General Manager Legal and Secretarial

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General Manager – Legal and Secretarial

Godrej Agrovet Limited (GAVL)

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

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Job Title: General Manager – Legal and Secretarial

Job Type: Permanent, Full-time

Function: Legal

Business: Godrej Agrovet Limited

Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

About Godrej Industries Group (GIG)

At the Godrej Industries Group, we are privileged to serve over 1.1 billion consumers globally through our businesses with market leadership positions in the consumer products, real estate, agriculture, financial services and chemicals industries.

About Godrej Agrovet Limited (GAVL)

Godrej Agrovet is a food and agri conglomerate, dedicated to improving the productivity of Indian farmers by innovating products and services that sustainably increase crop and livestock yields.

About the role

As General Manager – Legal and Secretarial, you will lead and manage the Legal and Secretarial function across Godrej Agrovet Limited (GAVL) and its group companies – Astec Lifesciences, Godrej Foods, Creamline Dairy and Godrej Cattle Genetics.

In this role, you will be responsible for providing strategic legal guidance and ensuring robust governance frameworks are in place across businesses. Your mandate will span contract management, statutory compliance, intellectual property protection, litigation, land management and secretarial governance, enabling the organisation to operate with integrity, agility and resilience.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Contract Management & Legal Documentation

2. Review, standardize, and finalize agreements for group companies (including from tax angle).

3. Ensure timely execution of contracts with and maintain a centralized repository of executed agreements and legal documents.

4. Develop and manage MIS for legal documentation and set renewal alerts via Lexcare.

5. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

6. Oversee patent and trademark filings, oppositions, and renewals.

7. Maintain updated records of IPR assets and coordinate with internal teams for filings and responses.

8. Ensure strategic protection of Company IP across all group entities.

9. Statutory Compliance

10. Conduct factory audits across all manufacturing units to ensure legal compliance.

11. Compile and update statutory licenses and coordinate with plant and HR teams for regulatory updates.

12. Monitor and manage compliance through Lexcare tool, ensuring high accuracy and timeliness.

13. Litigation & Recovery

14. cc

15. Coordinate with finance and business teams to track and recover outstanding amounts.

16. Manage legal claims against the company, aiming to reduce financial exposure.

17. Maintain litigation MIS and provide regular updates to stakeholders.

18. Handling complex litigation including indirect tax matters, arbitration, NCLT matters, Civil matters and Criminal matters.

19. Land ManagementMonetisation of Land. Buying / leasing of land for business purpose

20. Monitor and manage compliance through Lexcare tool, ensuring high accuracy and timeliness.

21. Update and maintain records of land parcels owned by group companies.

22. Conduct surveys and ensure alignment with government records.

23. Create and manage a comprehensive repository of land-related documents and MIS.

24. Handling of Secretarial Matters including handling Board Meetings, Committee meetings, Annual General Meetings, Listing Regulation compliances, SEBI Compliances. Mergers and Acquisition.

Who are we looking for?

Education:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Law (LLB/LLM).
• Company Secretary (good to have)

Experience:

• Minimum 10–15 years of experience in corporate legal roles, preferably in manufacturing or group company setups.
• Experience in handling multi-entity legal operations and compliance frameworks.
• To lead and manage the Legal and Secretarial Function across GAVL Group Companies (Astec Lifesciences, Godrej Foods, CreamLine Dairy, Godrej Cattle Genetics), ensuring Handling Secretarial matter, Listing Regulation compliances, SEBI Compliances, Handling complex litigation including indirect tax matters, legal compliance, effective contract management, intellectual property protection, and strategic legal support for land and statutory matters.

Skills:

• Timeliness and accuracy in contract execution and compliance.
• Successful handling and resolution of IPR matters.
• Reduction in legal liabilities and recovery of dues.
• Completion of statutory audits with minimal surprises.
• Maintenance of up-to-date legal and land documentation.
• Sound knowledge on Secretarial matters
• Strong knowledge of corporate law, IPR, and statutory compliance.
• Excellent contract drafting and negotiation skills.
• Proficiency in legal MIS tools and document management systems.
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving abilities.
• Effective communication and stakeholder management.

What's in it for you?

Be an equal parent

Childcare benefits for the birthing parent, commissioning parent (in case of surrogacy) or adoptive parent, and their partners

• 6 months of paid leave for primary caregivers, flexible work options on return for primary caregivers
• 2 months paid leave for secondary caregivers
• Caregiver travel for primary caregivers to bring a caregiver and children under a year old, on work travel

Coverage for childbirth and fertility treatment

No place for discrimination at Godrej

Gender-neutral anti-harassment policy

Same sex partner benefits at par with married spouses

Coverage for gender reassignment surgery and hormone replacement therapy

Community partnerships and advocacy

Persons with Disability (PwD) care

We are selfish about your wellness

Comprehensive health insurance plans, as well as accident coverage for you and your family, with top-up options

Elder care for those who might need to extend support to senior family members

Preventative healthcare support

Outpatient Department (OPD) coverage, including vaccinations, dental, vision, etc.

Uncapped sick leave

Flexible work options, including remote working and part-time work

Mental wellness and self-care programmes, resources and counselling

Celebrating wins, the Godrej Way

Structured recognition platforms for individual, team and business-level achievements

Digital and offline instant recognition platforms.

An inclusive Godrej

Before you go, there is something important we want to highlight. There is no place for discrimination at Godrej. Diversity is the philosophy of who we are as a company. And has been for over a century. It's not just in our DNA and nice to do. Being more diverse - especially having our team members reflect the diversity of our businesses and communities - helps us innovate better and grow faster. We hope this resonates with you.

We take pride in being an equal opportunities employer. We recognise merit and encourage diversity. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination on the basis of nationality, race, colour, religion, caste, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or marital status and ensure equal opportunities for all our team members.

If this sounds like a role for you, apply now

We look forward to meeting you.