Senior Legal Counsel – Islamic Finance – Mashreq

Mashreq is hiring a Senior Legal Counsel to support its Islamic finance business, advising on the legal structuring and documentation of Sharia-compliant banking products across the bank’s corporate and retail lines. Islamic finance carries a distinct legal and regulatory logic, every product needs to satisfy both standard banking law and Sharia compliance requirements, which makes this a genuinely specialized legal practice area rather than generic commercial banking law.

Day to day, expect to draft and review Islamic finance documentation, advise business teams on structuring new products, and liaise with the bank’s Sharia board and external counsel on compliance questions. Mashreq is one of the UAE’s established banking groups with a sizeable Islamic finance book, so the legal counsel here works across a real volume and variety of transactions rather than occasional specialist requests.

A strong candidate has genuine Islamic finance legal experience, not just conventional banking law with some exposure, and is comfortable being the final checkpoint before a product or transaction structure is considered legally sound. Precision and defensible documentation matter enormously in this seat, since errors surface either through regulatory review or, worse, through a dispute.

Every Islamic finance product Mashreq brings to market depends on legal structuring that is both commercially workable and genuinely Sharia-compliant, and getting that wrong carries consequences well beyond an ordinary legal error. A flawed structure can mean a product gets challenged by the Sharia board after launch, exposes the bank to regulatory scrutiny, or, in the worst case, creates reputational damage in a market where trust in Sharia compliance is central to customer confidence. A Senior Legal Counsel who gets this right protects the bank's ability to keep innovating in Islamic finance, a growing and competitive segment of UAE banking, without taking on structural risk that could surface later as a costly dispute or regulatory finding. Clean, well-drafted documentation also speeds up time to market for new products, since business teams can move faster when legal review is thorough but efficient rather than a repeated back-and-forth over basic structural issues. Beyond individual transactions, strong Islamic finance legal practice protects Mashreq's broader standing as a serious player in this space, which matters for attracting both retail customers and corporate clients who specifically seek out Sharia-compliant banking relationships. This is a role where legal rigor directly underwrites commercial growth rather than simply limiting risk.

Islamic finance law is a specialized, relatively scarce legal practice area, and building senior experience in it at a bank with Mashreq's scale gives a lawyer credentials that are in genuine demand across the GCC's broader Islamic banking and finance sector. This kind of role offers exposure to a real volume and variety of Sharia-compliant transactions, far beyond what most law firms or smaller institutions could offer a single legal counsel, which builds depth quickly. Lawyers who perform well in a senior Islamic finance counsel role often find strong paths into general counsel, head of legal, or Islamic banking advisory positions, both within Mashreq and across the wider regional banking sector, since this expertise remains in short supply relative to demand. The role also builds valuable relationships with Sharia boards and regulators, networks that carry real professional weight in Islamic finance circles long after any single role ends. Because Islamic finance continues to grow as a share of UAE and GCC banking activity, this specialty offers genuine long-term career durability rather than a narrow, cyclical skill set. For a banking lawyer looking to differentiate their career meaningfully, few specializations offer as much regional relevance and seniority potential as Islamic finance legal counsel work.

• Law degree with qualification to practice; additional Islamic finance or Sharia law training is a strong advantage
• Several years of legal experience specifically in Islamic finance or Sharia-compliant banking products
• Strong drafting and review skills for complex financial documentation
• Working knowledge of UAE banking regulation alongside Islamic finance principles
• Experience liaising with Sharia boards, regulators, or external counsel
• Sound commercial judgment balancing legal risk with business objectives
• Excellent attention to detail given the compliance stakes involved