Kuala Lumpur, MY
Reinsurance Contracts Counsel
Are you a seasoned contracts professional who is curious about the Life and Health Reinsurance space, and is passionate about learning? Do you thrive at the intersection of legal precision, commercial acumen and collaborative leadership? If so, this is your opportunity to make a meaningful impact at one of the world's leading reinsurers.
About the Role
As a senior member of the Asia Life & Health Contracts team, you will be at the forefront of shaping how Swiss Re manages contractual risk across dynamic and diverse Asian markets. This is a high-impact role where your expertise will directly support disciplined risk-taking, sustainable performance, and commercial excellence. You will serve as a trusted adviser to business partners, leading complex negotiations and driving consistency in contracting standards — all while embracing the future of work through GenAI-enabled workflows.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead end-to-end drafting, review and negotiation of a broad range of Life & Health reinsurance contracts — from standard agreements to highly complex, non-standard arrangements — across assigned Asia markets;
- Ensure contractual clarity and commercial alignment, minimising ambiguity, reducing rework, and embedding risk discipline into every contract
- Identify, articulate and communicate contractual risks, deviations and trade-offs in a clear, business-focused manner that empowers informed decision-making
- Champion Swiss Re standard wordings and guidelines, consistently applying contracting standards, guidelines and documenting deviations and their rationale
- Proactively manage legacy and emerging contract risks through targeted reviews, assessments and strategic projects
- Leverage Swiss Re applications and GenAI tools (e.g. Copilot, ChatGPT) as part of standard contracting workflows to drive efficiency, transparency and traceability
- Collaborate closely with Client Managers, and cross-functional business partners across regions and time zones on complex and sensitive contracting matters
- Lead complex multi-stakeholder negotiations, navigating competing priorities to achieve commercially balanced and risk-appropriate outcomes
- Demonstrate ownership and leadership on complex matters, driving resolution and fostering a culture of collaboration across the Contracts function and the wider business
- Mentor and develop junior Contracts Counsel(s), supporting onboarding, capability uplift, knowledge sharing and a high-performing team culture across the Asia Contracts team
- Contribute to regional and global Contracts initiatives, including training, metrics, reporting and continuous improvement projects
About the Team
The Asia Life & Health Contracts team is a specialist function at the core of Swiss Re's Life & Health reinsurance operations across the Asia region. The team is responsible for the drafting, review, assessment, and negotiation support with respect to Life & Health reinsurance contracts — ensuring that every agreement is commercially sound, legally robust and aligned with Swiss Re's risk appetite. Working closely with LH Business Stakeholders, and Legal partners, the team plays a vital role in enabling disciplined growth and protecting the long-term performance of the business across diverse and fast-evolving markets. While our work is dynamic, fast-paced, and often complex, we place strong emphasis on maintaining a positive, supportive, and collaborative team environment.
About You
You are a commercially minded contracts professional who combines deep legal expertise with strong interpersonal skills and a genuine passion for getting things right. You bring a structured, detail-oriented approach to complex problems, communicate with clarity and confidence at all levels, and are energised by working in a collaborative, fast-paced environment. You are comfortable challenging constructively, influencing senior stakeholders and mentoring others — and you embrace digital tools and continuous improvement as part of how you work every day.
We Are Looking for Candidates Who Meet These Requirements:
- 6–10 years' experience drafting, reviewing and negotiating complex contracts, with a strong preference for individual with financial services or (re)insurance backgrounds
- Strong understanding of contract law and its practical application in a commercial and risk management context
- Demonstrated leadership experience in project delivery, cross-functional initiatives, stakeholder coordination and influencing outcomes within a matrix organisation
- Proven ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders, providing clear, evidence-based recommendations that balance commercial objectives with sound risk management
- Experience coaching and developing colleagues, fostering a collaborative, accountable and high-performing team culture
These Are Additional Nice to Haves:
- Experience working across multiple Asian markets and an understanding of regional regulatory and legal nuances
- Familiarity with GenAI tools (e.g. Copilot, ChatGPT) and digital contracting workflows, with a continuous improvement mindset
- Confidence in articulating complex contractual issues to senior leaders and advocating well-reasoned positions where appropriate
- Excellent written and spoken English communication skills. Additional language skills beyond English — particularly Asian languages — are a welcome advantage
- Flexibility to support and collaborate across Asia time zones
Compliance with the hybrid work model is a must.
About Swiss Re
Swiss Re is one of the world’s leading providers of reinsurance, insurance and other forms of insurance-based risk transfer, working to make the world more resilient. We anticipate and manage a wide variety of risks, from natural catastrophes and climate change to cybercrime. We cover both Property & Casualty and Life & Health. Combining experience with creative thinking and cutting-edge expertise, we create new opportunities and solutions for our clients. This is possible thanks to the collaboration of more than 15,000 employees across the world.
Our success depends on our ability to build an inclusive culture encouraging fresh perspectives and innovative thinking. We embrace a workplace where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive and develop professionally regardless of their age, gender, race, ethnicity, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, skillset, thought or other characteristics. In our inclusive and flexible environment everyone can bring their authentic selves to work and their passion for sustainability.
If you are an experienced professional returning to the workforce after a career break, we encourage you to apply for open positions that match your skills and experience.
We may use AI-powered tools to support the review and evaluation of applications for this position. These tools provide additional insights to our recruitment teams, but all hiring decisions are carefully reviewed and made by people. To learn more about how we use AI in recruitment and how we handle your personal data, please review our Data Privacy Statement before applying.
Reference Code: 139035
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