Legal Adviser (commercial and labour)

Johannesburg, South Africa

Responsible for client-facing legal commercial work, winning work, doing work, and invoicing for work.

The candidate will report to Marc Humphries, Director of Legal and Liz Pinnock, Director of Legal and Legal Service Line Leader.

Part of the Legal Service Line

Role and responsibilities

Corporate Commercial

  • Negotiating and drafting of all forms of commercial agreements including, but limited to, mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, the implementation of B-BBEE ownership transactions including private equity transactions and construction agreements (FIDIC, JBCC and NEC agreements).

Labour

  • Attending to provide outsourced labour consulting services such as, the transfer of employees pursuant to the provisions of section 197 of the Labour Relations Act, the dismissal of employees due to the operational requirements of the employer, the disciplining and dismissal of problematic employees, performance management, the drafting of employment contracts, changes to terms and conditions of employment, labour due diligence reviews and compliance reports, negotiating with trade unions and employer organisations, disciplinary and grievance investigations and Assisting with disciplinary hearings.

Ad Hoc

  • Attending to legal due diligence reviews and preparation of compliance reports.
  • Providing general commercial legal advice.
  • Developing relationships with our clients including gaining a good knowledge of their businesses, economic drivers, and market and sector requirements in order to ensure advice is relevant and commercial.
  • Engaging in business development activities and being active in the promotion of the firm and seeking opportunities for new work.
  • Working as part of a team and taking an active part in sharing knowledge and experience with the team.

Qualification and experience

  • LLB or equivalent Bachelor’s Degree with excellent academic credentials.
  • Admitted as an Attorney.
  • Two years or more post qualification experience with a focus on corporate commercial and labour law service offerings. An exposure to litigation would also be useful.
  • Developed commercial awareness with an outcome orientated approach and the ability to apply legal principles pragmatically.
  • Experience in a commercial law firm, labour law firm or similar firm to RSM SA
  • Membership of other professional bodies, such as SASLAW, would be beneficial.

Skills and competencies

  • First rate technical skills needed to support the client work of the department such as for example, demonstrable negotiation skills, problem solving skills, drafting skills, and knowledge of relevant legislation and the practical application thereof.
  • Accuracy and attention to detail.
    Commerciality and demonstrable business development experience.
  • Initiative and proactivity.
  • Maturity and gravitas.
  • Strong service orientation - a "client first" culture.
  • Ability to develop strong relationships with clients and to take responsibility for these relationships.
  • High work standards.
  • Good interpersonal and communication skills especially excellent written and verbal communication.
  • A keenness to learn.
  • Ability to be discrete when handling confidential information and exercise good judgement
  • Computer literacy: Outlook, MS Excel, MS Word and MS PowerPoint

Personal characteristics

  • Unquestioned ethics and integrity.
  • High level of self-confidence and energy.
  • High level of intellectual agility, initiative, self-motivation, resourcefulness, and patience.
  • Pragmatic with strong business acumen.
  • Strong analytical skills.
  • Strong organizational skills with attention to detail.

Contact us

To apply for this role, please send your CV with a cover letter to Shanelle Mdaka  at [email protected] . Should you not hear from us within three weeks, please consider your application unsuccessful.