Group Assistant Company Secretary (Legal & Governance) - IVC Evidensia
(2025-03)
Part of the global company secretarial and legal function of a private equity-backed international group, supporting the development of governance and legal frameworks in preparation for a potential IPO, with responsibility of c.600 entities across 20 jurisdictions.
- Maintaining corporate records, entity databases, and group structure charts, ensuring accuracy and accessibility of information.
- Managing entity lifecycle, including incorporations, restructurings, and dissolutions.
- Organising, attending and minute taking of UK subsidiary and group committee meetings.
- Drafting director and shareholder resolutions for ad hoc matters, including equity injections, dividends, capital raising and distributions, share buybacks, decapitalisations, governance changes, PoAs etc.
- Onboarding new directors within the group.
- Liaising with external counsel and international/external stakeholders to coordinate corporate actions and regulatory requirements.
- Overseeing and assisting with the preparation and filing of audited and unaudited accounts, including drafting and refining the Group's annual report.
- Managing the KYC/AML processes and corporate information requests across the business, including in relation to the Group's private equity parent entities.
- Implementing new systems, processes and documentation frameworks, contributing to the build-out of the company secretarial function and broader IPO readiness.
- Supporting legal with DD exercises on strategic and financing transactions, including coordinating data rooms, liaising across the business, and managing responses to DDQs.
- Supporting legal on an ad hoc basis on commercial matters, including contract review, drafting and litigation support, managing insider lists for confidential matters, and providing ad hoc junior counsel support across the business, including successfully recovering funds in relation to a supplier default.
Corporate Paralegal - Howard Kennedy LLP
(2021-01 - 2025-03)
Advised on a wide range of corporate matters including M&A, corporate restructurings, private equity transactions, and capital markets work across multiple sectors.
- Drafted and negotiated key transactional documentation including SPAs, APAs, JV agreements, LLP agreements, shareholders' agreements, and articles of association, together with ancillary documents.
- Managed and coordinated due diligence processes, including setting up and overseeing data rooms, reviewing documentation, and preparing DDQs, disclosure letters, and reports.
- Supported complex corporate restructurings and reorganisations, including subsidiary consolidations, capital restructures, buybacks, and pre-pack transactions.
- Advised on private equity transactions and corporate wrappers, including drafting and reviewing JVAs, CLAs, and related documentation.
- Exposure to capital markets matters, including analysis of share capital structures, investor rights, drafting prospectuses and related documentation.
- Provided company secretarial and corporate governance support, including incorporations, entity maintenance, regulatory filings, and transaction-related compliance.
- Collaborated with internal and external stakeholders across departments including banking & finance, real estate, employment, and IP.
- Contributed to internal training, development of precedents, legal know-how resources, and implementation of legal tech solutions.
Corporate, Commercial & Employment Paralegal - Royds Withy King LLP
(2019-06 - 2020-09)
Assisted across corporate, commercial, and employment matters, supporting M&A transactions, corporate reorganisations, and governance work.
- Assisted on M&A transactions and restructurings, including share capital alterations and group reorganisations across multiple sectors.
- Drafted and advised on commercial and IP agreements, and supported GDPR and data protection.
- Managed company secretarial and governance matters, including filings, statutory records, and compliance.
- Supported transactions through due diligence, data room management, and preparation of company, structure, and share capital information.
- Conducted legal research, KYC/AML processes, and liaised with clients and internal stakeholders.
- Gained additional experience within the Employment team, including tribunal support and bundle preparation, and contributed to business development initiatives.
Sole Paralegal - Howman Solicitors
(2018-10 - 2019-04)
Sole Paralegal and administrator in a niche firm specialising in asset finance, asset exploitation and asset protection, working across restructuring & insolvency, commercial dispute resolution, and corporate matters.
- Supported insolvency and restructuring work, including drafting winding up petitions, administration applications, statutory demands, and company restoration documentation.
- Assisted on litigation matters, including preparation of LBAs, claim forms, defences, court bundles, and carrying out filings and searches (Companies House, Land Registry).
- Provided support on corporate transactions, including share purchases and related documentation.
- Managed a broad range of responsibilities including legal research, KYC/file management, client liaison, drafting engagement letters, and overseeing administrative, IT, and operational matters within the firm.
