Senior Legal Officer – Contracts & Litigation

Job description

Key Responsibilities

Contract Management 

Participate in the negotiation of contracts, agreements and MoU’s;
Undertake timely review, vetting and drafting of contracts, agreements, and MoU’s;
Facilitate timely execution and clearance of contracts and agreements, including clearance by the Attorney General;
Develop and maintain a Contracts’ register;
Ensure that all Authority contracts and agreements are properly stored; and
Track and monitor performance of contracts and agreements. Monitoring agreed milestones and timelines including those relating to commencement of contract, deliverables under the contract, as well as expiry of contracts which monitoring shall be followed by alerting of the user department and Contract Manager of any impending contractual milestones coupled with providing appropriate advice depending on circumstances surrounding the milestones and contract

Enforcement 

Render advice to the Authority on matters of enforcing compliance and debt recovery;
Undertake debt recovery activities where appropriate so as to increase collections;
Attend to enforcement of judgements and Time to Pay Agreements;
Monitor and track compliance and enforcement activities;
Facilitate the execution of Time to Pay Agreements; and
Monitor and ensure compliance to Time to Pay Agreements.

Prosecution

Undertake Prosecution of non-compliant entities before the Courts;
Attend to the preparation and filling of the appropriate Court documents; and
Ensure that all criminal prosecution matters before the Courts are tracked.

Civil Litigation

Prepare legal advice on the merits and de-merits of cases the Authority is or may be involved in;
Conduct reviews on-going cases;
Conduct research, prepare and file the appropriate Court documents in respect of any litigation matter;
Ensure that all civil matters before the Courts are tracked; and
Represent in the Authority in litigation matters before the Courts.

Arbitration

Conduct research, prepare, and file the appropriate documents in Arbitration matters; and
Represent the Authority in Arbitration proceedings.

Education Requirements
Grade twelve (12) School certificate with 5 Merits which should include English Language;
Bachelor’s degree in Law from a recognised University;
At least Five (5) years of work experience in the legal profession, preferably in an organization of similar size and scope in legal complexity;
A Certificate in Advanced Prosecutions will be an added advantage; and
Member of the Law Association of Zambia with a valid Practicing Certificate.

Required Skills
Must be an effective communicator;
Must be proficient computer skills, including Microsoft Office Suite (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel); scheduling appointments/updating calendars;
Must have excellent analytical skills;
Must have demonstrated ability to offer sound legal advice and representation;
Must have excellent interpersonal and communication skills;
Must have exceptional attention to detail;
Must possess business acumen at operational and strategic level;
Must have ability to work in collaboration with people at various levels and from different backgrounds;
Must be assertive and result oriented;
Must have good interpersonal skills and organisational skills; and
Must have excellent time management skills and ability to prioritize.