Senior Legal Officer

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide expert legal advice and support management and other departments on a wide range of legal issues, including litigation, disputes and contract interpretation. 
• Manage and coordinate all litigation and dispute matters and prepare legal documentation. Monitor ongoing litigation and provide regular updates on the status of cases, risks and outcomes. Develop litigation strategies and manage risk exposure to minimize any legal liabilities. Represent the company in court hearings and legal proceedings as necessary. 
• Oversee the handling of legal complaints, ensuring compliance with relevant laws, timely and effective responses and escalation as needed. 
• Supervise and support the legal recoveries process in collaboration with the collections and credit risk teams. 
• Working closely with external legal counsels for any outsourced legal services, ensuring service quality, cost effectiveness and timely delivery of work. 
• Conduct legal research and stay up to date with relevant legal developments, regulations and trends affecting the business.  
• Attending various meetings and ensuring production of high-quality paperwork by preparing the agenda, papers and meeting minutes. Attending the briefing meetings of the various departments and disseminating the matters arising and required action points. 
• Draft, review, and negotiate various contracts, agreements and other relevant legal documents, to safeguard the company’s interest. Proper filing and maintenance of contract database/registry and conduct checks to ensure it is up to date. 
• Assess legal risks across various business areas and implement strategies to prevent and mitigate potential liabilities.
• Conduct training for internal teams on legal matters to ensure ongoing awareness and adherence to policies and procedures.  
• Any other duties assigned. 

What you will need:

Qualifications:

• A Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from a recognized institution. 
• Post Graduate Diploma in Law from Kenya School of Law. 
• Admitted to the Roll of Advocates in Kenya. 
• Current practicing Certificate
• 5-7 years of proven experience as a legal professional, ideally with previous experience in handling litigation and legal disputes. 
• Experience working in-house or with financial institutions, particularly within the microfinance sector, is highly preferred