Job Description

The Associate Director, Legal & Company Secretary will have the primary responsibility to provide legal and company secretarial support for our Animal Health in India and other key markets in the Asia-Pacific region (such as Vietnam and the Philippines), in relation to both our biopharmaceutical and technology businesses.

The position will be based in Pune, India.

PRIMARY SCOPE OF WORK

The primary scope of work includes supporting all legal and company secretarial needs of key stakeholders in India and other key markets in the Asia-Pacific region (such as Vietnam and the Philippines), including advice in relation to contracts, advertising, corporate transactions, investigations, product liability, employment, privacy, fair competition and trade practice legislation. The successful candidate must understand and apply corporate policies and compliance standards, and local industry guidelines.

In particular, the candidate will:

• Commercial and Contractual

  • advise on day-to-day commercial transactions and business undertakings, including product sales and distribution arrangements

  • advise on business development, licensing, marketing and business initiatives, and draft/review/negotiate related agreements

• Disputes and Litigation

  • support the initiation, defence, negotiation, settlement and management of litigation, disputes and actions arising from business operations

  • work on risk mitigation strategies for disputes in relation to contracts, IP, product liability issues, adverse reaction claims, compliance and regulatory issues

• Human Resources and Investigations

  • advise management and HR teams on sensitive HR/labor law-related issues

  • lead internal investigations relating to compliance issues and make recommendations to management for remediation actions

  • assist the Animal Health global investigations and security groups with internal investigations, and coordinate with local management, finance, HR and other stakeholders to support expeditious remediation of issues

• Company Secretarial

  • act as the primary point of contact for the board of directors, shareholders and regulatory authorities on corporate governance matters, both legal requirements and best practice

  • coordinate and facilitate board meetings (including preparing agendas, board packs and minutes) and shareholder communications (including organising annual general meetings and handling shareholder inquiries)

  • ensure compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements (including drafting and filing annual returns, disclosures, minutes and resolutions)

  • maintain corporate records, registers and statutory books in accordance with applicable laws and regulations

• Regulatory

  • monitor changes and developments in the legal and secretarial environment within which Animal Health operates, and advise local management and develop appropriate strategies to mitigate risk

  • provide advice and support for the regulatory affairs team and other key stakeholders in relation to all authorizations, permits and licenses needed for local operations

  • advise on legal issues in relation to importation and marketing of products, research and development opportunities, product liability issues, adverse events and product quality complaints

• Promotional Review

  • provide legal review of promotional materials according to local laws and Animal Health policies and standards

  • collaborate with business colleagues in initiating and responding to regulatory and competitor challenges in relation to promotional practices

• Intellectual Property

  • support global IP attorneys to coordinate with external counsel on local trademark and patent filings and collect and disseminate intellectual property information for local management

  • advise on local strategies and counteractions in relation to local IP infringement and enforcement actions

• Manufacturing and property

  • advise the manufacturing business on regulatory compliance, including EHS, labor, and operational risks across production and supply chain

  • support the global real estate team with leasing and other property transactions

• Other

  • work within a regional and global team of Animal Health lawyers

  • support additional responsibilities and ad-hoc projects within the regional or global legal team as required

  • participate in leadership, compliance or country-level committees in the relevant markets

  • seek advice from external counsel where needed and review and manage the work they provide

  • supervising and managing a legal budget in accordance with guidance from regional and global legal colleagues

WHAT WILL A SUCCESSFUL APPLICANT LOOK LIKE?

The successful application will:

• Qualifications

  • have a degree in law and company secretary

  • be admitted to practice law in India

  • have 15 or more years of post-admission experience

• Skills

  • have strong English language proficiency

  • provide practical and commercially focused solutions whilst consistently applying a high standard of integrity, professionalism, legal knowledge, and business ethics in line with the company’s policies, values and standards

  • be able to manage India and other key markets in the Asia-Pacific region largely independent of management supervision

  • have a willingness to support other markets within Animal Health’s Asia Pacific operations

  • communicate confidently and effectively across the businesses they support

  • be comfortable to appropriately challenge the status quo whilst understanding fundamental legal and compliance principles

  • understand and balance local market needs with enterprise level principles and direction

  • be always diligent, proactive and responsive

• Knowledge & Experience

  • The following experience is required:

    • in-house legal and secretarial experience in a multinational organization; and/or

    • in-house legal and compliance experience in a pharmaceutical company or other highly regulated industries (eg biochemicals, medical devices); and/or

    • commercial practice experience in a top tier law firm

  • The following experience is highly preferred:

    • familiarity with animal pharmaceutical and animal health medical device related laws and regulations in India

    • familiarity with HR/employment related laws and regulations in India

    • experience working in other jurisdictions within the Asia-Pacific region, particularly Vietnam and the Philippines, including familiarity with local laws and local language proficiency

Required Skills:

Business Initiatives, Business Integrity, Commerical Transactions, Compliance Programs, Confidentiality, Contract Administration, Contract Dispute Resolution, Corporate Governance, Corporate Secretarial Work, Data Privacy, Labor and Employment Law, Law Practice, Legal Acumen, Legal Analysis, Legal Communication, Legal Documents Preparation, Legal Research, Legal Services, Legal Strategies, Legal Training, Litigation Management, Operation Risk Management, Regulatory Compliance, Regulatory Requirements, Statutory Compliances

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

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Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

06/5/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.