Legal Officer at Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC)

Purpose of the Job

• Responsible for providing effective legal services to the company, including contract preparation and review, security perfection, litigation support, legal advisory services and providing support on board secretarial services.

Duties and Responsibilities

Operational Roles and Responsibilities

• Timely preparation of agreements, legal documents and any other contractual documents in relation to the Companys business.
• Ensure the efficient and proper perfection of all the companys securities and maintenance of collaterals.
• Vetting of legal reports pertaining to properties to be taken as collateral and advice on issues related to stamp duties, registration of documents etc. as part of due diligence of the property related documents.
• Provide support to the Company Secretary for company secretarial functions including preparation of board papers, board action logs, correspondence and matters for attention in a professional and timely manner.
• Maintain the safe keeping of physical and electronic records including confidential and sensitive Company documents.
• Review and support the resolution of complaints/claims from third parties regarding any legal dispute on collateral, loan agreements and other legal documents.
• Drafting and reviewing contracts, Service Level Agreements, Memorandum of Understanding, leases and other legal documents to ensure compliance with statutory requirements and the Companys policies.
• Follow up on renewals or termination of agreements.
• Liaise with external lawyers on the execution of assigned tasks.
• Providing advice on legal and corporate matters to the Company through interpretation and writing legal opinions.
• Coordinate the Legal & Compliance Audit and other compliance reviews to assess the companys compliance with national, regional and international legal, statutory and regulatory requirements.
• Reviewing and advising on the relevant legal and regulatory framework for the better implementation of the Companys mandate.
• Identify, assess and monitor legal risk at the Company.
• Litigation management and reviewing progress of outstanding litigation.
• Provision and interpretation of legal information, conduct training and disseminate appropriate legal requirements to staff.

Other Responsibilities

• Perform any other duties as may be assigned from time to time.

Key Result Areas

The jobholders accountability areas are outlined as follows:

• Accurate, timely and relevant reporting on legal matters and activities.
• Monitoring compliance with statutory obligations.
• Management of contractual risks.
• Successful implementation of quality control standards for services offered by the department.
• Continuous improvement of services through efficient working.
• Effective application of relevant guidelines, rules and regulations.
• Efficient coordination of meetings as may be assigned.
• Efficient management of filing and document retrieval system.
• Ensure customer satisfaction for the consumers of the services offered by the department.

Knowledge and Skills Required

The jobholder must possess:

• Bachelors degree in Law (LLB) from a recognized Institution.
• A Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Studies from the Council of Legal Education in Kenya.
• Membership to the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) with a valid practicing certificate.
• An Advocate of the High Court of Kenya.
• A minimum of three (3) years demonstrated professional experience in legal practice.
• A Certified Public Secretary CPS (K) certification and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya (ICPSK) in good standing will be an added advantage.
• Should have thorough knowledge of conveyancing and the financial sector in security perfection and review of commercial transactions as well as knowledge of regulatory requirements.
• Must have ability to plan, organize, implement and evaluate assigned goals.
• Must demonstrate ability to handle multiple and conflicting priorities, and work under strict deadlines.
• Should have strong analytical and be result oriented.
• Must have high standards of integrity and ethical practice.
• Must be capable of functioning effectively both as a team player and a team leader.
• Must have ability to accurately plan work assignments, prioritize tasks and deliver deadlines.
• Should have problem solving and decision-making abilities.
• Should be an effective communicator with the ability to handle both internal and external communication.
• Must have knowledge in use of MS Office packages.