Legal Counsel Business Banking Legal: Business Support

Empowering Africa's tomorrow, together…one story at a time.
With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group.

Job Summary
To provide sound legal advice and support in area of specialization enabling the provision of legal risk management for the business.

Job Description

• To be a member of the legal team by managing Legal Key Risk in Absa Africa and to contribute to the development of the Legal Function. The role will primarily focus on providing legal support and advice to the business generally, including taking responsibility for transaction documentation, assisting with product development, and providing specific advice in response to business queries as well as queries from other businesses. The candidate will also have the opportunity to work on significant firm-wide projects which are often run in the team.

Accountability: Management of Legal Risk

• Ensure the bank's legal and regulatory position is managed effectively in all situations in which legal disputes or regulatory issues arise, at all times safeguarding Absa's reputation.
• Increase awareness of the Legal Key Risk Policies and report any breaches.
• Identify and articulate risks associated with proposed transactions, projects and activities that the business intends to undertake.
• Mitigate risks wherever possible.
• Attend necessary training sessions to ensure commerciality and continued legal professional development.
• Ensure regulatory & statutory compliance.
• Provide a clear record of relevant business transactions and legal advice given that effectively mitigates legal risk.
• Develop and sustain effective risk and control frameworks.

Accountability: Negotiate, draft and review agreements.

• Assist in structuring, negotiating & drafting legal agreements and documentation relating to standard agreements, transactions and new products.
• Provide legal support to the Business Support department, and working closely with recovery and litigation specialist, on various types of accounts
• Help to develop working structures and best practice guides for use within business.
• Address all probable risks by seeing to it that they are sufficiently addressed in legal agreements drafted.
• Consider, comment, negotiate and give advice on documents/ agreements for the Business.
• Give legal advice on transactions or deals to be done, or transactions that have been concluded.
• Conduct legal due diligences on transactions.
• Provide advice on legality, the lawfulness and enforceability of agreements and documents.
• Provide legal advice on security and assist in perfection of security.

Accountability: Vendor Management

• Support Procurement and Commercial Legal during Supplier contracting and on-boarding process
• Ensure and track engagements of Relationship Managers with their assigned vendors
• Deliver compliance to all Procurement Policies
• Obtain and cascade relevant information and analytics to conduct reviews that drives business improvement
• Participate in formal supplier performance reviews
• Review MI on a monthly basis per supplier in line with the contract requirements, spend, benefits, performance etc. and report on exceptions

Accountability: Stakeholder Management

• Determine needs of stakeholders by regular interaction with the stakeholders in order to discuss legal developments and matters with them
• Provide stakeholders with legal advice, support and legal and commercial solutions
• Provide specialist assistance to country legal teams in Absa Africa region
• Manage external counsel where required
• Distil and communicate and legal concepts in a simple, concise way that is easily understood by business stakeholders.
• Evaluate, manage and prioritise tasks in accordance with business need

Accountability: Reporting

• Compile lists of matters and registers of work or instructions received
• Provide reports as required to support the assessment of the legal risk control framework.
• Attend to ad hoc reports as requested by the Legal Head/ Team Leader, such as reports required by Absa/ LEXCO.

Skills And Experience

• Admitted Attorney
• B Comm Law and LLB; or BA Law and LLB; or B Juris and LLB; B Proc or LLB
• Junior lawyer, ideally 2-5 years' PQE
• Experience of working in a highly regulated, fast paced environment, where there are often competing demand
• Experience in insolvency law and restructuring, both informal and formal business rescue proceedings in terms of Chapter 6 of the Companies Act, is essential
• Experience in litigation, debt recovery, and liquidations would be preferred
• Some in-house experience would be preferred

Education
Bachelor Honours Degree: Law, Military Science and Security (Required)

Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.
Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised