Legal Manager At Food For Education

About the Role

The Legal Manager is a trusted business partner who safeguards the organisation by driving compliance, anticipating and mitigating legal and regulatory risk, and enabling F4E to grow with confidence. Operating in a fast-paced, high-growth environment, the role combines sharp commercial and contracting judgement with deep corporate, regulatory, and employment law expertise.

This is a hands-on role for a proactive lawyer who can spot issues early, advise practically, project-manage matters to closure, and translate complex legal questions into clear, actionable guidance. The Legal Manager works closely with teams across the organisation to ensure F4E meets its legal and regulatory obligations while moving at pace.

Key Responsibilities

Compliance & Risk

• Lead the organisation's compliance agenda, advising on regulatory, corporate, intellectual property, employment, data protection, and non-profit law matters.
• Identify, assess, and prioritise legal and regulatory risks across the business, and design practical strategies to mitigate, minimise, or eliminate them.
• Conduct regular compliance audits to surface weaknesses, and provide clear recommendations and follow-through to resolve any non-compliance with relevant stakeholders.
• Monitor pending legislation and changes in relevant laws and statutes, and proactively advise affected departments to keep F4E compliant and ahead of risk.
• Develop, review, and maintain company policies, ensuring they remain current, practical, and aligned with the law.

Commercial & Contracting

• Structure, draft, review, interpret, and negotiate a wide range of commercial contracts and other legal documents, balancing commercial objectives with risk.
• Manage the full contract lifecycle, including tracking, renewals, terminations, and oversight of compliance by all parties.
• Conduct due diligence on partners, suppliers, and counterparties across the organisation.

Corporate, Employment & Dispute Management

• Advise on corporate governance matters and support the smooth running of the organisation's legal and statutory obligations.
• Advise on employment and labour law matters, supporting the People function on the full employee lifecycle, policies, and disputes.
• Resolve issues arising in existing commercial relationships and handle pre-litigation disputes and inquiries, driving each to closure.
• Support internal investigations and other legal or administrative proceedings, and manage litigation matters as needed.

Research, Advisory & Project Management

• Conduct thorough legal research and provide clear, well-reasoned opinions on a variety of legal matters.
• Project-manage legal matters end to end, setting priorities, tracking actions, and closing out issues within agreed timelines.
• Build and manage relationships with outside counsel, setting priorities for and overseeing their performance and cost.
• Perform other duties as may be assigned from time to time by the Head of Legal.

Qualifications and Experience

• Advocate of the High Court of Kenya with a valid practising certificate.
• Minimum of 5 years' experience in corporate commercial law.
• Demonstrated expertise in compliance, risk assessment, and risk mitigation.
• Strong grounding in employment and labour law, and in contracting and commercial matters.
• In-house counsel experience is a strong advantage.
• Experience in a non-profit, social impact, or high-growth environment is an added advantage.

Key Competencies

• Compliance & Regulatory Acumen : Keeps F4E ahead of its legal and regulatory obligations and builds compliance into how the business operates.
• Risk Assessment & Mitigation : Spots legal and commercial risk early, weighs it pragmatically, and advises on clear ways to avoid or reduce it.
• Commercial & Contracting Skill:Drafts and negotiates sharp, balanced contracts that protect F4E while enabling the deal.
• Corporate Expertise : Brings strong corporate, governance, and regulatory knowledge to support a growing organisation.
• Employment & Labour Law : Advises confidently across the employee lifecycle, policies, and disputes.
• Project Management & Closure : Drives matters to completion, manages priorities and deadlines, and closes out issues without dropping the ball.
• Drafting & Communication :Translates complex legal issues into clear, concise, actionable advice for any audience.
• Pace & Ownership: Thrives in a fast-moving environment, takes initiative, and owns outcomes with energy and sound judgement.

Personal Attributes

• Superior written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to understand, summarise, and convey complex information in readily understandable terms.
• Analytical, detail-oriented, and commercially minded.
• Excellent interpersonal and negotiation skills.
• Strong organisational, planning, and time management skills, with a track record of meeting deadlines under pressure.
• Result-oriented: takes on new opportunities and tough challenges with a sense of urgency, high energy, and enthusiasm.
• A strong team player able to collaborate effectively while also working well independently.
• Able to represent F4E effectively and professionally to external stakeholders.