In-House Legal Counsel Officer

AI summary

Proten International is hiring an In-House Legal Counsel Officer to serve as the primary legal resource across its retail, production, warehouse, logistics, and support operations in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The role involves contract review, legal risk advisory, regulatory compliance, litigation management, and corporate governance support. This is a hands-on, commercially minded legal position requiring coordination with external counsel and advising senior management on key business decisions.

• Primary in-house legal role covering multiple business operations across Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt
• Hands-on contract review, legal risk advisory, and regulatory compliance responsibilities
• Manage external counsel, litigation matters, and corporate governance support
• Advise CEO and senior management on legal implications of key business decisions
• Ensure compliance with Nigerian laws including CAMA, FCCPA, NDPA, and sector regulations

Original source description

The In-House Legal Counsel Officer will serve as the company's primary in-house legal resource, providingcorporate, commercial, contractual, regulatory, compliance, and legal risk supportacross its retail, production, warehouse, logistics, and support service operations in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The role requires a hands-on, commercially minded legal professional capable of providingline-by-line contract review, legal risk advisory, regulatory guidance, corporate governance support, and effective coordination of external counsel. Responsibilities: Legal Advisory & Risk Management: Conduct periodic legal risk reviews across business units and recommend appropriate mitigation measures. Prepare legal opinions and risk assessments for proposed transactions, business lines, and market entries. Advise the CEO and senior management on the legal implications and risk profile of key business decisions, transactions, partnerships, and new initiatives. Monitor changes in legislation and regulatory requirements: and advise management on their impact and required actions. Provide practical legal advice on corporate, commercial, regulatory, labour, tax, and operational matters across the company's business pillars. Interpret and apply relevant Nigerian laws and regulations, includingCAMA, FCCPA, tax, labour, and sector-specific regulations. Contract & Document Management: Review SLAs and commercial agreements to identify onerous clauses, liability exposure, unfavourable terms, and other contractual risks. Support negotiations with vendors, clients, partners, and other counterparties to secure commercially favourable and legally sound terms. Monitor contractual obligations and ensure potential breaches, disputes, and other exposures are promptly escalated and addressed. Draft, review, and negotiate contracts, MOUs, SLAs, NDAs, vendor agreements, employment contracts, and other legal documents. Standardize and maintain commonly used legal and contract templates. Maintain a central contract register covering key obligations, renewal/expiry dates, and contractual commitments. External Counsel & Litigation Management: Maintain an up-to-date register of litigation and other legal matters, including status, next steps, and financial exposure. Manage external counsel instructions, performance, costs, legal fees, and invoices to ensure timely and cost-effective delivery. Ensure timely responses to legal notices, regulatory correspondence, and letters before action. Coordinate court processes, filings, and litigation matters with external counsel while keeping management informed of developments and potential exposure. Evaluate and recommend external legal counsel based on expertise, track record, service quality, and cost. Serve as the primary liaison with external lawyers and law firms on litigation, regulatory matters, filings, and specialized legal assignments. Compliance & Regulatory Management: Develop and deliver legal and compliance awareness training on areas such ascontracts, data protection, anti-bribery, and regulatory compliance. Support implementation of data protection and privacy practices in line with theNigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA). Ensure timely renewal of business permits, licences, registrations, and other regulatory requirements: across all locations. Monitor compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory obligations, including CAC, FIRS, NSITF, ITF, PenCom, and other relevant regulators. Support legal/compliance audits and ensure identified issues are appropriately addressed and closed. Develop, implement, and periodically review the organization’s legal and regulatory compliance framework and policies. Corporate Governance & Company Secretarial Support: Ensure the company’s corporate structure and documentation remain compliant with applicable requirements. Safeguard the company’s legal documents, corporate records, and seals. Support preparation and coordination of Board, Management, and other governance meeting documentation, including minutes and resolutions where required. Support statutory filings, board resolutions, corporate governance documentation, and regulatory submissions. Maintain statutory registers and corporate records, including registers of members, directors, and charges. Cross-Functional Legal Support: Advise HR on employment contracts, disciplinary matters, employee relations issues, and labour-law compliance. Collaborate with the Executive Office on Board matters, shareholder communications, and governance-related issues. Serve as a trusted legal partner to the business, ensuring decisions are made with clear understanding of associated legal risks. Support Finance and Procurement on vendor contracts, negotiations, debt recovery, payment defaults, and dispute resolution. Partner with Internal Control on risk assessments, investigations, compliance reviews, and matters requiring legal input. Advise Business Unit Heads on the legal implications of new initiatives, partnerships, transactions, and operational decisions. Requirements: Minimum of 5 years post-call experience: in corporate/commercial law, gained in a reputable law firm or in-house legal environment. LL.M or relevant professional certification in corporate/commercial law is an added advantage. Strong knowledge of Nigerian corporate and commercial law, contract law, labour law, regulatory compliance, and corporate governance. Strong commercial awareness and ability to provide practical, business-oriented legal advice. Ability to manage external counsel effectively and handle confidential and sensitive matters with a high level of integrity and discretion. LL.B (Bachelor of Laws) and Call to the Nigerian Bar (B.L) are required. Demonstrable experience: incontract drafting/review, SLA management, legal advisory, regulatory compliance, litigation coordination, and corporate governance. Excellent legal drafting, contract negotiation, legal research, and analytical skills. Excellent written and verbal communication and stakeholder management skills. Strong organizational, project management, attention-to-detail, and problem-solving abilities. Benefits: Pension. HMO. Annual Leave Allowance. Housing Allowance. Communication Allowance. How to Apply Interested and qualified candidates should send their CV to: recruitment@protenintl.com using "In-house Legal Counsel Officer'' as the subject of the email. Note: Only qualified candidates would be contacted. Application Deadline: 2nd October, 2026. View all Jobs in Nigeria Lagos State