General Counsel and Company Secretary

The General Counsel and Company Secretary will serve as the primary legal advisor to the company, reporting directly to the CEO and the Board of Directors. This role combines strategic legal guidance with company secretarial duties, ensuring robust corporate governance and compliance with regulatory frameworks. The successful candidate will provide expert advice on complex commercial transactions, support board activities, and manage legal risks across the organization, contributing to the company’s overall growth and stability.

Key Responsibilities

Transaction Support:
Advise the business team on the legal structuring, documentation, negotiation, and execution of guarantee transactions and related commercial contracts. Identify legal risks in proposed transactions and ensure appropriate contractual protections while advising on compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Coordinate with external legal counsel as necessary, managing appointments, scope of work, fees, timelines, and quality of advice.

Corporate Governance and Company Secretarial:
Act as Company Secretary to the Board and its committees, ensuring compliance with relevant laws and the company’s governance framework. Organize Board and committee calendars, prepare agendas, circulate papers on time, attend meetings, and draft minutes and resolutions. Manage communications with the Board and shareholders, maintain statutory registers, corporate records, and governance documents. Ensure timely statutory filings and monitor compliance with shareholders’ agreements, Board-approved policies, committee terms of reference, and other governance requirements.

General Legal Advisory:
Provide practical legal advice on the company’s business operations, contracts, employment matters, and strategic initiatives. Identify and evaluate legal risks, recommend mitigation strategies, and advise management on potential liabilities, contractual exposures, and dispute resolution options. Support HR and operational teams on employment, confidentiality, and other legal matters. Review internal policies and procedures to ensure legal compliance. Maintain legal templates, executed agreements, and regulatory correspondence to ensure proper documentation and accessibility.

Required Qualifications
- LLB or LLM degree.
- Corporate Law, Company Secretarial Certification, or Corporate Governance certification.
- 7 to 10 years of relevant post-qualification experience in a reputable law firm or within the legal/company secretarial function of a regulated financial institution or major corporate organization.

Skills and Expertise
- Strong knowledge of corporate and commercial law, the Companies Act, SECP regulations, NBFC requirements, and corporate governance principles.
- Proven experience drafting and negotiating complex commercial and financial documents, particularly related to guarantees, infrastructure finance, credit enhancement, or capital markets.
- Demonstrated ability to support Boards and committees, including preparing papers, minutes, and maintaining statutory records.
- Excellent analytical, drafting, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills, combined with integrity, independence, discretion, and sound professional judgment.

This role offers an opportunity to play a pivotal part in shaping the company’s legal and governance framework while working closely with senior leadership and external advisors. Candidates with a strong legal background and a proactive approach to corporate governance will thrive in this dynamic position.