Paralegal : Commercial And Affiliates

Aspen Pharma Group; Durban; On-site; ZAR 300 000 - 400 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading pharmaceutical company in Durban seeks an experienced Paralegal to provide comprehensive support to their legal team. Responsibilities include managing legal documents, preparing drafts, and overseeing workflow to ensure efficiency. The ideal candidate has a paralegal qualification, five years of experience, and strong Microsoft Office skills. This role emphasizes accuracy, communication, and project management.

Qualifications

• 5 years’ experience as a legal secretary or paralegal.
• Experience with long, complex legal agreements.
• Proficiency in verbal and written English.

Responsibilities

• Provide administrative and paralegal support for the legal team.
• Prepare drafts and manage workflow of legal matters.
• Coordinate reporting and document management.

Skills

Microsoft Office proficiency

Legal agreement familiarity

Document management

Project management skills

Communication skills

Education

Recognised professional paralegal qualification

University degree or progress towards it

Job description

Join to apply for the Paralegal : Commercial and Affiliates role at Aspen Pharma Group.

Job Purpose: To take responsibility for and ensure efficient and effective secretarial, administrative and paralegal support to the allocated lawyers in the legal team ("Legal Team") for maximum output in the delivery of quality business aligned legal services by the Legal Team, including facilitating and acting as an intermediary between the Legal Team and internal/external stakeholders including law firms. To undertake substantive legal work including preparation of first drafts and first legal review of standard agreements for the Legal Counsel, documenting and taking responsibility for workflow of legal matters generally through the electronic Legal practice management system ("FMS"). To take responsibility for and manage allocated matters from inception to resolution under supervision from the Legal Counsel. Preparing and managing efficient and accurate reporting.

Key Performance Areas

Core Legal Work: Specialised Aspen and Business Unit ("BU") aligned general legal work in the Legal Team under guidance of the responsible Aspen Lawyer.

Paralegal Expertise: Efficient and accurate paralegal expertise including drafting, first comments, file management, project and matter co‑ordination, management of deliverables and reporting.

Legal Management Administration: Efficient and accurate Legal practice management, electronic file creation and management, electronic document retention, contract management via the electronic Aspen Contract Library (ACL), electronic reporting and certain general administration including processing invoices.

Cross‑Swimlane Projects: Meaningfully contribute and deliver ancillary legal work in Group Legal cross‑swim lane projects, as allocated by the Group Executive: Legal.

BU Allocated Responsibility: Group Legal BU Allocated responsibility, including template creation, improvement and management. From time‑to‑time BU administration allocated by the Group Executive: Legal.

BU KPI: Meet (or exceed) and manage Group Legal BU KPI.

Education: Matric / Grade 12 and recognised professional paralegal qualification, or university degree or sound progress towards a university degree, which is preferable.

Certifications / Registrations: Registration with appropriate qualification body.

Overall Experience: 5 years demonstrated experience in performing a senior legal secretary and/or paralegal function, some of which has ideally been at an in‑house legal department.

Specific Experience, Knowledge and Registrations: Exposure to working with long, complex legal agreements essential. Familiarity with legal terminology essential. Relevant experience in a legal practice or corporate environment essential. General commercial understanding and exposure. Advanced legal sense; systems; pharma product knowledge and industry understanding an advantage.

Work‑Specific Skills & Exposure: Essential to have expertise in Microsoft Office, particularly advanced MS Word such as automatic numbering & cross‑referencing (including table of contents and bookmarking), track changes, comments in different formats, document security & protection, comparisons and combinations, etc; digital signatures, advanced Excel such as formatting, headings, filters, linking between sheets and workbooks, conversions, etc; and advanced PowerPoint. Database establishment and management, including transaction virtual data rooms ("VDRs"). Project management/co‑ordination of deliverables and trackers.

Skills and Attributes: An above average natural affinity to accuracy of work. Advanced PC literacy on all MS Word applications (including Windows, PowerPoint, Outlook and Excel). Ability to decide, action and assess priorities and when to execute. Minimum typing speed of 75 wpm. Verbal and written proficiency in the English language. Methodical implementation skills. Administrative and organizational skills. Electronic database establishment and management. Positive, diligent and hard worker. Ability to prioritise and co‑ordinate work. Flexible, outcomes‑based, self‑motivated and proactive. Project management/co‑ordination/monitoring of deliverables and trackers. Ability to accurately monitor and manage spend against a financial budget.

Competencies: Ability to plan & organise independently and deliver, including securing input and guiding others. Initiating action, follow up and time management. Stakeholder focus and outcomes‑based approach. Quality orientation. Decision‑making. Stress tolerance and conflict resolution. Problem‑solving and analytical skills. Service‑oriented. Extreme accuracy and attention to detail is a pre‑requisite. High level of integrity, ethical values and confidentiality.

Business: Performance Driven. Accountability / Ownership. Make Good Decisions. People: Deals with Ambiguity / Embraces Change. Communicates Effectively and Respectfully irrespective of status. Self: Contributes special paralegal expertise. Takes action with Integrity. Willing and able to work as a team including taking and providing guidance.

Preference will be given to applicants from designated groups through a fair recruitment and selection process in line with Aspen's Transformation Agenda. Internal Applicants must inform their direct line managers of their application.

Applications must be completed using an Aspen email address. If you have not heard from the HC department within 30 days of this advert closing, please consider your application unsuccessful.

Aspen is committed to the principles of equal employment opportunity.