Summary: Saudi Arabia is a G20 economy and is going through a tremendous
amount of change as the kingdom diversifies away from oil production and seeks
to implement Vision ‎2030 and the National Transformation Programme. It is a
very exciting time to be a lawyer in the Kingdom!
Clifford Chance operates in association with the Abuhimed Alsheikh Alhagbani
Law Firm (AS&H) in Saudi Arabia. AS&H has been formed by three past members of
Clifford Chance's talented and widely recognised cohort of senior Saudi
lawyers.
With seven partners, more than any other law firm in the Kingdom, and more
than ‎50 permanently based Saudi and foreign lawyers and ‎26 business support
staff, our co-operation offers Saudi and international clients the greatest
depth of top Saudi and internationally qualified foreign lawyers as well as
continuity and stability.
The Financial Markets team is the leading Financial Markets practice in Saudi
Arabia and has been involved in more multi-billion dollar conventional and
Islamic financings than any other in Saudi Arabia, which provides us with
unparalleled experience in this area.
The Work: Our work spans the whole of the MENA region and beyond. The team
advise on the full range of banking and project finance transactions including
limited recourse project finance, Islamic finance, secured and unsecured
bilateral and syndicated loans, leveraged and acquisition finance,
rescheduling and restructuring, loan transfers, derivatives and other
financial products.

The team offers specialist advice in the following legal areas:
* Bank Lending: Advising on the full range of banking transactions including secured and unsecured bilateral and syndicated loans, leveraged and acquisition finance, rescheduling and restructuring, loan transfers, participations and acquisitions and disposals.
* Projects: Clients include arrangers, lenders, debt and equity financiers, borrowers, project sponsors, export-credit agencies and international financial organisations.
* Islamic finance - we devise and deliver financing solutions that are specific to the needs of our clients.
The team devises and delivers financing solutions that are specific to the
needs of our clients. As a leader in the growing Islamic finance field, in the
past year Clifford Chance has closed more than US$‎25 billion worth of
transactions - groundbreaking deals that have provided innovative Shari'a
compliant structures for clients in markets across the Middle East and beyond.
Key Attractions: AS&H Law Firm (in co-operation with Clifford Chance) is the
current holder of the prestigious IFLR Saudi Arabian Law Firm of the Year, and
the team has won the award for all but one of the past fourteen years since
the inception of this award. The team was also ranked first by Mergermarket,
both in terms of M&A deal value and deal volume in Saudi Arabia for ‎2018 and
‎2019.
You will be leading the Financial Markets team and working alongside the
Corporate Team that includes the leading names in the Saudi legal market
including Saudi and internationally qualified partners and lawyers.
You will work on leading deals for top tier clients. The range, calibre and
international scope of the deal flow is unique.
Recent deal highlights include advising:
* The lenders to Saudi Aramco on a USD10 Billion Term Loan Financing;
* The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (which is expected to become the world's largest sovereign wealth fund) on a number of high-profile mandates both in Saudi Arabia and internationally including a USD10 Billion Term Loan Financing;
* Several Government ministries on privatisation mandates, implementing one of the key objectives of the Saudi "Vision ‎2030";
* The merger of SABB and Al-Alawwal, two of the leading banks in Saudi Arabia;
* The acquisition of souq.com (the Middle East's leading online retailer) by Amazon;
* Credit Agricole on the disposal of a ‎16.2% stake in Banque Saudi Fransi to Kingdom Holding Company;
* the financiers on the US$‎10 billion revolving credit facility financing for Saudi Aramco. The financing combined a US$‎3 billion Islamic Murabaha facility, and a US$‎7 billion conventional facility, provided by over ‎30 banks; and
* General Electric on the Saudi aspects of its US$17bn acquisition of Alstom's global power transmission business.
The sophisticated internal training programme offered is unmatched in the
region and includes local monthly courses run by The Academy with the
opportunity to attend training programmes across the Clifford Chance network
of offices.
The team is proud of their reputation for being a very informal, supportive,
and meritocratic group.
You will feel part of a well organised and structured team which forms a
supportive environment in which you can learn and flourish.
The remuneration package offered is one of the most attractive in the market
and earnings are currently tax-free.
Key Responsibilities:

• From day one you will be given the chance to handle a tremendous variety of work, leading on ground-breaking transactions and working closely with clients.


• A key part of the role will also be building and deepening new and existing client relationships with a view to growing the practice.

Skills & Experience:
* This role would suit a committed and ambitious mid-senior level (‎4-‎6 PQE) Finance and Projects lawyer with a minimum of ten years relevant experience
* In all cases, you should have first class legal ability coupled with a practical commercial approach; and excellent drafting, analytical and communication skills.
* You must also have exceptional relationship building and networking skills with a demonstrable record of business and client development throughout your career
* All candidates should be fluent in English.
* Experience in, or exposure to, advising on Saudi Law aspects of international cross-border transactions would be advantageous.
* You should also have a genuine and demonstrable interest in, or affinity for, the Middle East.

Client Focus: In order to provide outstanding client service and understand,
anticipate and fulfil the unique needs and expectations of each client, we are
looking for lawyers who:
* can demonstrate a keen interest and enthusiasm to learn about our clients' business;
* can work in teams, sharing knowledge, motivating and coaching their juniors and contributing to overall success;
* are empathetic, responsive and reliable;
* are commercial and innovative in the solutions they deliver to clients; and
* are good at fostering relationships with clients and team members.
Firm Summary: Clifford Chance is one of the world's leading law firms, helping
clients achieve their goals by combining the highest global standards with
local expertise. The firm has unrivalled scale and depth of legal resources
across the three key markets of the Americas, Asia and Europe and focuses on
the core areas of commercial activity: capital markets; Corporate and M&A;
finance and banking; real estate; tax, pensions and employment; litigation and
dispute resolution. Alongside world-class legal careers, Clifford Chance
offers excellent opportunities in business professional functions that
underpin its business operations.
Our strength comes from our teamwork and working together as a highly talented
and collaborative team. Recognising and celebrating the collective effort that
drive both the right outcomes for our clients and sustainable success for the
firm is an essential foundation for our success.
AS&H has been formed by three past members of Clifford Chance's talented and
widely recognised cohort of senior Saudi lawyers. With seven partners, more
than any other law firm in the Kingdom, and more than ‎50 permanently based
Saudi and foreign lawyers and ‎26 business support staff, our co-operation
offers Saudi and international clients the greatest depth of top Saudi and
internationally qualified foreign lawyers as well as continuity and stability.
Equal Opportunities: At Clifford Chance we understand that our true asset is
our people. We believe that each and every one of us should experience an
equality of opportunity and an equality of experience here. We are always
working to develop and deliver the best and most innovative approaches to make
that happen. Inclusion is good for our team and their families, our firm and
society.
We are therefore committed to treating all employees and job applicants fairly
and equally regardless of their gender, gender identity and expression,
marital or civil partnership status, race, colour, national or ethnic origin,
social or economic background, disability, religious belief, sexual
orientation, or age. This applies to recruitment and selection, terms and
conditions of employment including pay, promotion, training, transfer and
every other aspect of employment.
The firm will regularly review its procedures and selection criteria to ensure
that individuals are selected, promoted and otherwise treated according to
their relevant individual abilities and merits.
**Please note Agencies are not being instructed on this role, any
applications submitted via Agencies or speculative CVs received will be
treated as a direct application.

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