Senior Legal Counsel

**Role**:Senior Legal Counsel

**Role Purpose**

To advise on business direction based on legal risk management interpretation and ensure the provision of a quality legal service that fulfils a statutory, reporting and legal advisory service to all business units within the division.

**Responsibilities**:

- Maintain awareness of ongoing legal risks, new legislation and court decisions and provide feedback to relevant stakeholders
- Ensure changes and developments in legislation, regulations, guidelines and practices are analysed, evaluated and reported
- Track and address legal risk management related complaints and identify trends and major issues to be addressed
- Support Compliance on legal interpretation issues
- Draft and/or review internal policies and ensure they comply with relevant statutory and/or legal requirements
- Review and advise management on legal implications of internal policies and procedures
- Monitor business awareness of legal risks and ensure these are being identified and managed in all legal projects, agreements, legal opinions, systems, policies, procedures and products (where relevant)
- Advise corporate committees on high risk, governance and related matters
- Manage and support new regulatory processes
- Conduct training and ensure staff are kept abreast of legal and regulatory developments
- Oversee quality of advice and reports submitted to business
- Provide legal support, opinions (written/verbal and formal/informal as required) and advice.
- Provide legal protection and risk management advice, especially on contract management
- Handle escalated complaints
- Work closely with internal stakeholders to understand the legal aspects of proposed initiatives and structures and provide a view on the feasibility thereof
- Oversee the negotiation, review and drafting of documents for business transactions and advise on checklists used to ensure information is submitted on time
- Ensure all legal documentation is properly signed and recorded
- Manage the legal agreement database to ensure all information is up-to-date, signed and correctly linked to other relevant systems
- Oversee the drafting and reviewing of contracts and agreements and ensure they comply with relevant statutory and/or legal requirements
- Ensure all internal contracting parties understand the content and implications of contracts proposed and/or entered into
- Ensure proper negotiation, drafting and vetting of legal agreements
- Prepare, review and modify contractual instruments to assist and support various business activities
- Ensure contracts and agreements are amended and updated where required
- Appoint and instruct legal counsel where required
- Review ongoing litigation cases and advise management accordingly
- Liaise between external counsel and business to defend or prosecute a case to its logical conclusion
- Drive the management and amelioration of risk arising from litigation
- Build trusted advisor relationships with internal and external stakeholders and ensure they are provided with service excellence
- Implement and monitor service practices that meet clients and own organisation's needs
- Train business on new legislation
- Ensure effective relationships and SLA management with internal and external stakeholders
- Engage senior management on a partnership basis to facilitate legal risk assessment, evaluate the effectiveness of proposed policies and controls and take remedial action where required
- Actively share information with other team members regarding successes, issues, trends and ideas
- Enhance relationships beyond own function to improve reporting and wider understanding of relevant legal risk profiles
- Act in an ethical, transparent and morally defensible manner, including highlighting unethical practices
- Identify financial and business risks to the company and escalate accordingly
- Identify opportunities to enhance efficiencies and reduce wasteful expenditure
- Act at all times in ways that are consistent with MMH’s brand and values
- Continuously drive own professional development
- Engage constructively with performance feedback
- Handle stress in ways that do not negatively impact others
- Continually share, debate and communicate learnings
- Flag and debate issues constructively
- Work collaboratively with others to achieve shared goals
- Positively influence and manage change

**Minimun Qualificatiosn and Experience**
- LLB Degree (or equivalent)
- Must be an Admitted Attorney
- 7 years’ legal experience with exposure to the financial services industry.
- Investments experience would be advantageous
- Knowledge and in-depth understanding of the relevant financial services legislation, which shall include, inter alia, the Insurance Act, CISCA, POPI, Pension Funds Act, Financial Markets Act, FAIS and FICA as well as the secondary legislation that may be applicable.
- Extensive knowledge of financial products and the structuring thereof
- Alternative Investments experie