Head of Legal

Job Title

- Head of Legal & Regulatory Risk, APAC

- Job Location

- Sydney

- Job Type

- Business/Professional Services & Support

- Expertise

- Risk

- Description

**About the role**

The role is to lead the management of legal, professional and regulatory risk for the APAC region, and provide support to the APAC Senior Management and business, to ensure that the region develops and maintains the highest standards of professional conduct in all its dealings. In addition, the role will deliver best practice advice to ensure that risk is optimally managed throughout the region, setting a healthy risk culture and ensuring compliance with the relevant legal, regulatory and compliance requirements and standards.

This role is part of the global Legal & Risk department and will look to build on the strategy set by the firm's global General Counsel and Director of Legal & Regulatory Risk to strengthen the firm's risk and assurance framework, delivering an enterprise risk management approach both globally and across each region.

**About the team**

The role sits within the global Legal & Risk Department, which has team members based in each region and is currently led from London. It consists of a team of risk lawyers and other professionals managing all elements of risk across the business including business acceptance and conflicts management, compliance and professional indemnity as well as crisis management. In APAC, the role will work closely with the APAC Board Chair, Managing Partners in each of the key offices, APAC APAC Risk Partners, APAC COOs and Risk Manager based in Hong Kong, who will be a direct report to this role.

**Key Responsibilities**
- Working closely with the Director of Legal & Regulatory risk, embed the firm's risk management and assurance framework across APAC. This will involve the regional management of legal, professional and regulatory risks, to inspire, promote and continually improve the risk culture across the region and the firm and secure the firm's reputation.
- Working alongside key stakeholders in the region to set the tone and provide guidance to partners, fee-earners and business services teams in response to risk queries and issues arising. This may include drafting new policies and processes to ensure compliance.
- Lead on and embed an appropriate risk training programme across the region, aligned with the global training plan, and ensuring understanding at every level of lawyer and business support professional, so that our business is fully aware of the risk trends and best practice guidance available to support sound, ethical decision
- making.
- Being responsible for managing and reporting on enterprise risk management for APAC, in accordance with the firmwide approach and working with the Regional Risk Manager in assessing and monitoring risks across the APAC region to work towards mitigating risks so that controls are in line with the risk appetite and tolerance set locally.
- Reporting as required to the APAC regional Board in order the firm has appropriate oversight and assurance on issues which involve strategic, commercial or regulatory risks and working proactively in partnership with its members and other senior stakeholders to identify priorities and mitigate commercial and legal risk; reporting to regional and local regulators on issues which arise may also be required.
- Supporting on the development of an appropriate risk management audit programme for APAC and working with practice groups to develop initiatives to improve the firm's quality and consistency of advice, including considering lawyers' working practices and how those can be developed to continually improve on the delivery of high-quality services to clients.
- Work closely with the firm's COLP, who leads on Professional Indemnity issues, as well as the Director of Legal & Regulatory Risk and GC to ensure that claims across the APAC offices are identified and reported as appropriate. This will include regularly meeting with Risk Partners and practice group lead(s) to ensure they understand the trends and will act as a co-partner in any change projects which result.
- Keep abreast of local rules and changing legal and regulatory requirements in all of the jurisdictions in which the firm operates, including restrictions on operating in overseas jurisdictions, compliance with relevant law society or local bar guidance on the ability or entitlement of lawyers to practise.
- Attend regular meetings with APAC Risk Partners, the global Legal & Risk team, business services heads and other staff to share knowledge and ideas concerning current regulatory and compliance issues or developments.
- Occasional international and regional travel where required.

**About You**
- Qualified lawyer with a significant number of years' experience practising in an international law firm and with a bachelor or Master's Degree (or equivalent)
- Significant experience in managing risk within a professional services