Role Overview

EBRD’s Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is at the core of EBRD’s mandate to support the transition process to market economies in 37 economies ranging from Central and Eastern Europe, the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean to Central Asia.  It handles all legal aspects of EBRD’s lending and investment transactions, as well as of EBRD’s finance operations, it provides legal advice on institutional and other corporate matters and supports the Bank’s policy development in its region through its legal transition programme.

The Office of the General Counsel is currently recruiting for a Counsel position within the Banking Operations group. The position will be based in London.

The successful candidate will be offered a 2 or 3-year fixed-term contract.

Accountabilities & Responsibilities

As an international transactional lawyer, you will:

• have principal responsibility for a number of EBRD’s lending and equity transactions (i.e. secured and unsecured lending operations, private equity investments, etc.) throughout EBRD’s countries of operations, advise on the (re-)structuring of such transactions, select and manage the engagement of external law firms, draft and negotiate transaction documents and assist in the implementation thereof;
• contribute to the knowledge management activities of OGC; and
• help carry out the EBRD’s policy mandate in the context of its lending and equity operations, e.g. with a view to ensuring compliance with EBRD’s environmental standards and other policy requirements.

This job description is not limited to the responsibilities listed and the incumbent may be requested to perform other relevant duties as required by business needs. 

Knowledge, Skills, Experience & Qualifications

Candidates are expected to:

• have a law degree from a leading university; for candidates from civil law jurisdictions, a post graduate law degree (e.g. LLM) from a common law jurisdiction would be preferred;
• be admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction and preferably have professional experience in both civil and common law;
• have at least 6 years’ of post-qualification practising experience gained at a top rated law firm;
• have relevant professional experience as a lawyer working on English law governed financing agreements in one or more of the following fields:
  • Cross-border banking transactions involving the taking of security, e.g., project financing, bank financing or concession financing;
  • Cross-border private equity investments;
  • Cross-border corporate or capital markets transactions; and/or
  • Cross-border financial restructurings and/or insolvency matters;
• be particularly interested in emerging markets work; and
• have an excellent command of the English language, including a demonstrated skill to draft and negotiate legal documents in English. Fluency in an additional language, in particular Russian, French, Turkish or Arabic, would be an asset.

Diversity is one of the Bank’s core values which are at the heart of everything it does.  A diverse workforce with the right knowledge and skills enables connection with our clients, brings pioneering ideas, energy and innovation. The EBRD staff is characterised by its rich diversity of nationalities, cultures and opinions and we aim to sustain and build on this strength. As such, the EBRD seeks to ensure that everyone is treated with respect and given equal opportunities and works in an inclusive environment. The EBRD encourages all qualified candidates who are nationals of the EBRD member countries to apply regardless of their racial, ethnic, religious and cultural background, gender, sexual orientation or disabilities.  As an inclusive employer, we promote flexible working.