Vice President, Attorney - Investment Advisory & Alternative Investments

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is seeking a Vice President level attorney to provide legal coverage for its Investment Advisory and Alternative Investments businesses.

The attorney will advise on the development, distribution, governance, and ongoing support of alternative investment and private markets products offered through Morgan Stanley's investment advisory platform.

This is a highly visible role supporting one of the firm's key strategic growth areas. The successful candidate will work at the intersection of private markets and investment advisory, advising on the structuring, offering, distribution, and servicing of alternative investment products, while also providing day-to-day legal support to Wealth Management's advisory business.

Products and strategies include private equity, private credit, hedge funds, feeder funds, co-investments, direct private investments, pre-IPO opportunities, and other alternative investments offered to high net worth, ultra-high net worth, institutional, and family office clients.

The attorney will be a member of both the Alternative Investments Legal and Investment Advisory Legal teams and will work closely with business, legal, compliance, risk, and operations stakeholders across Wealth Management. The role offers significant exposure to senior management and the opportunity to advise on sophisticated products, transactions, regulatory developments, and strategic initiatives.

This role offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management's industry-leading investment advisory business, with more than $3.2 trillion in assets under management, and its rapidly expanding alternative investments platform, advising on some of the firm's most strategic products, clients, and growth initiatives.

Since 1935, Morgan Stanley is known as a global leader in financial services, always evolving and innovating to better serve our clients and our communities in more than 40 countries around the world.

What you'll do in the role:

• Provide legal advice on the structuring, distribution, marketing, diligence, and ongoing support of alternative investment and private markets products offered through Morgan Stanley's investment advisory platform.
• Advise on applicable securities, investment adviser, broker-dealer, and private placement regulations, including issues relating to fiduciary obligations, conflicts of interest, product governance, client disclosures, and investment advisory programs.
• Review and negotiate distribution, servicing, placement, and other commercial agreements related to alternative investment offerings.
• Review offering materials, private placement memoranda, limited partnership agreements, subscription documents, marketing materials, investor communications, and track record presentations.
• Draft and negotiate client agreements, account documentation, disclosures, and other legal documentation related to advisory and alternative investment products and services.
• Advise on new product development, private markets initiatives, and the expansion of alternative investment capabilities within advisory programs.
• Provide legal support on matters involving trading, best execution, principal transactions, fee arrangements, investment allocations, solicitation arrangements, and other advisory regulatory issues.
• Interact directly with clients, outside counsel, regulators, and internal stakeholders across Legal, Compliance, Risk, and the business.

What you'll bring to the role:

• J.D. and active bar membership.
• 5+ years of relevant experience at a law firm, financial institution, investment adviser, broker-dealer, private equity firm, hedge fund, or other asset manager.
• Experience advising on alternative investments, private funds, private placements, and/or investment advisory matters.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. securities laws, including the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, Securities Act of 1933 (including Regulation D), Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Investment Company Act of 1940.
• Excellent judgment, drafting, negotiation, and communication skills, with the ability to provide practical, risk-based legal advice in a fast-paced environment.

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 that’s differentiated – and we’ve 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 - aren’t just beliefs, they guide the decisions we make every day to do what's best for our clients, communities and more than 80,000 employees in 1,200 offices across 42 countries. At Morgan Stanley, you’ll 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. There’s also ample opportunity to move about the business for those who show passion and grit in their work.

To learn more about our offices across the globe, please copy and paste https://www.morganstanley.com/about-us/global-offices​ into your browser.

Expected base pay rates for the role will be between 120000 and 210000 per year at the commencement of employment.  However, base pay if hired will be determined on an individualized basis and is only part of the total compensation package, which, depending on the position, may also include commission earnings, incentive compensation, discretionary bonuses, other short and long-term incentive packages, and other Morgan Stanley sponsored benefit programs.

Morgan Stanley is an equal opportunity employer committed to building and maintaining a workforce that is diverse in experience and background.  Our recruiting efforts reflect our strong commitment to a culture of inclusion, where individuals are hired, developed, and advanced based on their skills and talents.

Our workforce reflects a broad cross-section of the global communities in which we operate, bringing a variety of backgrounds, talents, perspectives, and experiences.

For more information, please visit: https://www.morganstanley.com/people-opportunities/eeo.