Professional Support Lawyer, Debt Finance (HK/SG)

White & Case; Singapore; On-site; SGD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A global law firm is seeking an experienced lawyer to develop knowledge and innovation strategies in banking and finance, specifically in leveraged finance and real estate finance in Singapore. The ideal candidate will have at least 7 years of post-qualified experience, exceptional drafting skills, and a client-oriented approach. This role involves training, monitoring legal developments, and mentoring junior lawyers in a dynamic, collaborative environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 7 years of post-qualified experience in finance.
• Experience and market knowledge of leveraged and real estate finance.

Responsibilities

• Develop knowledge and innovation strategy for APAC.
• Mentor junior lawyers and provide legal expertise.
• Organise and deliver Group training.
• Monitor legal developments relevant to the Group.
• Draft and update standard forms and manage know-how.

Skills

Sound legal experience in Banking & Finance

Commercial awareness

Excellent drafting and research skills

Strong organisational skills

Effective interpersonal skills

Education

Law degree

Bar membership in Hong Kong or Singapore

Job description

Firm Summary

White & Case is an elite global law firm serving leading companies, financial institutions and governments worldwide. Our long history as an international firm means we are perfectly placed to help our clients resolve their most complex legal challenges wherever they may be.

With lawyers operating from more than 40 locations, working in virtually every country of the world, we have invested heavily in building a high-quality full-service practice competing at the top of the market. We are distinguished by our on-the-ground presence in the world's key financial markets and our strengths in handling complex cross-border work.

It is not just about our global network of offices and shared services centres; it is the global interconnectedness of the Firm that our people, and our clients, value most. We work well together across geographic and practice boundaries. It is one of the reasons we attract and retain cross-border work.

Our lawyers are globally minded, enterprising, collaborative, and committed to excellence. Our people represent 90 nationalities and speak 80 languages.

Our Practice Solutions Team

Our global Practice Solutions teams keep White & Case at the forefront of today's changing legal landscape. We help lawyers practice smarter as they deliver world-class client service. Our work ranges from helping the Firm leverage the latest legal, client and market knowledge to providing front-line support for legal teams in their client work.

The Practice Solutions function is under the leadership of the Chief Innovation Officer and comprises five teams: Professional Support, Research & Market Intelligence, Practice Technology, Business Intelligence, and Innovation and AI. Our professionals use information management, research, data, technology, and training solutions to help our lawyers work efficiently and collaboratively to benefit our clients.

Position Summary

An experienced lawyer who will help to develop the knowledge and innovation strategy for the Group in APAC and to shape and influence policy and implement projects to meet the Group's knowledge needs, with particular focus on leveraged finance, real estate finance and other financing transactions such as asset-based lending transactions, structured trade, and commodity and investment-grade financings.

The PSL will monitor developments in the legal and business environment to keep both the Group and its clients up to date and identify areas to develop the Firm's reputation and practice; provide legal and practical expertise to support the Group's practice (both through responding to fee earner queries and through the mentoring of junior lawyers); help create, develop and manage the Group's collection of forms, precedents and research materials; organise, design and deliver Group training; work with Group members and the other Business Services departments to identify opportunities to develop business from new and existing clients; and provide other support as needed.

Specific responsibilities described below may vary depending on the Group's needs.

Duties and Accountabilities 1

Lawyer Training and Technical Expertise

• Be a source of legal, market and practical expertise for all, including the provision of direct support for client matters where appropriate;
• Work with the Group and other Professional Support team members to identify practice-related training needs of the Group; organise, design and deliver (personally or with others) Group training, including seminars, workshops and offsite training;
• Work with the wider Professional Support team to develop any global training programmes, as required by the partners;
• Be involved in Firmwide training programmes, as required, including core training programmes and induction courses; and
• Mentor trainees and associates.

Current Awareness, Client - Facing and Thought Leadership

• Monitor and keep the Group and the Professional Support team informed about important developments in the law or business environment;
• Use own knowledge and expertise to identify trends in the law or business environment with particular emphasis on general banking, leveraged and real estate finance and help the Group to develop new legal products, identify possible new services, and suggest innovative ways to deliver the Firm's services more efficiently to its clients;
• Prepare regular current awareness newsletters for the Group and the Firm's clients;
• Work with the Research & Market Intelligence team to determine requirements and policies and to implement processes for practice-related current awareness and alerts from internal and external sources;
• Author and publish research on legal developments or new areas of law relevant to the Group;
• Participate in industry events relevant to the Group to raise the Firm's profile as a thought leader where appropriate; and
• Work with the Group, and others in Business Services, to identify opportunities to develop business from new and existing clients through writing articles and briefing notes and preparing and delivering client training.

Standard Forms and Know-How

• Draft standard forms and develop accompanying notes;
• Ensure standard forms are updated to reflect changes in law, regulation, market standards and best practice;
• Conduct matter debriefs for precedent collection and deal or market analysis;
• Create practice notes and other useful know-how;
• Operate and implement procedures for capturing, filtering, storing, accessing and disseminating know-how within the Group including capturing matter descriptions and categorisations in the Matter Profiling system; and
• Publish material on the Firm's intranet and KM systems and encourage fee-earners to use KM systems and other resources.

Central Practice Solutions and Knowledge Projects

• Be a champion for rolling out new innovation or knowledge systems to the Group with other Professional Support Lawyers, where appropriate; and
• Contribute to global innovation and knowledge programmes and projects to support Firm collaboration, efficiency and to enhance Asia English law expertise across the Firm.

Miscellaneous

• Assist lawyers with queries;
• Attend regular global, regional and practice meetings of the Professional Support team; and
• Attend external training and conferences to keep up-to-date with relevant developments in the law, business environment and professional support.

Essential Job Requirements

Experience

• Sound legal experience in Banking & Finance in a large law firm or financial institution legal department, including experience and market knowledge of leveraged finance, real estate finance and other financing transactions
• Real estate finance strongly preferred
• At least 7 years' of post-qualified experience

Skills/aptitudes

• Commercial awareness and client orientated approach
• High professional standards with commitment to quality product
• Excellent drafting and research skills
• Well-developed organisational and communication skills
• Understanding of learning process and different ways of training
• Personality to make impact in group and to shape and influence policy
• Effective interpersonal skills and ability to interact with people at all levels, including other support areas
• Pragmatic, self-motivated, flexible and good team-worker
• Lateral thinker with initiative to establish, implement and complete projects
• Comfortable with IT

Qualifications

• Law degree
• Bar membership in Hong Kong or Singapore

White & Case is committed to creating a fair workplace. It is our Firm's policy to recruit, employ, train, compensate, and promote without regard to race, religion, creed, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, or any other category protected by applicable law. If you require assistance and/or accommodation to participate in our application and/or interview process, please email the recruiting contact listed. We will be happy to work with you.

1 The above is a general description of the essential duties associated with this position and does not represent an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all duties.

Location: Hong Kong or Singapore

Contact in Recruitment: Jennifer Lau

Reports to: Asia Pacific Debt Finance Partner and Chief Innovation Officer