Michelle Botha

• Provide legal advice and services to businesses (located throughout EMEA regions).
• Ensure effective management of legal and contractual risks; including but not limited to identification of risks, explanation of risks to business teams, and proposing and facilitating solutions for management of such risks.
• Draft, review and negotiate a variety of template, standard form and bespoke contracts and amendments. Agreements include, inter alia, manufacturing agreements, supply agreements, distributor agreements, SaaS Agreements, EULA, etc.
• Develop and maintain database of agreement templates and acceptable modifications.
• Assist in drafting and implementation of legal department policies and procedures.
• Assist in post execution contract issues, including review of contracts, advice/guidance and drafting review of correspondence.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to develop comprehensive legal strategies for clients facing unique business challenges.
• Manage claims and litigation to provide support to General Counsel and business teams, including but not limited to (i) liaising and managing communications with and instructions to outside counsel and appointed experts; (ii) leading and coordinating litigation support, including but not limited to compilation of evidence, document search and review, evaluation of evidence, management of etc.; and (iii) internal updates and reports of related activities.
• Ensure compliance with and provide internal training regarding applicable laws and corporate global business practices, policies and procedures. Includes ensuring compliance with import and export regulations.
• Collaborate with the Compliance & Ethics Legal team, external counsel, Business Assessment & Audit, Global Information Security and the global compliance team as well as Finance and Human Resources, as appropriate, to investigate allegations of unethical behavior or other violations of company policy.
• Draft memoranda for internal and external use.
• Provide leadership and/or assistance with special projects as requested.
• Provide training for sales and project management personnel, for negotiation, management and implementation of contracts.
• Managed intellectual property portfolios, securing valuable trademarks and patents for client businesses through use of outside counsel.
• Manage legal spend.
• Participate and take leadership in supporting other internal clients as assigned, including human resources, health, safety and environmental, construction, project management, engineering, risk management/insurance, finance and others.

DBT is a suppler of construction of plant sub-systems and component solutions, primarily serving the power and oil & gas end markets with both new-build and aftermarket services in South & Sub-Saharan Africa. Experience includes:

Provide legal advice and services to internal business teams.

• Managed outside counsel effectively, controlling costs while ensuring high-quality representation in specialized areas of law.
• Streamlined contract review process, resulting in reduced turnaround times and increased efficiency.
• Researched and evaluated risk factors affecting business decisions and operations, applied effective risk management techniques and offered proactive advice on possible legal issues.
• Developed legal strategies to protect client interests and resolve disputes.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to address legal considerations during product development processes.
• Assisted in complex construction and civil litigation.
• Reduced outside counsel costs by streamlining legal operations and bringing more work in-house.
• Drafting, review and negotiate variety of template, standard form and bespoke contracts and amendments, including drafting and drafting and negotiation of modifications and non-standard contractual provisions. Contracts included NEC, FIDIC, standard form purchase and supply agreements.

Commercial & Corporate, and administrative law.

• Conducted legal research and conferred with colleagues with subject matter expertise to develop strategies and arguments in preparation for presentation of cases.
• Developed strategies to resolve cases in client's best interest.
• Assessed cases for probable outcomes by researching black letter law and other legal authority, comparing fact patterns to those of precedential cases.
• Mentored candidate attorneys providing guidance on best practices in legal research and drafting.
• Resolved post-judgment litigation settlements and default judgment orders in favor of clients.
• Participated in settlement negotiations, securing favorable terms for clients while minimizing potential liabilities.
• Assisted clients with dispute resolution processes outside of litigation, such as mediation or arbitration proceedings.
• Drafted and reviewed legal documents, including contracts, pleadings, and motions, ensuring accuracy and compliance with applicable laws.
• Coordinated discovery efforts with opposing counsel, managing timelines to ensure full compliance with procedural requirements.

Corporate & Commerical Law, Family Law, Debt Collections, Wills & Estates

• Conducted thorough research on various areas of law, ensuring accurate information and strong case foundations.
• Prepared essential legal documents for successful case outcomes and settlements.
• Managed multiple caseloads simultaneously without compromising quality or timeliness of work product.
• Kept abreast of developments in relevant legislation, ensuring that advice given was current and accurate at all times.
• Attended court proceedings, representing clients'' interests and protecting their rights effectively.
• Developed persuasive oral arguments that influenced judge''s decisions in favor of our clients during court appearances.
• Supported senior attorneys in high-profile cases, contributing to favorable verdicts and settlements.