Senior Legal Counsel

Job Description

What if you could do the kind of work the world needs?

At WSP, you can access our global scale, contribute to landmark projects and connect with the brightest minds in your field to do the best work of your life. You can embrace your curiosity in a culture that celebrates new ideas and diverse perspectives. You can experience a world of opportunity and the chance to shape a career as unique as you.

The Senior Legal Counsel will play a critical role in supporting WSP Middle East’s business by providing high-quality, commercially focused legal advice across the full lifecycle of the region’s operations. The role has particular responsibility for corporate governance, entity management, and corporate responsibility, along with a broad remit covering commercial contracting, regulatory compliance, risk management and strategic initiatives.

As a senior member of the regional legal team, the role requires a confident, autonomous lawyer with the ability to influence at senior management level, mentor junior lawyers, and act as a trusted adviser to the business.

Responsibilities

Corporate Governance

• Lead and oversee the day-to-day legal management of WSP’s Middle East corporate entities, including incorporations, licensing and activities, restructurings, liquidations, branch registrations and ongoing compliance obligations.
• Act as the primary legal adviser on corporate governance matters.
• Support the business in meeting corporate responsibility, ethics, and governance standards, including alignment with group policies and regional regulatory expectations.
• Liaise with external corporate service providers, regulators, and local counsel across multiple Middle East countries.
• Identify and proactively manage corporate and governance-related risks, escalating material issues appropriately.
  
  
  

Regulatory, Compliance & Risk Management

• Maintain a strong working knowledge of the legislative and regulatory environment impacting WSP’s Middle East operations, including construction, engineering consultancy, advisory services, and corporate matters.
• Advise on compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and internal policies, including escalation of emerging or complex regulatory issues.
• Support internal audits, compliance reviews, and investigations where required.
• Contribute to the identification, assessment, and mitigation of legal and compliance risks across the region.
  
  
  

Commercial & Contractual Advisory

• Lead negotiations with key clients, joint venture partners, suppliers, and their legal advisers on high-value or strategically important matters.
• Take a senior role in the negotiation, drafting, and review of complex consultancy agreements, standard forms, sub-consultant agreements, and other commercial contracts used across the Middle East.
• Provide pragmatic legal support to bid, project, and commercial teams on contractual risk, liability, insurance, indemnities, and risk allocation.
• Develop, maintain, and improve standard form templates, playbooks, and guidance notes to support consistent contracting practices.
  
  
  

Stakeholder management

• Act as a trusted adviser to senior management, providing clear, commercially sound legal advice to support decision-making.
• Mentor and support junior lawyers and legal team members, contributing to capability building within the regional legal function.
• Design and deliver training programmes for non-legal stakeholders on key legal, contractual, and governance topics.
  
  
  

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with 7 to 10 years of legal experience developed by working in a reputable law firm or in an in-house legal team specialising in construction law.
• Strong negotiation and stakeholder management skills, with confidence engaging at the senior leadership level.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, matrixed organisation.
• High level of maturity, emotional intelligence, and professional integrity.
• Comfortable working autonomously while maintaining appropriate reporting and alignment with legal leadership.
• Excellent written and spoken English, proficiency in Arabic is highly desirable.
  
  
  

Imagine a better future for you and a better future for us all.

Join our close-knit community of talented individuals who share your passion for making a positive impact. Our global team includes more than 69,000 employees, working together to make a difference in communities both close to home and around the world.

With us, you can. Apply today

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