Senior Legal Counsel

Waystone is a leading asset-servicing solutions provider of institutional governance, administration, risk and compliance services to financial institutions. With over 25 years’ experience and a comprehensive range of specialist services to its name, Waystone helps our clients structure, operate and grow through our expertise, innovation and digitisation, backed by the operational scale to support global expansion. 

Summary: Primarily works with senior management of Waystone’s management company (ManCo), MiFID entity and administrators (as applicable) to directly assist clients with formation and launch of European fund structures. Additionally, supports the Irish corporate services and compliance solutions offerings and undertakes internal legal work for the Irish office. The minimum expectation of a Senior Legal Counsel is that the employee will:

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support senior management in the formation and launch of primarily European fund structures (including under AIFMD, UCITS MiFID and/or other relevant legislation and regulations), from an AIFM, UCITS ManCo and/or MiFID perspective (as appropriate) and make appropriate recommendations.
• Review, negotiate, draft and maintain contractual and other legal documentation.
• Assist in researching and identifying global legal risks and developing and implementing documentation and/or operational solutions to legal and regulatory developments.
• Keep abreast of legislative changes that may affect the organisation and its compliance with applicable laws and report same to senior management.
• Undertake legal drafting work and negotiation.
• Provide legal consultancy internally, as well as working with external clients to identify issues with a legal aspect that needs to be referred to their legal advisers or should be dealt with operationally.
• Work effectively within tight deadlines, working to push projects forward and avoid the delays associated with seeking legal advice whilst maintaining a high level of service and work product.
• Manage various internal and external deadlines, dealing on a day-to-day basis with both immediate legal concerns and long-term project work.
• Successfully balance client support with internal legal case load.
• Balance legal risk against commercial requirements to find workable and commercial solutions to legal problems.
• Work directly with clients and external counsel to ensure a commercially and legally satisfactory outcome.
• Compose and prepare and review confidential correspondence, strategic and legal reports and memoranda, and other complex legal documentation.
• Project manage external legal work to minimise external spend.
• Spearhead local and European legal projects and take responsibility for and ownership of projects with legal elements. Proactively drive matters forward to ensure legal compliance.

REQUIREMENTS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Education:

An internationally recognised legal professional qualification.

Experience:

• Knowledge of European structures (in particular Irish) including AIFM, ManCo and Mifid structures.
• Experience negotiating ManCo, Investment Management, Distribution, Administration and Depositary Agreements.
• Effective negotiation and communication skills (written and oral).
• Strong organisational and project management skills, including ability to manage numerous projects simultaneously under deadline pressure.
• Ability to effectively work with cross-functional teams and various levels of employees, including senior executives.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, business acumen and judgment, strategic legal thinking, initiative, attention to detail and ability to work independently are a must.