Team Member, Litigation at United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA)

United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) is one of Africa's leading financial institutions, with operations in 19 African countries and 3 global financial centres: London, Paris and New York. From a single country organisation founded in 1949 in Nigeria UBA has grown to become a pan-African provider of financial services with over 11 million customers, through close to 1000 business offices and touch points globally.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Team Member, Litigation

Location: Nigeria

Job Objective(s)

• Managing the litigation portfolio of the Bank.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Prompt and strategic review and assessment of litigation portfolio to determine cases, which should be settled amicably.
• Review and assessment of the Bank’s defence in matters in litigation and recommendation on settlement in respect of cases in which the Bank has no defence.
• Proper monitoring of cases in court to ensure that the Bank’s interests are adequately protected.
• Aggressive pursuit of recovery matters under the Litigation Recovery portfolio to ensure timely recovery of the Bank’s debts.
• Effective prosecution of fraud cases to ensure judicially logical conclusions to serve as deterrent to others.
• Compile list of fresh actions instituted against the Bank on monthly basis to be included to the schedule pending cases.
• Review Judgments entered against the Bank in order to determine whether to submit to judgment or whether there are sufficient grounds on which to sustain an appeal.
• Reviews subpoenas served on the Bank and advises Branch or Division on appropriate steps to take with respect to either Subpoena Ad Testificandu or Subpoena Duces Tecum.
• Review of miscellaneous interlocutory and injunctive orders against the Bank and advise Business offices on steps to be taken.
• Review garnishee order nisi [interim orders], and determine the implications of the order for the Bank and give necessary instructions to branches/solicitors (if need be).
• Appraise the performance of external solicitors and recommend to management the solicitors to be retained or delisted.
• Interfaces with external auditors of the Bank during audit, provide them with schedule of pending litigations and respond to their queries.
• Interfaces with CBN and NDIC during audit, provide them with the schedule of pending litigation, selected case files and respond to their queries.
• Prepare schedule of contingent liabilities for Financial Control which will be used for audit.
• Represent the Bank and participate in the mediation sessions at the Lagos and Abuja Multi Door Courthouses.
• Refer deserving matters to Lagos Multi Door Courthouse for mediation and negotiation.
• Represent the Bank and participate in the mediation sessions at the Lagos and Abuja Multi Door Courthouses.
• Participates in ADR procedures to ensure resolution of deserving matters without recourse to litigation.
• Recommendation to management on possible terms of settlement and engage in negotiating settlement in terms most favourable to the Bank.
• Review of court processes proposed to be filed by our solicitors to ensure that the Bank is adequately protected.
• The unit is responsible for providing legal opinion on all issues emanating from matters already in litigation and debt recovery matters that are not in litigation.
• Visit Police Stations/other law enforcement agencies to secure release of staff on bail or to assist staff in making extra-judicial statements to the relevant agencies.
• Staff invited by the Police, EFCC and other law enforcement agencies for issues arising in the course of their job are accompanied by the unit (unit makes arrangement for external solicitors to accompany them where the matter is sensitive or where location is far) in order to ensure that they are not manhandled, detained or in any manner prejudiced and assist them in making statement to such authorities.
• The unit advises Operations on appropriate steps to take on any garnishee order nisi served on the Bank in order to ensure that the Bank is adequately protected in the event that such orders are made absolute against the Bank. The unit instructs solicitors in respect of garnishee matters in which the unit opines that the order against the Bank should be discharged and monitors such matters to ensure protection of the Bank’s interest.
• The unit liaises with the solicitors on matters in litigation and responds to requests from Branches and Divisions on such matters.

Knowledge & Skills Required

• First Degree in Law.
• Minimum years of work experience required: 3 years
• Sound knowledge of the law.
• Knowledge of the civil Procedure Rules of the High Courts of the various states.
• Negotiation and problem-solving skills.
• Alternative dispute resolution skills.
• Effective communication skills.
• Good interpersonal relationships.
• Research and analytical skills.
• Brief writing skills.
• Professional qualification ((an advantage).

Application Closing Date
23rd December, 2022.