Description:

Job Description:
A Global Law Firm is a new global industry-leading law firm, with 48 offices in 28 countries worldwide.

Our fluency in English law, US law, and the laws of the world's most dynamic markets, enables us to provide unmatched insight and seamless delivery to clients. We work on challenging and important deals and disputes that have the potential to shape the future.

We offer exceptional opportunities for our people; opportunities to work for the world's leading businesses; to transform the status quo, and to deliver your best work, helping you and your career to thrive, while delivering unparalleled outcomes for our clients.

Whether you're helping clients solve complex challenges, transforming the ways we manage our business, or ensuring the smooth-running of our operations, this is an environment where you can belong and excel. We provide first-rate training and development, we are committed to an inclusive environment, and we provide support and ways of working that help you optimise your wellbeing.

What truly defines a career with us? We recruit the best and ask for the best of you. And together, we will redefine success.

Department Purpose
The BAU is a dynamic, global, collegiate team responsible for assessing all new business before it is accepted by the firm's partners, to ensure the firm's commercial objectives and legal obligations are met. The team work closely with partners and other senior stakeholders to identify and resolve legal and commercial conflict issues, sanctions and anti-money laundering risks, as well as reputational and values issues in each of the jurisdictions in which A Global Law Firm operates. The BAU has a unique, wholistic view of the firm's business and clients, and facilitates strategic decisions by the firm's partners and leaders as well as managing the firm's risk exposure with regard to new work. The BAU is widely respected throughout the firm and strongly supported by the firm's management.

Role Purpose:
The Head of Conflicts - US will lead the firm's conflicts function within the United States, overseeing conflicts clearance, risk management, and compliance with the applicable conflict rules applied by the A&O Sheaman and will include the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, State bar regulations, SRA Code of Conduct and firm policies. This role will act as the primary escalation point for US conflicts issues, working closely with the Managing Director of the BAU, the partners, business teams, and global conflicts functions to ensure seamless client onboarding and regulatory compliance. The role will provide strategic guidance to partners and business teams on conflict risk management and play a key role in developing the best practices for conflicts resolution within a global law firm environment.

In addition to overseeing the services provided to the business by the US Conflicts Team, the role will also be ultimately responsible for the management of the US Conflict Attorneys and will assist the US Conflicts Manager with the management of the US analyst team to include, but not limited to, all aspects of training, development and performance.

Role and Responsibilities:
Leadership and Team Management:

Having principal responsibility and accountability for the US Conflict Attorneys, including (i) ensuring the team's service levels are maintained at a high level and that workload is managed by the team and completed, (ii) maintaining the trusted relationships between the BAU and the firm's Partners and (iii) further building close links between the BAU team and the firm's business.
Foster a collaborative and high-performance culture, ensuring adherence to firm-wide conflicts policies.
Responsibility for the day-to-day management and development of the US Conflict Attorneys, working close with the Managing Director responsible for the BAU to ensure that global standards are met and that each Attorney feels supported in their career and development.
Leading on resource management/strategy within the US team, including leading on formulating business cases for any proposed new hires and other changes to the US team's responsibilities, resources and structures.
Ensure and drive dynamic and consistent collaboration with all other parts of the Global BAU team.

Conflicts Analysis and Risk Management

Review and analyze complex conflict reports related to new business intake, lateral hires, and ongoing client relationships.
Provide strategic oversight and to be the senior escalation point in the US on conflict resolution, whether commercial or legal, and ensure a consistent approach to risk management. Exercising judgment and help BAU Attorneys to exercise judgment as to when to refer complex issues to Managing Director responsible for the BAU and senior management.
Work closely with Managing Director responsible for the BAU, partners, fee earners, and business teams to resolve conflicts efficiently and support, where needed, other areas of client onboarding and the BAU to include:
AML and Financial Crime
The Office of the US General Counsel
The Engagement Terms Team
Draft and review conflict waivers, ethical walls, and engagement letters, ensuring compliance with US professional conduct rules.
Develop and implement risk mitigation strategies to improve conflicts management within the firm on any of the applicable policies or procedures under the remit of the US Conflicts Team.

Policy Development and Compliance:

Ensure compliance with ABA Model Rules, State bar ethical guidelines, US regulatory requirements related to conflicts of interest as well as the SRA Code of Conduct and global firm policies.
Collaborate with the broader conflicts team to align policies and procedures globally.
Maintaining structures within the BAU for the monitoring of changes in practice, professional rules, regulations and the law as it affects US conflicts so that these can be reflected in the business acceptance and client engagement process and policies and (where needed) in communications to Partners and others.

Stakeholder Engagement and Training:

Act as a trusted advisor to partners, senior leadership, and business teams, offering expert guidance on conflicts risks.
Develop and deliver training programs for partners, fee earners, and business services teams on conflicts resolution and compliance.
Chair regular US team meetings and conference calls to facilitate training and knowledge sharing.
Ensuring that the US Conflicts Team creates and maintains precedents and know how resources for use within the Global BAU and develops appropriate business acceptance and conflicts know how (e.g. via briefings) for use throughout the firm.
Engage with other risk-related teams, including Data Privacy, In House Legal, Financial Crime and Sanctions and Client Engagement Terms, to ensure a holistic approach to firm-wide risk management.
Leading on the US conflicts aspects of major projects and work-streams, for example which could arise in the future from group lateral hirings, new office openings or similar.
Developing and implementing structures, strategies and plans for the future development of the BAU team, its policies and processes and the fulfilment of its responsibilities.

Key Requirements:

Juris Doctor (JD) degree from an accredited law school.
Active bar membership in good standing in a US jurisdiction.
Minimum of 7-10 years of experience in conflicts analysis, professional responsibility, or risk management within a large US law firm.
Expert knowledge of ABA Model Rules, State bar ethics rules, the SRA Code of Conduct and conflicts management best practices.
Proven leadership experience in managing conflicts teams and processes as well as mentoring and developing a team.
Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence senior partners and business teams.
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with a strong attention to detail and a commercial mindset.
A proven ability to analyze facts and scenarios thoroughly and efficiently, proactively to put forward resolutions to legal and commercial problems and confidently to make decisions and judgments on complex issues.
Ability to work in a high-pressure environment and manage multiple complex conflicts matters efficiently and under time pressure.
Highly enthusiastic, confident, ambitious, self-motivated and pro-active with the credibility and experience to build very strong, trusted relationships with the firm's Partners and senior staff