Legal Director, APAC

Your Responsibilities:

• APAC responsibilities:
• Lead, establish, and implement legal processes and policies for the region from the ground up.
• Lead and oversee all anti-counterfeiting operations for the region; develop and implement comprehensive and market-specific tactics, utilizing expertise from outside counsel, law enforcement, and U.S. inhouse attorneys as needed. Ensure alignment with global, legal strategic objectives.   
• Direct and manage legal aspects of all APAC marketing operations, ensuring compliance with local regulations while driving strategic marketing and legal initiatives
• Lead all commercial contract operations for this region by establishing contract management processes and overseeing vendor, supplier, and retailer relationships. Ensure compliance with internal controls such as signing authority and use of chops.
• Lead and implement Brooks' ethics and compliance programs in the region, including fielding day-to-day questions from employees on conflicts of interest, gifts, and/or FCPA (anti-bribery, anti-corruption) topics and training employees on policies and programs.
• Oversee and manage all employment matters for APAC operations. Provide advice and counsel to the APAC HR Team.
• Manage outside counsel work and monitor related budgets.
• Lead the company's government relations efforts in APAC to build relationships with government officials, regulators and policymakers to act as a crucial bridge between the government to manage risks and advance Brooks’ strategic goals.  .
• Work collaboratively with global legal team, including communicating closely with specialists in IP, Employment, Marketing, Contracts, Compliance, and Corporate Governance to align on overall company legal strategy and practices while adopting a regional approach.
• Willingness to travel between APAC and US offices as needed (up to 15-20% travel).
• Ability to work flexible hours to accommodate cross-time zone collaboration.


• Strategy and Risk Management Responsibilities
• Define, implement and oversee all legal operations for the APAC region, including regulatory compliance, risk assessments, and legal infrastructure
• Take full responsibility for legal risk management across all APAC jurisdictions
• Drive strategic legal initiatives that support the company's rapid growth trajectory in APAC markets
• Lead risk assessments for new business initiatives, market expansion, and strategic partnerships
• Demonstrate unwavering commitment to upholding Brooks’ values and ethical standards in all business dealings and extreme enterprise accountability and managing the Legal function.
• Manage the legal budget for the region and oversee outside counsel relationships and related expenditures.


• China-specific responsibilities:
• Lead and direct all legal operations for China, establishing comprehensive legal infrastructure and managing all regulatory compliance requirements.
• Serve as a liaison between Brooks’ global Legal team and local China team.
• Establish and manage comprehensive regulatory compliance programs covering all Chinese legal requirements affecting Brooks' footwear and apparel business, including import/export regulations, employment law, privacy, pricing, marketing, environmental laws, product safety, and labeling. Ensure full regulatory adherence.
• Ensure compliance with laws applicable to Brooks' operations in China, with particular focus on anti-corruption laws including FCPA and Chinese anti-bribery regulations.

Qualifications:

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an accredited US law school or LLM from an accredited US law school
• Legal Profession Qualification Certificate (法律职业资格证书) from the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China
• 12+ years of experience as an attorney
• 7+ years in-house experience (preference for previous experience at a high-growth, U.S.-based company selling consumer goods in China
• Fluent written and spoken language skills in both Mandarin and English (absolute must); Experience translating legal concepts between US and Chinese contexts effectively; Understanding of both US and Chinese business cultures, practices, and negotiation styles; Proven ability to navigate complex cross-cultural business environments
• Experience in the consumer goods, retail, or footwear/apparel industry preferred
• Exceptional diplomatic skills with ability to build trust across cultural and organizational boundaries; Strong conflict resolution abilities and experience mediating between competing priorities; Excellent interpersonal skills that inspire trust resulting in effective working relationships
• Excellent judgment and decision-making capabilities in ambiguous situations
• Ability to work independently while maintaining close coordination with the global legal team
• Proactive problem-solving approach with attention to detail
• Excellent active listening skills with the ability to communicate complex legal analysis and risk assessments with confidence to key stakeholders and motivate them to take appropriate actions
• Ability to achieve optimum legal and business outcomes in a timely manner by focusing on key objectives, seeking efficient legal solutions, prioritizing multiple matters and issues, providing options-based legal advice when appropriate and avoiding unnecessary disputes