus on Arabic-speaking markets. This is a broad in-house role for a lawyer who enjoys working close to the business and is motivated by Harmattan AI's mission.

Key Responsibilities

Commercial & Procurement

• Draft, review and negotiate customer, partnership, supply and procurement agreements, including defence-procurement documentation among others




• Support complex negotiations with defence ministries, armed forces, public-sector bodies and industrial partners




• Build scalable contracting standards, playbooks and approval processes

Defence, AI & Regulated Technology

• Advise on legal and regulatory issues around autonomous and AI-enabled defence systems




• Work with the General Counsel on export-control, sanctions and trade-compliance matters




• Advise on AI, data, cybersecurity and IP issues as they affect the business

Corporate & Governance

• Support entity governance, board documentation and statutory filings across Arabic-speaking markets




• Support employment matters alongside the People team and external counsel




• Manage disputes and pre-litigation matters with a focus on early risk assessment

Arabic-Speaking Markets

• Act as principal legal advisor for expansion across Arabic-speaking markets




• Coordinate external local counsel and manage legal spend




• Help build the legal processes and templates that let the business scale

Requirements

• Qualified attorney or in-house legal counsel with ~5 years' relevant experience across a law firm and in-house/tech or defence environment




• Native-level Arabic and fluent professional English;




• Strong track record drafting and negotiating complex commercial contracts




• Solid grounding in contract and corporate law




• Genuine interest in defence, dual-use tech, AI or other regulated sectors




• Comfortable with senior stakeholders and fast-moving, high-stakes work




• Eligible to obtain and maintain any security clearance or authorization required for the role, subject to applicable law.




• LL.M. from a US or UK institution, or exposure to defence/public-procurement/export-control matters, is a plus.

We look forward to hearing how you can help shape the future of autonomous defense systems at Harmattan AI.