Counsel at Wemimo Ogunde & Co.

Location: Ilupeju, Lagos

Duties
The Counsel will work under the supervision of the Principal Counsel to carry out the following duties:

• Actively participate in training, seminars and workshops organized within and outside the firm in order to build expertise on corporate transactions;
• Attend and take comprehensive notes at client meetings in respect of new and/or ongoing transactions at the firm;
• Actively participate and make contributions at strategy meetings in order to outline and discuss the deliverables required for each transaction;
• Carry out thorough legal research with limited supervision that can be trusted by the team members in respect of each transaction;
• Carry out due diligence as may be required for each transaction and prepare initial drafts of due diligence reports;
• Prepare initial drafts of legal opinions as may be deemed necessary;
• Prepare initial drafts of various agreements depending on the structure of each transaction under the guidance of the supervisor;
• Prepare routine and standard documents (such as confidentiality agreements) as well as checklist documents in relation to each transaction;
• Regularly liaise with officials at government agencies in order to ensure the perfection and registration of documents at such agencies as required by law;
• Prepare update letters and liaise with clients on the status of their matters;
• Write articles and newsletters periodically on topics relevant to the practice areas of the firm;
• Participate in legal events as may be organized by the firm from time to time; and
• Carry out all other duties as may be related to the above scope as assigned by the supervisor.

Requirements
We are looking for lawyers who possess the following:

• Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) - Minimum of a Second Class (Upper Division). We will only accept lower classes if you are able to prove extenuating circumstances in your motivation letter.
• BL - Minimum of a Second Class (Lower Division) from the Nigerian Law School. We will only accept lower classes if you are able to prove extenuating circumstances in your motivation letter.
• Masters’ degree is an added advantage;
• First Degree in a field other than law is also an added advantage;
• 1-4 years’ corporate and commercial experience in a good law firm;
• Strong research and analytical skills;
• Sound command of English language (oral and written) and good proofreading skills;
• Familiarity with carrying out due diligence and preparing checklist documents;
• Familiarity with liaising with government officials (particularly officials at the Corporate Affairs Commission and Stamp Duties office);
• Ability to think creatively in a confident manner;
• Attention to detail and ability to follow a process to completion;
• Ability to write articles, newsletters and other thought leadership publications; and
• Ability to use Microsoft applications.