Lead Counsel / Senior Legal Consultant - Lex Inc - Sandton, South Africa
(2014 - present)
- DORA & Digital Resilience (EU): Directed the legal architecture for DORA compliance across large-scale ICT portfolios. Expertly negotiated 'Critical Third-Party' clauses, focusing on Article 30 requirements, exit orchestration, and threat-led penetration testing (TLPT) mandates.
- Cross-Border IT Operations (Africa & Europe): Orchestrated pan-continental technology agreements (SaaS, IaaS, Managed Services) for Tier-1 entities. Navigated the intersection of EU digital regulations with African jurisdictional requirements (e.g., POPIA, NDPR) to enable seamless data and service flows.
- FIDIC & Infrastructure Leadership: 20 years of experience managing the FIDIC Suite (Red, Yellow, Silver Books). Lead negotiator for EPC and turnkey projects in energy and telecommunications, managing the full lifecycle from drafting 'Particular Conditions' to complex dispute resolution and claims management.
- Commercial & Strategic Negotiation: Acted as a primary advisor to C-Suite executives on market entry, joint ventures, and high-value procurement strategies, mitigating legal risk while accelerating commercial growth in emerging markets.
- Regulatory & Governance: Transformed corporate governance frameworks to align with NIS2 and EBA outsourcing guidelines, ensuring operational continuity in the face of evolving cyber and systemic risks.
CEO - Ekta Consulting - Pretoria, South Africa
(2002-09 - 2009-12)
- Company secretary to the board which included ongoing guidance advice to the board of directors
- Provided legal advisor in contract, corporate, labour and general legal advice
- Reviewed legal documents and negotiated with third parties on contractual obligations including FIDIC contracts
- Co-ordinated with divisional, corporate and internal representatives on legal, compliance and corporate governance matters
- Identified opportunities for cross selling to support the company's new acquisitions
- Researched, evaluated and made objective recommendations related to legal, regulatory and potential risks
- Interfaced with HR on employee related matters
- Provided strategic BBBEE advice and ensured BBBEE targets were met
- Setup corporate structures including board committees & delegations
- Maintaining effective networking and stakeholder relationships
- Provided mentoring, coaching and training
- Involved in Financial planning, budgeting and expenditure management
Chief Legal Officer & Chief Empowerment Officer - Kapsch Traffic Comm (ETC) - Pretoria, South Africa
(2009-12 - 2010-08)
Electronic tolling for GFIP / SANRAL
- Legal risk consulting (Exco)
- Company secretarial board advisory
- Commercial contract drafting and advisory
- Corporate policies and procedures, drafting and implementation
- Corporate governance advisory and implementation
- Labour and employment law advisory
- Advising new foreign companies entering the RSA market on formation of corporations and business structures, drafting privacy policies and structuring commercial transactions
- Advised on the following acts: PFMA, BBBEE, LRA, OHS, BCEA, Companies Act
Legal Consultant - Self Employed - Sandton, South Africa
(2011-05 - 2014-09)
Industry: FSI, Telecoms, Pharmaceuticals, ICT, Construction
- Labour Law (25 years) - Mediation, Adjudication, Litigation, Union Negotiation, Dismissals, Grievances, Disciplinary Hearings, Policy Drafting, Legal Risk Advisory, Occupational Health and Safety Advisory
- Commercial drafting/negotiation (15 years)
- Company Secretarial (10 years)
- Compliance (10 years)
- Contract Law (20 years)
- Mediation (20 years)
- Litigation (20 years)
- FIDIC / NEC (10 years)
- Cross Border Transactions (5 years)
- BBBEE Advisory (15 years)
- Education (4 years)
- Regulatory: DORA (EU 2022/2554), NIS2, GDPR, EBA/ESMA Guidelines, AfCFTA Legal Frameworks
- Contracts: FIDIC Suite (Expert Level), Bespoke SaaS/Cloud Frameworks, JVs, and MSAs
- Geographic Focus: In-depth expertise in EU-African cross-border trade and regulatory convergence
Senior State Advocate - Assets Forfeiture Unit, Dept of Justice - Pretoria, South Africa
(2001-04 - 2002-08)
- Drafted and analyzed Commercial Contracts
- Advised suitability of litigating cases
- Supervised forensic investigation
- Litigation of cases primarily dealing with insider trading, banking, and commercial victims
- Pro-actively notified and trained the organization on (new) laws and regulations or cases that affected them and provided them with tools to help them be compliant therewith
- Supervision of management of assets
- Cases dealing with contracts; commercial law, computer law, government, fraud
- Directed external lawyers where appropriate to ensure the best possible outcome for the organization
- Effectively networked to expand client base and sales
- Change management, diversity strategy and gender mainstreaming
- Managed human resources of organization
- Managed financial and physical resources
- Legal Risk Assessment
- Directly responsible for maintaining and expanding clientele of business
- Represented the Company in connection with litigation and contested administrative matters proceedings and coordinate with outside counsel
- Chairperson of National Home Builders Registration Council Disciplinary hearing, Hotel and Catering Bargaining Council Commissioner (Dispute Resolution)
- Negotiated, drafted and review contracts between joint venture companies, suppliers and clients
Advocate - Society of Advocates, Durban & Pretoria Bar - Durban / Pretoria, South Africa
(1998-02 - 2001-03)
- Primarily responsible for marketing, operational and financial activities of the practice
- Designed, developed and presented training programs and seminars, principally for lawyers in the government departments provided opinions and assisting in drafting legislation regarding the Building industry (Housing consumer Act)
- Arbitration for Gauteng Housing Department, National Home Builder Association and Hotel and Catering Bargaining Council
- Litigated cases relating to Commercial and Labor law
- Drafted and reviewed Commercial Contracts
English and History Teacher - Department of Education South Africa - Durban, South Africa
(1995-02 - 1998-11)
- Grade 10 to 12 (English and History)
- Drama - Extracurricular Teacher
- Developed Lesson Plans
- Managed a diverse ability levels of students
- Adaptable teaching Practices
