- cfaith@lesinkonjoroge.com
Practice Areas:
Corporate Law | Regulatory Compliance | Real Estate and Intellectual Property
Memberships
- Law Society of Kenya
- East Africa Law Society
- International Bar Association (IBA)
- Alumni Association of the International legal Studies Program Washington College of Law
Faith Cheruiyot was admitted to the Kenyan Bar in 2007. She started off her training in the Firm of Kipkorir Titoo & Kiara Advocates from 2005 to 2006 where she trained in diverse areas of law. She later joined the Firm of Raffman Dhanji Elms and Virdee where she trained in banking and finance, real estate transactions, intellectual property disputes resolution, regulatory compliance, corporate advisory and governance amongst others. Seeking corporate experience, she joined Standard Chartered Bank to manage legal and compliance issues for Kenya’s retail business. She was engaged in providing general legal advisory on banking transactions, financing arrangements, drafting and reviewing commercial agreements and managing regulatory and compliance issues for the Bank.
She holds a Master of Laws (LLM) degree in International Legal Studies from Washington College of Law, and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of Nairobi.
Profile
Faith represents clients in a wide range of commercial transactions including mergers, takeovers and acquisitions, and sale and purchase of assets and businesses; intellectual property issues such as registration of trademarks, copyright, patents and contractual licenses; conveyancing and real estate transactions. She also provides advisory services on structured financing options, syndicated loan agreements, bank guarantees, perfection of bank securities, letters of credit, general international trade documentation, import and export of goods, sale of goods, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, and procurement law. She further advises on public-private partnerships in addition to guiding private entities, government corporations and parastatals, and county governments, on the Capital Markets Authority regulations, investment agreements etc.
Experience
- Advisory: Offering legal advisory to the biggest multi-national Banks in Kenya, on the applicable legal and regulatory compliance framework. Tasks included advising the Banks on all retail and corporate regulatory needs, preparation of the Banks' compliance manuals, interpretation of new laws affecting operations of the Banks, anti money laundering checks and undertaking legal audits.
- Product creation: Acted for an undisclosed Bank in seeking approvals from the regulators for the launch of new products including a multi-million bancassurance business and Islamic banking products, negotiating and reviewing terms with partner insurance companies, contract drafting, incorporating of the requisite subsidiary entities, and preparation of the documentation for the necessary approvals.
- Regulator negotiations: Represented Standard Chartered Bank in holding negotiation meetings with the regulators; lobbying and making presentations regarding a variety of issues and the status of the Bank in complying with various laws and regulations such as those relating to anti-money laundering, accounts management, lending, fees, introduction of new products, internal audits, introduction of digital banking channels, statutory reporting etc.
- Securities and document perfection: Acting for Standard Chartered Bank, Equity Bank (the largest Bank in the East African Region by customer numbers) and various SACCOs to undertake document drafting, preparation, stamping, registration and perfection of bank securities and the requisite due-diligence related to securitisation.
- Commercial: Acting as one of the Advisors to a joint-venture geo-thermal energy investment transaction involving an entity from Brazil and Kenya to bid for and jointly undertake a Government energy project. The work entailed drafting joint venture agreements, incorporation of a special purpose vehicle, preparation of the requisite financing and shareholder agreements, meeting and holding negotiations with the Ministry of Energy, interpretation of the energy regulations, guidance on taxation requirements, and undertaking power-purchase agreement review, which enabled the entities to commence their operations.
- Commercial: Acting as one of the Advisors to a joint-venture geo-thermal energy investment transaction involving an entity from Brazil and Kenya to bid for and jointly undertake a Government energy project. The work entailed drafting joint venture agreements, incorporation of a special purpose vehicle, preparation of the requisite financing and shareholder agreements, meeting and holding negotiations with the Ministry of Energy, interpretation of the energy regulations, guidance on taxation requirements, and undertaking power-purchase agreement review, which enabled the entities to commence their operations.
- International trade finance: Negotiating and structuring financing options for all types of international and cross border trade for a major undisclosed client, including drafting and reviewing letters of credit, and obtaining requisite bank guarantees.
- Intellectual property: Acting for an international investor in compilin and ultimate registration of a valuable patent at the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI) and providing guidance for its regional registration at the Africa Regional Industrial Property Institute (ARIPO) in Harare, Zimbabwe.
- Undertaking advisory on the workings of the Capital Markets Authority, drafting and reviewing investment agreements, highlighting investments risks and appetites; and advising on matters relating to offshore investment agreements for registered funds and other entitites, and cross border investments generally.
- New laws: Training over 150 representatives of the Members of the Kenya Bankers Association on the interpretation of various laws affecting their industry including but not limited to the Credit Reference Bureau regulations, the Consumer Protection Act, the Marriage Act and its effect on their lending operations, the Bancassurance Regulations, Operation of Incidental Businesses Guidelines, and the Land Act Regulations.
- Business affairs: Was the Lead Trainer to the Nakuru Business and Corporate Community in a forum organised by the Kenya Chamber of Commerce to evaluate various aspects relating to corporate law where upto 20 institutions were represented. The presentations covered company registration, types of shares, settlement of shareholder disputes, rights of shareholders, corporate governance and other relevant board matters.
- Represented The Estates Ranches, a land investment Company from the US, on the legal structure for acquisition and development of ranches worth US$ 3,000,000.00 around the Maasai Mara and Laikipia areas. My assignment involved negotiating leases with the local communities, drafting and registering them, incorporating of private land holding companies and providing options through which foreign entities can legally own agricultural land in Kenya. The work also entailed negotiating and drafting agreements for the purchase of movable assets located at the ranches but not forming part of the land.
- Advising international investors on the procedures for investing in real estate projects in Kenya, the legal requirements, financing options, and security options. Tasks have included drafting various agreements (with project partners being architects, quantity surveyors, construction contractors), undertaking land sub-division, and obtaining change of user certificates and title deeds from the Registrar of Lands. I am also engaged in negotiating the terms of sale and any tax aspects arising from such land transactions.