MSIM- Emerging Markets Debt- Transaction Counsel

The Transaction Counsel will sit directly on the Emerging Markets Debt investment team and provide dedicated legal and structuring support across sovereign and corporate credit investments in emerging and frontier markets. The role is designed to enhance investment decision-making and execution by delivering practical analysis of documentation and legal rights partnering with portfolio managers analysts traders and operations on transaction structuring and renegotiation of existing debt. The Transaction Counsel will work closely with other EMD investment decision makers internal partners (including the broader MS legal compliance and risk functions) and external counsel while maintaining an investment-oriented mandate.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Provide investment-relevant analysis of sovereign bond documentation (e.g. indentures/fiscal agency agreements) to assess legal rights remedies and key terms (CACs/aggregation pari passu negative pledge events of default acceleration waivers governing law jurisdiction immunities ranking and enforcement mechanics).
• Act as the investment teams point person for managing external counsel on sovereign and corporate matters including scoping prioritization review of deliverables and ensuring advice is translated into actionable investment implications.
• Support sovereign document negotiation processes including evaluating proposals advising on exchange offer and consent solicitation mechanics reviewing/revising new instruments and coordinating execution workstreams with external counsel and other advisors.
• Support corporate side via review and negotiation of bespoke new-issue and private deal documentation (bonds loans structured instruments).
• Partner with investment professionals on structuring considerations (e.g. documentation protections creditor positioning remedies transferability governing law choices) to align legal terms with the investment thesis and risks.
• Provide secondary support on trading and counterparty documentation impacting exposures (e.g. ISDA/CSA and other trading-related agreements as applicable) helping identify and escalate key legal/economic terms for negotiation and risk management.
• Support the teams growing use of insurance and risk-transfer structures (including coinsurance-style arrangements) reviewing terms coverage triggers exclusions claims mechanics counterparty obligations and alignment with investment objectives.
• Help maintain internal documentation standards and playbooks (key clause checklists term summaries precedent libraries) and provide periodic training to the investment team on market documentation developments and recurring legal themes.

Qualifications:

• J.D. from an accredited law school; member in good standing of at least one U.S. state bar or equivalent qualification.
• Meaningful experience in transactional law with direct exposure to sovereign debt documentation and/or sovereign restructuring situations; distressed/restructuring experience strongly preferred.
• Strong background in credit documentation for corporate issuers (public and private) including bonds and/or loans with proven ability to read and negotiate complex covenants and structural protections.
• Familiarity with the legal frameworks commonly used in EM credit (notably New York law and/or English law documentation) and comfort working across multiple jurisdictions and market conventions.
• Demonstrated ability to translate legal terms into clear investment implications under time pressure with strong judgment and a bias toward practicality.
• Excellent drafting issue-spotting and communication skills; ability to operate credibly with senior investors counterparties and external counsel.
• Highly organized and able to manage multiple concurrent matters in a fast-moving investment environment; strong attention to detail and ownership mindset.
• Intellectual curiosity about emerging/frontier markets and a willingness to engage deeply with both sovereign and corporate idiosyncratic situations; foreign language skills a plus but not required.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM MORGAN STANLEY:

At Morgan Stanley we raise manage and allocate capital for our clients helping them reach their goals. We do it in a way thats differentiated and weve done that for 90 years. Our values - putting clients first doing the right thing leading with exceptional ideas committing to diversity and inclusion and giving back - arent just beliefs they guide the decisions we make every day to do whats best for our clients communities and more than 80000 employees in 1200 offices across 42 countries. At Morgan Stanley youll 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. Theres also ample opportunity to move about the business for those who show passion and grit in their work.

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