About Us

The Perth Bears are Western Australia’s newest professional sporting club, set to join the NRL in 2027. As a high performance organisation, we’re committed to building strong foundations on and off the field to ensure long term success. Joining our team means being part of a rare start-up opportunity in elite sport, where your expertise will directly shape the future of rugby league in WA and help deliver a legacy for our community.

The Chance

We’re seeking a practical, commercially minded Head of Legal & Risk to establish and lead the Perth Bears’ legal, contracting, compliance, insurance and enterprise risk function. Based in Perth, this full-time role reports to the Chief Operating & Financial Officer and will help build the foundations for our entry into the NRL in 2027.

As the Club’s sole in-house legal practitioner, you’ll own a broad hands-on portfolio spanning commercial, employment and football arrangements. You’ll provide clear advice to the executive and department heads, build contract and compliance systems from the ground up, and establish our enterprise risk management framework. You’ll handle most matters in-house, engaging external lawyers and consultants when specialist advice is needed.

What You’ll Do

- Draft, review and negotiate commercial agreements and contracts across partnerships, sponsorships, suppliers, venues, licensing, membership, ticketing and hospitality, and maintain practical templates and precedents.
- Provide practical commercial and employment law advice, including privacy, intellectual property and consumer law considerations; support People and Culture on contracts, policies and workplace investigations.
- Establish a central contract register, track renewals, options and obligations, and ensure agreements are approved, executed and stored in line with Club delegations.
- Support salary cap and Football Department Expenditure compliance, player contract documentation, NRL registrations, reporting and audit requirements alongside the Chief Operating and Financial Officer.
- Build and maintain the Club’s compliance register, monitor legal and NRL rule changes, support staff training, and coordinate regulator enquiries and required notifications.
- Lead insurance reviews with the Club’s broker, assess contractual insurance and liability requirements, and coordinate claims.
- Design and implement the full enterprise risk framework, facilitate departmental risk assessments,



track treatment actions, and report to the executive, Board and relevant committees.
- Support business continuity, crisis management and game day risk planning, and coordinate a cross-functional risk and compliance working group.
- Manage government funding agreements, milestones, acquittals and variations, and coordinate annual governance, compliance and funding reporting.

What We’re Looking For

- Experience and formal qualifications in commercial contracting, legal, risk or governance.
- Strong knowledge of contract law and best practice contract management processes and providing employment law advice
- Excellent organisation and attention to detail, with the discipline to manage a substantial portfolio of contracts, deadlines and compliance obligations.
- Clear written and verbal communication and the ability to translate legal and risk issues into practical advice.
- The confidence to own a broad portfolio, work hands-on in a start-up environment, and recognise when specialist external advice is needed.
- Integrity, discretion and care with confidential information, alongside a collaborative approach that helps the Club move forward while managing risk sensibly.

Experience in sport, entertainment, or a membership based organisation will be highly regarded, as will exposure to sports regulation, salary caps or player contracts. Experience with enterprise risk frameworks, insurance programs, and contract or document management systems is also highly desirable.

Why Join Us?

This is a rare opportunity to build the legal and risk foundations of a new NRL club before its first season. Your advice and judgement will help shape how the Perth Bears contracts, meets its obligations and manages risk across both its business and football operations.

You’ll work directly with senior leaders, establish practical systems from the ground up, and see the impact of your work in an ambitious, collaborative organisation. If you enjoy variety, ownership and turning complex issues into clear solutions,



this is your chance to help build a lasting rugby league legacy in Western Australia.

Working in a Start-Up Environment

The Perth Bears are a start-up organisation in a critical foundation phase. Like other roles recruited to date, this position is intentionally hands-on and will initially operate with lean support structures.

The role will be fully accountable for establishing, delivering, and operating the function, while the club grows. This is not a role with layers of administration or inherited systems. You will be required to design processes, write policies, build relationships, solve problems in real time, and deliver outcomes concurrently.

Success in this role requires comfort with ambiguity, strong personal accountability, and the ability to move seamlessly between strategic planning and day-to-day execution.

Important Information

This role is based in Perth, Western Australia and remote working opportunities are not available.

The role requires flexibility to work evenings and weekends aligned with game days and events, and travel as required. A National Police Clearance and Working with Children Check are required, together with a commitment to the Club’s values, community mission and high performance culture.

The Perth Bears are an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive workplace for all employees. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and people with disability.

Please note, the Perth Bears do not accept unsolicited applications or requests for employment sent directly to the Club. Only applications submitted through the advertised channels will be considered.

Not open to recruitment agencies.

Application Instruction

How to Apply

If you’re ready to join one of the most exciting new ventures in Australian sport, we want to hear from you. Apply now with your CV and a cover letter outlining your experience and why you’re the right person to build the Bears’ future.

Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and we encourage early applications. Interviews may commence at any stage of the recruitment process, and recruitment may conclude once a suitable candidate has been identified.

Please note that you will be sent a mandatory pre-screening questionnaire via email after submitting your application.

📌 Head of Legal & Risk (Perth)
🏢 Perth Bears
📍 Perth