Job Description

My client, a well established group of companies is looking for a Legal Manager and Company Secretary to join their team. The successful candidate with a Legal Degree and 5+ years experience in a similar role
Primary objectives:

• Fulfill the legal obligations, duties and responsibilities as an officer of the company in the capacity of Company Secretary as required by the Companies Act and corporate governance best practice.
• Provide general in-house legal advice to the Boards of Directors, Board Committees, the Executive leadership team and other Senior Management.

1. Company secretarial and corporate governance:

• Act as the designated Company Secretary for various entities within the Group.
• Prepare agendas, meeting-packs and minutes for various entities within the Group and distribute them within the deadlines.
• Ensure that minutes of meetings are properly recorded, approved and circulated in a timely manner.
• Ensure directors' decisions are properly recorded and that action items are circulated to the responsible persons after every meeting.
• Facilitate internal meetings with management and directors.
• Provide guidance to the various committees/ meetings regarding governance matters, including adherence to Memoranda of incorporation, policies, charters and approval frameworks.
• Develop and coordinate reviews and approvals of Governance Policies including Board charters.
• Maintain a register of Governance Policies as approved by the Executive Committee on behalf of the Board.
• Maintain a complete list/ framework of the Delegations of Authority.
• Ensure compliance with the Companies Act and other related legislation.
• Carrying out the company's statutory functions and ensuring statutory compliance (with the Companies Act and other legislation), to include, but not limited to, the filing of annual returns and submissions and lodgments at CIPC.
• Maintain all statutory records and internal entity records and registers and liaise with external auditors, service providers and the Finance Division where needed.
• Attend to in-house and external ad hoc items and requests, to include but not limited to drafting of Board, Trust and Shareholder resolutions, company information requests and general enquiries.
• Draft AGM and other resolutions for the underlying companies within the Group.
• Maintain the Group structure / organogram.
• Develop and deliver relevant corporate governance initiatives from time-to-time.

2. Legal management:

• Liaise with external lawyers regarding legal issues.
• Update legal documentation, e.g., sales contracts, terms and conditions etc.
• Identify and manage legal risks in contracts, operations and claims.
• Review and assess contracts and other legal documents to mitigate risk to organisation.
• Report on legal issues and developments which may significantly impact on the Organisation and relevant Exco members' division or functional areas.
• Provide historical reference by developing and utilizing filing and retrieval systems.
• Manage and coordinate the submission of all changes to the Trust Deeds of the Trusts with the Master of the High Court.
• Manage and facilitate B-BBEE requirements for various entities within the Group.
• Ensure the audit and verification processes of B-BBEE contributions are conducted.
• Monitor the implementation of various B-BBEE initiatives in areas of ownership and management control.

Qualifications and Experience:

• BA LLB / BCom Law degree
• 5+ Year's work experience in a similar role.
• Excellent planning and organisational skills.
• Strong leadership qualities.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to handle and prioritise multiple tasks and meet all deadlines.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise extreme discretion.
• Excellent attention to detail.
• Ability to work accurately and efficiently.

Skills Required