Legal Counsel

How will you CONTRIBUTE and GROW

In this position the incumbent is accountable to provide assistance to the Head of Legal - Southern Africa on legal matters relating to the company and its affiliated companies within Southern Africa including but not limited to:
pre-litigation and litigious claims
commercial contractual or civil disputes
labour and employment law
interpretation and/or negotiation of a wide range of commercial operational and supply chain contracts
provision of legal support to the various functions of the organisation in the areas of business development sales and marketing finance procurement human resources engineering operations and maintenance
assist in the management of corporate governance legal and regulatory compliance and statutory secretarial duties

Main Accountabilities:

1. Corporate Governance & Company Secretariat

• Assist in preparing and reviewing board and shareholder documentation including agendas resolutions board packs and minutes.

• Support compliance with the Companies Act King IV Principles of Corporate Governance and Group frameworks.

• Maintain statutory registers and ensure timely submissions to the CIPC.

• Prepare and file amendments to company records (e.g. changes in directors officers share registers resolutions).

• Facilitate board statutory committee and shareholder meetings including drafting agendas minutes and resolutions.

• Provide governance training to directors prescribed officers information officers and statutory committee members.

• Liaise with regulators such as the B-BBEE Commission Competition Commission Information Regulator and others.

2. Commercial & Contractual Work

• Draft review and negotiate a wide range of contracts including supply procurement distribution partnership and services agreements.

• Support the contract lifecycle (renewals amendments terminations).

• Advise business stakeholders on risk allocation obligations and rights.

• Provide legal input in tenders bids and procurement processes.

• Maintain proper filing and management of executed contracts.

3. Labour & Employment Law

• Provide day-to-day advice to HR on labour relations and employment law.

• Draft and review employment contracts HR policies and procedures.

• Advise on misconduct disciplinary grievance and incapacity matters.

• Support restructuring retrenchment and collective bargaining processes.

• Represent the company in CCMA proceedings and liaise with external labour attorneys.

• Ensure compliance with South African labour laws including the Labour Relations Act Basic Conditions of Employment Act Employment Equity Act and Occupational Health and Safety Act.

4. Debt Recovery & Litigation Support

• Draft and issue letters of demand acknowledgements of debt breach notices and other legal correspondence.

• Manage external debt collection attorneys and business rescue practitioners.

• Lodge claims in business rescue liquidation or sequestration proceedings.

• Attend creditors meetings and liaise with liquidators and curators.

• Support litigation arbitration and mediation including briefing and managing external counsel.

5. Compliance & Regulatory Matters

• Monitor developments in laws and regulations across Southern Africa with focus on corporate commercial labour safety consumer data privacy and competition law.

• Assist with compliance programs including ethics anti-corruption data protection and Code of Conduct initiatives.

• Support internal and external compliance audits and regulatory inspections.

• Contribute to updating the compliance risk management plan.

• Provide compliance and ethics training across the organisation.

6. Advisory & Business Partnering

• Provide legal advice to Sales Commercial Operations Finance HR and other functions.

• Conduct legal research and prepare memoranda on emerging risks.

• Ensure legal advice is pragmatic business-oriented and aligned with Group strategy.

• Act as a legal partner in strategic projects and business development.

• Handle Ethical Alerts in coordination with the Head of Legal.

7. Departmental Administration & Knowledge Management

• Maintain departmental records templates and precedents.

• Prepare regular legal reports and updates for management.

• Support the monitoring of legal spend and external counsel performance.

• Develop internal training materials guidance notes and tools.

Are you a MATCH

Educational requirements

• Education: LLB or Bachelor of Laws / Bcom of Laws with LLB degree or equivalent

Experience

• Admitted Attorney (or < 3 years post serving Articles of Clerkship at a reputable law firm)

• 2 to 3 years experience in the field of corporate/company law commercial corporate governance legal and regulatory compliance.

Knowledge and Know-how specific to the job

• Solid understanding and knowledge of South African laws regulations codes and soft laws including but not limited to Contract law Damages/Delict law the Companies Act Protection of Personal Information Act Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment Act King Reports on Corporate Governance and the like.

• Solid understanding of legal procedures notably relating to commercial disputes alternative dispute resolution or litigious civil matters.

• Solid drafting reviewing negotiating and/or settling of legal documents such as contracts letters opinions.

• Solid legal research skills including appropriate citation or referencing.

• Knowledge of regulators mandated to monitor the organizations corporate affairs i.e. B-BBEE Commission Competition Commission Information Regulator CIPC etc.

• Computer literacy.

OTHER COMPETENCIES

• Initiating Action - Taking prompt action to accomplish work goals; taking action to achieve results beyond what is required; being proactive

• Managing personal efficiency - manage competing priorities in a challenging environment minimizing non-value-added complexity or paradox.

• Promoting and Achieving Safety - responsibility to ensure that Safety and Security are seen as imperatives for the Group

• Performance and Responsibility - action to manage all changes or to mitigate the uncertainties occurring as a result of change to achieve the Groups objectives.

• Decision Making - analyze and summarize information including value-added suggestions from others to develop optimal solutions.

• Customer Orientation - recognize and analyze the customers needs expectations and priorities and propose valuable reliable and competitive solutions

• Adaptable - Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work responsibilities or environment (e.g. people processes structure or culture); adjusting effectively to change by exploring the benefits trying new approaches and collaborating with others to make the change successful.

Our Differences make our Performance

At Air Liquide we are committed to build a diverse and inclusive workplace that embraces the diversity of our employees our customers patients community stakeholders and cultures across the world.

We welcome and consider applications from all qualified applicants regardless of their background. We strongly believe a diverse organization opens up opportunities for people to express their talent both individually and collectively and it helps foster our ability to innovate by living our fundamentals acting for our success and creating an engaging environment in a changing world.