Senior Counsel - EEMEA at Mastercard

Role

• Structure, draft, and negotiate commercial contracts ranging from simple statements of work to complex partnership and novel/strategic deals.  Typical agreements include transactional agreements, consulting agreements, platform agreements, SaaS agreements, marketing and promotional campaign agreements;
• Align and collaborate across various business and legal teams, including with other Data & Services legal team members and Eastern Europe & Middle East Africa region counsels;
• Develop, assist with and execute global initiatives in the region to support the evolution of the Data & Services legal team and the support it provides;
• Collaborate with team members on product development and go-to-market implementation;
• Be a strategic partner and trusted advisor to a dynamic and demanding business unit, counseling the business on deal matters as well as general legal and business matters. This will involve a high level of interaction with business clients;
• Manage wide-ranging issues such as data usage/privacy, intellectual property, compliance, regulatory, and tax by partnering with subject matter experts in these areas and other stakeholder teams, and balancing these issues against reputational and other risks to ensure product constructs and commercial agreements are consistent with corporate strategy, internal policies and procedures and applicable laws and regulations; and
• Provide back-up support to other colleagues on the D&S legal team as needed.
• The position is located in Johannesburg. As our team supports the business across the Eastern Europe & Middle East Africa region and connects with colleagues around the globe, the role will require some travel and ability to support other time zones.

All About You

• Bachelor of Laws or Juris Doctor from an established and reputable law school.  Fully qualified attorney – preference for qualification in Eastern European, Middle Eastern or African jurisdictions. 
• Ability to grasp complex new business concepts quickly and develop and implement creative approaches to problems while identifying and balancing risks with results. 
• Familiarity with law and regulations in the banking and payments space will be considered favorably.
• Minimum post-qualification experience of 8 years. 
• Relevant post-qualification experience in general commercial legal matters in a reputable law firm and/or multinational company.  Some in-house experience in a multinational company is strongly desired.
• Must be able to work independently and as part of a team.
• Must be able to strike a balance between the two principal objectives of being a facilitator to the business and protecting the interests of the company.
• Must be able to contribute and operate effectively within a diverse multicultural organization. 
• Good commercial acumen and creative approach to problem-solving.
•  Experience in handling competition law issues.