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Job Function:
Legal & Compliance
Job Sub Function:
Law Business Partners
Job Category:
Professional
All Job Posting Locations:
Shanghai, China
Job Description:
Role Overview
The Senior Legal Counsel serves as a strategic legal business partner to the Innovative Medicine China organization, providing pragmatic, solution-oriented, and commercially focused legal support to enable business growth while effectively managing legal and compliance risks.
This role is the primary legal partner for the Immune Business and provides legal support across a broad range of strategic functions, including Procurement (cross-sector), Supply Chain, Xi'an Site operations, etc. The role also supports dispute management, employment-related matters, government investigations, and contracting excellence through the development and maintenance of legal templates, playbooks, and processes.
The successful candidate will work closely with business leaders and cross-functional stakeholders to deliver proactive legal advice that balances risk with business objectives and supports sustainable growth in a highly regulated industry.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategic Legal Business Partnering
- Serve as the primary legal business partner for the Immune Business in China.
- Provide strategic, proactive, and business-oriented legal counsel to support commercial objectives and growth initiatives.
- Participate in business planning and strategic decision-making processes, identifying legal risks and opportunities early in the decision-making cycle.
- Translate global and regional legal strategies into practical and effective China-specific solutions.
- Develop strong relationships with senior business leaders and become a trusted advisor on key business initiatives.
- Commercial and Contracting Support
- Draft, review, negotiate, and advise on a broad range of commercial agreements, including sponsorship/grant/donation agreements, consulting agreements, procurement contracts, collaboration agreements, confidentiality agreements, supply agreements, and other business-critical contracts.
- Provide practical advice on contract structure, risk allocation, negotiation strategy, and dispute avoidance.
- Support product commercialization, business development initiatives, strategic partnerships, and other commercial activities.
- Ensure contracting activities are aligned with applicable laws, regulations, and company policies.
- Procurement Legal Support
- Act as lead legal counsel supporting cross-sector Procurement functions.
- Advise on sourcing, supplier management, outsourcing arrangements, and third-party engagements.
- Review and negotiate procurement-related agreements and provide guidance on contractual protections and supplier risk management.
- Support Procurement stakeholders in resolving contractual issues and commercial disputes.
- Partner with Procurement teams to strengthen governance and contracting processes.
- Supply Chain and Xi'an Site Legal Support
- Provide legal support to Supply Chain operations and Xi'an Site activities.
- Advise on manufacturing, logistics, distribution, quality, operational, and business continuity matters.
- Support strategic projects affecting site operations and supply chain management.
- Review and negotiate supply, manufacturing, warehousing, transportation, and related operational agreements.
- Identify and mitigate legal risks arising from operational and supply chain activities.
- Disputes, Employment Matters and Litigation Management
- Work closely with the Litigation team and external counsel to manage legal disputes involving supported business units.
- Provide legal support on employment-related disputes, labor arbitrations, employee complaints, litigation, and administrative proceedings.
- Partner with Human Resources and Employee Relations teams on employment law issues, disciplinary actions, terminations, reorganizations, and workplace investigations.
- Assist in developing litigation strategies, coordinating evidence collection, reviewing submissions, and managing interactions with external counsel.
- Assess litigation and employment risks and recommend practical risk mitigation measures.
- Monitor dispute trends and identify opportunities to improve business processes and reduce legal exposure.
- Risk Management, Regulatory Matters and Investigations
- Identify, assess, and mitigate legal and compliance risks across supported businesses and functions.
- Lead or coordinate legal support relating to regulatory inspections, government inquiries, investigations, and enforcement matters.
- Partner closely with Compliance, Regulatory Affairs, Public Affairs, Finance, Human Resources, and Global Legal Organization (GLO) stakeholders to ensure aligned responses.
- Provide timely risk escalation and strategic legal advice to senior leadership.
- Legal Templates, Governance and Operational Excellence
- Develop, maintain, and regularly update legal contract templates, playbooks, clause libraries, and guidance documents.
- Drive standardization and simplification of contracting processes to improve efficiency and consistency.
- Contribute to legal operations, legal technology improvements, and process optimization initiatives.
- Ensure compliance with company governance frameworks and legal policies.
- Stakeholder Engagement and Collaboration
- Build trusted relationships with business leaders and cross-functional stakeholders.
- Collaborate effectively with Legal, Compliance, Regulatory Affairs, Public Affairs, Finance, Procurement, Supply Chain, Human Resources, Quality, and other support functions.
- Communicate complex legal issues in a clear, concise, and business-friendly manner.
- Legal Training, Regulatory Updates & Capability Building
- Monitor and proactively assess new and emerging laws, regulations, regulatory enforcement trends, industry codes, and policy developments relevant to the Company's business and operations in China.
- Analyze legal and regulatory changes and provide practical, business-focused guidance regarding their impact on the business.
- Develop and deliver legal training programs, workshops, and awareness sessions to business and functional stakeholders on key legal and compliance topics.
- Support implementation of new legal and regulatory requirements through cross-functional collaboration, policy updates, process enhancements, and risk mitigation initiatives.
- Partner with Compliance, and business leaders to enhance legal awareness and strengthen a culture of integrity and compliant business conduct.
- Maintain current knowledge of relevant pharmaceutical, healthcare, employment, commercial, data privacy, competition, anti-corruption, and other applicable legal developments and share insights with stakeholders on a regular basis.
Qualifications
Education
- Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) or Juris Doctor (J.D.), or equivalent legal qualification.
- Qualified lawyer admitted to practice in China.
- Additional postgraduate legal qualifications and admission to another major jurisdiction will be an advantage.
Experience
- Typically 8-10+ years of post-qualification legal experience.
- 4 years + experience gained in a leading international or local law firm with strong experience supporting commercial operations in the pharmaceutical, healthcare, life sciences, medical device, or other highly regulated industries.
- Experience in healthcare compliance, ethics, anti-corruption, and regulatory matters.
- Proven ability to partner effectively with senior business leaders and cross-functional stakeholders.
Core Competencies
Business Partnership and Commercial Acumen
- Strong understanding of business strategy and commercial drivers.
- Ability to provide practical, risk-based legal advice that supports business objectives.
- Demonstrates strong judgment when balancing legal risk and business opportunity.
Strategic Thinking
- Ability to anticipate legal and regulatory developments and proactively advise stakeholders.
- Effectively translates legal complexity into actionable business solutions.
Communication and Influencing
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in both English and Mandarin.
- Strong stakeholder management and influencing capabilities.
- Ability to communicate complex legal concepts clearly to non-legal audiences.
Risk Management and Judgment
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- Ability to identify material risks and develop pragmatic mitigation strategies.
Collaboration and Leadership
- Builds strong relationships across functions and geographies.
- Works effectively in a matrix organization.
- Demonstrates integrity, accountability, resilience, and professionalism.
- Contributes positively to a high-performing, collaborative, and inclusive culture.
Execution Excellence
- Strong project management and prioritization skills.
- Ability to manage multiple complex matters simultaneously.
Learning Agility and Thought Leadership
- Maintains up-to-date knowledge of legal and regulatory developments affecting the healthcare and life sciences industry.
- Demonstrates intellectual curiosity and continuous learning.
- Effectively translates complex legal developments into practical business guidance.
Required Skills:
Preferred Skills:
AI Judgement Integration, Analytical Reasoning, Business Agility, Commercial Laws, Compliance Management, Corporate Governance, Dispute Resolution, Lawyering, Legal Services, Litigation, Negotiation, Organizing, Process Improvements, Representing, Strategic Thinking, Tactical Thinking, Technical Credibility