Legal Counsel France

BBVA; Paris; Sur place; EUR 80 000 - 100 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

A leading financial institution in Paris is looking for a Legal Counsel to support banking and financial activities. The candidate will draft agreements, manage litigations, and provide legal advice to various departments. Applicants should have a Master 2 degree in French business law and 7-10 years experience in a similar role. Proficiency in French and English is essential, with Spanish being a significant advantage.

Qualifications

• At least 7-10 years' experience in a similar role within a law firm or financial institution.
• Deep knowledge of contract law, securities law, French banking and financial law.
• Excellent written and spoken skills in French and English.

Responsabilités

• Advise on French legal topics related to banking and finance.
• Draft, review, and amend agreements governed by French Law.
• Manage litigations involving BBVA in France.

Connaissances

Customer Targeting

Empathy

Ethics

Innovation

Proactive Thinking

Formation

Master 2 degree in French business law or banking and finance law

Description du poste

Legal Counsel France - Excited to grow your career?

BBVA is a global company with more than 160 years of history, operating in over 25 countries, serving more than 80 million customers. We are a team of over 121,000 professionals with diverse profiles including financiers, legal experts, data scientists, developers, engineers, and designers.

LEGAL DEPARTMENT - BBVA PARIS BRANCH

About the job:

Advising BBVA's Paris Branch (Business and Support units) and BBVA (other branches and subsidiaries) on French legal topics, covering all areas of law related to their businesses or tasks (products, services, projects, and transactions). The role involves preventing and mitigating BBVA's legal risks under French Law in France or with French counterparties.

As a Banking and Financial Lawyer, the incumbent will:

1. Provide support and legal advice to all BBVA's Paris Branch departments and business areas (mainly banking and finance, trade finance, and global markets) on domestic and cross-border legal issues related to banking and financial activities, customer relations, commercial contracts, banking services, and relationships with French authorities.
2. Draft, review, and amend agreements governed by French Law, including standard and bespoke documents, such as:

• Project finance, syndicated facilities, bilateral facilities, leveraged finance, fund/capital call finance, structuring financings, commitment/mandate letters, term sheets, secondary loans trading, and intercreditor agreements.
• Supply chain finance, receivables discounting, trade instrument issuance, and distribution through participation agreements.
• French law master agreements for derivatives and repos (FBF IFT, Pensions livrées ISDA, CSA) for Global Markets.

Possess strong contractual skills to draft financing, security, and commercial contracts of varying complexity. A solid understanding of obligations and security law is essential.

Handle legal matters independently, drafting documents without external counsel except in exceptional cases.

Extend legal support under French Law to BBVA head office and foreign branches or subsidiaries as needed.

Contribute to legal structuring of transactions, negotiate legal aspects with business teams, and draft agreements independently.

Critically evaluate proposals from business teams to ensure legal soundness and risk mitigation.

Propose innovative legal solutions while managing legal risks.

Assist in updating BBVA's Paris Branch contractual documentation, internal procedures, and guidelines.

Participate in legal monitoring activities.

Identify and communicate French legal risks to BBVA Paris Branch and Head Office.

Manage litigations involving BBVA in France, instructing and supervising external lawyers, and drafting instructions for legal proceedings.

Coordinate with colleagues and BBVA lawyers in other jurisdictions for cross-border transactions.

Report to the General Counsel of BBVA's Paris Branch and participate in internal committees as needed.

Qualifications:

• Master 2 degree in French business law or banking and finance law from a top French university.
• At least 7-10 years' experience in a similar role within a law firm or financial institution.
• Ability to handle legal matters independently and draft documents without external counsel in most cases.
• Deep knowledge of contract law, securities law, French banking and financial law for corporate clients, insolvency law, and civil proceedings. Knowledge of public law and international private law is a plus.

Language skills:

• Excellent written and spoken skills in French and English.
• Spanish proficiency is a significant advantage.

Soft skills:

• Willingness to learn and support various product areas (Loans, Trade Finance, Markets, etc.).
• Understanding of commercial needs and constraints.
• Interest in new legal areas (sustainability, digital assets, etc.), open-mindedness.
• Rigorous, autonomous, organized, and capable of multitasking.
• Team-oriented with good relationship skills and persuasive ability.

The candidate must provide verifiable references. A case study will be part of the interview process.

Skills: Customer Targeting, Empathy, Ethics, Innovation, Proactive Thinking

Job ID JR00080342