In-House Legal Coverage Position for Institutional Securities Group (“ISG”) Basel Netting & Collateral Enforceability – Associate / Director

Firm Overview

Morgan Stanley is a leading global financial services firm providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, investment management and wealth management services. The Firm’s employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, and individuals from more than 1,200 offices in 43 countries.

As a market leader, the talent and passion of our people is critical to our success. Together, we share a common set of values rooted in integrity, excellence, and strong team ethic. Morgan Stanley can provide a superior foundation for building a professional career – a place for people to learn, to achieve and grow. A philosophy that balances personal lifestyles, perspectives and needs is an important part of our culture.

Legal and Compliance Division Overview

The professionals in the Legal and Compliance Division “LCD” provide a wide range of services to our business units. LCD is made up of the Legal, Regulatory Relations, and Non-Financial Risk departments which preserve the firm’s invaluable reputation for integrity and protect the firm from sanctions with policies and procedures that are designed to meet regulatory requirements around the world. We also strive to maintain cooperative relationships with governmental policy makers and the regulatory and self-regulatory agencies that govern the firm’s businesses.

Background on the Position

Morgan Stanley is seeking an in-house attorney in its Budapest office to be part of a team that implements ISG Legal’s Basel Netting & Collateral Enforceability Program (“BNC Program”), which determines the netting and collateral legal enforceability of master agreements for traded products, including swaps, foreign exchange, commodities, securities lending and repo transactions, and prime brokerage and clearing agreements.  ISG Legal’s enforceability conclusions determine the amount of capital the Firm must hold against each of these agreements, which impacts the costs that must be priced into transactions with counterparties to such agreements. 

The attorney will be part of the team that manages:  the external advice from law firms in jurisdictions across the globe where ISG counterparties are organized; periodic updates of this legal advice; development of legal enforceability fact patterns that are implemented via technology solutions; and oversight of policies and procedures related to the BNC Program which spans multiple functional groups, including the front office sales and trading businesses, the Credit Department, Finance, and Technology.   

Responsibilities will include:

• Being part of a legal team in the Budapest office that is responsible for implementation of the BNC Program;
• Working closely with the Global ISG Legal Head of the BNC Program, the Regional BNC Program heads in the Americas, EMEA and APAC, and the ISG coverage lawyers who cover the fixed income, equities and prime brokerage sales and trading businesses, in order to obtain, maintain and update legal advice for the range of asset classes and products subject to the BNC Program;
• Working closely with the business, front office risk management, the credit department, finance, technology and compliance on governance, legal and regulatory policies and procedures, and the maintenance and update of the BNC Program risk control frameworks; and
• Working closely with the Regional BNC Program heads on the annual update of legal advice, which must be completed within certain time frames in order to meet regulatory requirements.

Qualifications:

• Candidate should be a trained lawyer with up to 5 years of experience in bank finance, financial services or corporate law.
• Candidate should demonstrate strong legal and organizational skills, including an ability to identify and escalate legal issues, capture and track legal conclusions, and execute time sensitive tasks under tight deadlines.
• Candidate should be willing to work collaboratively across functional groups and regions in a fast-paced environment with ever-changing demands that arise from market conditions and client needs. 
• Candidate should be able to work on multiple matters, often in parallel.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM MORGAN STANLEY:

We are committed to maintaining the first-class service and high standard of excellence that have defined Morgan Stanley for over 89 years. Our values - putting clients first, doing the right thing, leading with exceptional ideas, committing to diversity and inclusion, and giving back - aren’t just beliefs, they guide the decisions we make every day to do what's best for our clients, communities and more than 80,000 employees in 1,200 offices across 42 countries. At Morgan Stanley, you’ll find an opportunity to work alongside the best and the brightest, in an environment where you are supported and empowered. Our teams are relentless collaborators and creative thinkers, fueled by their diverse backgrounds and experiences. We are proud to support our employees and their families at every point along their work-life journey, offering some of the most attractive and comprehensive employee benefits and perks in the industry. There’s also ample opportunity to move about the business for those who show passion and grit in their work.

To learn more about our offices across the globe, please copy and paste https://www.morganstanley.com/about-us/global-offices​ into your browser.

Certified Persons Regulatory Requirements:
If this role is deemed a Certified role and may require the role holder to hold mandatory regulatory qualifications or the minimum qualifications to meet internal company benchmarks.

Flexible work statement
Interested in flexible working opportunities? Morgan Stanley empowers employees to have greater freedom of choice through flexible working arrangements. Speak to our recruitment team to find out more.

Morgan Stanley is an equal opportunities employer. We work to provide a supportive and inclusive environment where all individuals can maximize their full potential. Our skilled and creative workforce is comprised of individuals drawn from a broad cross section of the global communities in which we operate and who reflect a variety of backgrounds, talents, perspectives, and experiences. Our strong commitment to a culture of inclusion is evident through our constant focus on recruiting, developing, and advancing individuals based on their skills and talents.