Assistant Manager - Contracts and Dispute Resolution - Group Legal and Regulatory

Are you a legal professional with a passion for dispute resolution, litigation and strategic legal advisory, supported by strong commercial contracting skills? Join Dialog Axiata PLC and be part of the team driving dispute resolution and commercial support at one of Sri Lanka's leading telecommunications groups. 

As the Assistant Manager - Contracts and Dispute Resolution, you will support the Legal function of the Dialog Group by driving the resolution of the Group's contractual, infrastructure-related and litigation matters, while also managing a selection of commercial and operational contracts. You will work closely with business stakeholders, counterparties, regulators, and external counsel to ensure legal compliance, mitigate risks, and support business growth.

The Job

• Lead the management and resolution of the Group's contractual and infrastructure-related disputes, including managing the Group's litigation matters, and provide early-stage, pre-litigation advisory by assessing the Group's rights, remedies and exposure under the relevant contractual provisions.
• Draft, issue and respond to demand letters, breach and default notices and without-prejudice correspondence.
• Lead negotiation, mediation, conciliation, settlement and arbitration to achieve amicable resolutions and minimise the Group's litigation exposure.
• Manage disputes arising from the Group's tower and site acquisition (infrastructure) business including site access, lease and tenancy, encroachment, rent, renewal and termination disputes, engaging site owners, local authorities, government agencies and communities on permits, zoning and objections, and representing the Group before relevant authorities, forums and tribunals.
• Feed lessons learned from disputes back into contract templates and clause libraries to reduce future disputes.
• Liaise with regulatory authorities, government agencies, external legal counsel, and internal business units to safeguard the Group's interests.
• Draft, review, negotiate and manage the lifecycle of commercial and operational contracts  including renewals, amendments and execution maintaining contract registers, templates and adequate risk, data protection and anti-bribery and corruption safeguards.

The Person

• Degree in Law and Attorney-at-Law qualification.

• Minimum 5 years of experience after taking oaths as an Attorney-at-Law, in legal practice or corporate legal functions.

• Proven experience in handling civil and criminal litigation matters is essential, together with dispute resolution and alternative dispute resolution (mediation, conciliation and arbitration) experience.
• Strong understanding of commercial and contract law.
• Knowledge of property, employment, intellectual property, technology, data protection, and telecommunications-related legal matters.
• Familiarity with Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platforms, electronic signature solutions, and legal technology tools.
• Excellent contract drafting, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.