Company Secretary and Head of Legal Advisory

Our Client 

Our client is a global investment manager formed through a recent high profile merger. With offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Miami and London, the firm offers clients a comprehensive suite of investment strategies spanning Australian equities, international equities, activist equities, global hedge funds and U.K. residential property.

The firm manages over ~$17b on behalf of large superannuation funds, pension funds, asset consultants, private wealth firms, family offices, high-net-worth and retail investors. 

Role Summary

• Company Secretary for three boards, ensuring robust governance at group and listed investment company level.
• Advise on broader governance issues such as continuous disclosure obligations and those arising from capital transactions and placements.
• High profile position with significant exposure to Board and CEO.
• Dual reporting lines to the Board and General Counsel.
• Previous ASX Company Secretary experience is required.

The team is growing and works collaboratively. There is the opportunity to work on a number of matters in the legal and compliance workstreams, including capital initiatives, strategic acquisitions and offshore expansion, depending on experience and interest.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversight of Company secretariat function for three entities;
• Ensuring compliance with Corporations Act and ASX Listing Rules;
• Consideration of, and advice on, directors and officers duties;
• Primary advisor to the three Boards, working in conjunction with the Chief Executive Officer and senior executives to carry out the instructions of the Board and giving practical effect to the Board’s decisions;
• Ensuring timely notification or filing of all documentation and periodic reports required under the Corporations Act and the ASX Listing Rules;
• Coordinating the development of Board and Board committee meeting agendas for approval by the Chairman;
• Ensuring the timely preparation and despatch of Board and Board committee papers;
• Coordinating, organising and attending meetings of the Board and its committees and shareholders, and ensuring the correct procedures are followed;
• Drafting and maintaining minutes of Board, committee and company meetings for various entities within the firm;
• Working with the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer to establish and deliver governance practices that meet the ASX Listing Rule requirements;
• Assisting with the implementation of Board performance reviews;
• Coordination of new board member inductions;
• Assisting with the preparation of the corporate governance statement and remuneration report for the annual report;
• Preparing deeds of indemnity and obtaining and reviewing D&O insurances with the company’s insurance advisers; and
• Ongoing monitoring of compliance with various company policies relating to governance matters.

Required attributes, skills and qualifications:

• Qualified Australian lawyer with a current practising certificate.
• Minimum ten years post admission experience.
• Minimum 2 years experience in company secretary role (ASX).
• Advanced verbal and written communication skills; good interpersonal and negotiating skills.
• Enjoy working in multi-disciplinary teams and ability to influence and drive outcomes is key.
• Enjoy working in a technically complex environment.
• Demonstrated competence in delivering practical outcomes to meet organisational objectives.
• Ability to manage competing issues and prioritise.

Benefits 

• Work directly with senior executives and decision-makers in a respected investment management firm.
• Exposure to diverse, high-quality legal work across corporate, commercial, and operational areas.
• Excellent office facilities and amenities
• Collaborative, high-performance environment with genuine work-life balance.
• Attractive remuneration and professional growth opportunities.

This is a permanent full-time position from Monday to Friday and will be in the firm’s Melbourne CBD office, between the hours of 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM. Some WFH flexibility. This role is being handled exclusively by Burgess Paluch Legal Recruitment. Any direct or third party applications will be forwarded to them for review. 

Please contact Doron Paluch on 0438 004 445 or email [email protected] for a confidential chat.