Senior Corporate Paralegal
ENGIE is a major player in the energy transition, whose purpose is to accelerate the transition towards a carbon-neutral economy. With 98,000 employees in 30 countries, the Group covers the entire energy value chain, from production to infrastructure and sales. ENGIE combines complementary activities: renewable electricity and green gas production, flexibility assets (notably batteries), gas and electricity transmission and distribution networks, local energy infrastructures (heating and cooling networks) and the supply of energy to individuals, local authorities and businesses. Every year, ENGIE invests more than €10 billion to drive forward the energy transition and achieve its net-zero carbon goal by 2045.
ENGIE’s GCC country cluster consists of Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, headquartered in Dubai. ENGIE KSA country cluster operates in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, headquartered in Riyadh. In both countries, we have activities in large scale power generation and water desalination, district cooling and energy services for B2B customers. Leveraging on its strong market position, ENGIE continues to develop its presence in power development through thermal and renewable energies, in the gas value chain and in energy efficiency services.
Objectives of the Role Provide support in the corporate and legal operations requirements in GCC-KSA (primarily based in KSA but to also provide support to our corporate requirements in GCC to the extent required by the Corporate Team). Reporting line The Senior Corporate Paralegal will report to the Corporate Counsel and Legal Operations Officer GCC. Job responsibility1. Operational & Government Liaison:Act as the primary point of contact for all KSA governmental and regulatory bodies, including the Ministry of Commerce, Saudi Business Centre, Ministry of Investment and General Authority for Statistics Manage the lifecycle of the companies’ MISA License, Commercial Registration and Municipality License to ensure proactive renewal and updates and prevent operational disruptions Maintain record, monitor and update, and administer changes (if needed) the company’s registry extracts, trade licenses and Articles of Associations in accordance with the KSA Companies Law Maintain record and administer changes in directorships tables to allow timely notification to local authorities, facilitate changes in bank signatories & assisting in the maintenance of records Support and ensure timely processing of documentation, attestations, legalization stamps, authentications (notarization, legalization, seal of embassies etc) as needed in the region Provide administrative support to the Legal Department and the team in Dubai/GCC-KSA office Ensure document control and maintain records by keeping an organized and up-to-date legal data management and filing system Assist to maintain the record and timely reporting of legal fees to accounts When feasible, provide corporate support on specific ad-hoc legal documentation2. Organisational Participate in the Knowledge Management within the Legal Team Create and maintain up to date a database /charts containing, among others, key information about the entities and their directors: registration numbers, registered capital, directors, officers, residence of directors (for checking compliance with tax/local residency requirements) Maintain statutory books, including registers of members, directors and secretaries; maintain the register of shareholders and monitor changes in ownership of the company Ensure compliance with the UBO reporting requirements in Dubai/GCC-KSAUpdate of any legislative changes in KSA and brief the regional Legal Team to address these changes3. Planning & Delivery of Work Ensure that presentations, papers, notices, power of attorney to vote at the board and shareholder’s meetings, and resolutions of boards are prepared in time and in order and filed if required: e.g. accounts approval, director change considering tax requirements, delegation of authority change, power of attorney change, articles change Monitor all companies’ mandatory board meetings and annual general meetings; coordinate and liaise with board members, and shareholders of each entity as required Lodge required forms and annual returns with the relevant government agency Assist to prepare reportings, as required Manage the execution of legal documents by, including liaising with signatories based worldwide4. Stakeholder Engagements Ensure to create and maintain open communication with company’s GRO/PRO, secretarial paralegal/s and assistants of all GCC-KSA entities to ensure smooth flow of information, identification of loopholes and process improvement opportunities Liaise with external regulators and advisers, such as lawyers, auditors, other external providers/advisers Internal Interfaces Corporate Counsel and Legal Operations Officer - GCCLegal Counsels Paralegals Ethics Legal Counsel External Interfaces Contractual Counterparties Governmental Authorities External Corporate Service Providers Qualifications Degree / Experience 3+ years of corporate practice or 5+ years of senior paralegal practice in KSA (UAE-Bahrain-Oman exposure a plus). Corporate law firm experience and/or corporate practice in the energy infrastructure industry. Specific Knowledge / skills Corporate legal/paralegal background. Ability to provide sound legal advice in an independent way. Sound judgement. Ability to deal with complexity and multiple tasks. Organizational skills. Ability to work within a team of members from varying cultural backgrounds as well as with counterparts of varying cultural backgrounds. Ability to lead transactions independently with minimum supervision. Ability to maintain high levels of focused drive and energy, and meet the deadlines. Professional and ethical. Attention to details. Language Excellent command of written and spoken English. Arabic is a plus. Location/travel Riyadh, KSA. Flexibility to travel to Dubai and throughout the GCC.