Hello, I am Advocate Brownie Ebal
I am a legal Practitioner, Venture Capitalist and Philanthropist.
Welcome to my site.
I love life, travelling, food, beauty, the law, leadership and meeting people from diverse backgrounds. I hope to inspire each one of you with my various articles as I share from my experiences around our beautiful world.
I live in Kampala, Uganda.
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Article 16: Creating value through legal compliance- Perspectives of an in-house counsel
Written by Advocate Brownie Ebal
On 14th July, 2022 I attended a zoom panel discussion by The East African Law Society.
The zoom discussion highlighted the role of in- house counsel in ensuring that the organizations they represent are compliant with all relevant laws, regulations and government directions.
The various speakers emphasized that the legal arm of a company should focus on key important areas of corporate governance; Regulatory and legal compliance, policies management process, contracts management process and monitoring and reporting. The discussion emphasized that legal compliance is crucial as it allows organizations to continue doing business in a particular jurisdiction.
Key roles of in-house counsel in ensuring legal compliance
• Advise the board and management of an Organisation on legal compliance requirement, implications and time frame to compliance.
• Work closely with the compliance, internal audit and risk department of the organization to identify the compliance gaps and best ways to address them.
• Continuous engagement with the regulatory authorities for a broader understanding of the regulations for effective implementation.
• Engagement with peers in the industry on compliance common issues, challenges and other.
• Continuous training of the organizations’ employees on legal compliance requirements.
• Staying informed on the various regulations with which the company must comply and stay abreast of any changes.
Further discussions were held in regards to the practicality of legal compliance in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda with case studies being analyzed.
Conclusion
It was agreed that legal compliance is important and it is a key reason why businesses keep running. In addition, legal compliance it is not a one-man job, but rather a collection of team effort from various people in the organization.
Finally, for an in house counsel to add value and be considered the organization’s voice of reason, alignment and continuous engagement with internal and external stakeholders is paramount.
An in-house lawyer should always stay abreast with the latest laws and jurisprudence so as to adequately advise the corporation on corporate governance and legal compliance issues.
An informed lawyer is an asset.
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Article 15: NWSC Legal Aid Clinics: An innovative approach to dispute resolution
Written by Adv. Brownie Ebal
National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) is a Company that thrives on innovation and ideas that better the customer experience.
As in house counsel, one of the challenging aspects of the job is finding a balance between the Company going to court and the company settling. Many of the Legal challenges companies face, can easily be resolved through adequate communication with customers, suppliers and employees. The role of in house counsel is to assess the likely risks faced by companies and advise accordingly before matters get out of hand. Litigation can lead to cases taking years to settle and leads to case backlog. Creating a “win-win situation” can therefore be critical for a business to survive.
Therefore, in the spirit of promoting Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms through mediation and conciliation as opposed to full blown litigation, the NWSC Legal Department came up with this novelle idea to start “NWSC Legal Aid Clinics.”
These Clinics are to act as a bridge between NWSC and its customers so as to rectify any issues that have arisen through its operations that can be resolved amicably before running to the Courts of Law. These clinics enhance the relationship of the Company with its customers and reduce any further risks that may arise due to any misunderstandings.
The Legal Aid Clinics, also look to educate staff on the legal framework that governs their operations. An empowered staff can be able to serve the corporation better and reduce incidences that may cause legal embarrassment.
These legal Aid Clinics started in 2019 and have grown to resolve over 500 legal customer complaints. Not only did, the team look at connecting with customers, we also looked at ways in which services can be brought nearer to our customers. Thus, camping at the various NWSC branches to offer such services, makes the legal team accessible and act as a mediator between the Corporation and its customers.
On Friday,18th February, 2022, the Legal team was camped in Bwaise Branch and our customers were guided on the internal administrative bodies that have been setup in NWSC to resolve these claims.
To all the customers that have turned up, we appreciate the time taken to come and find amicable solutions to these existing problems.
To all our dear esteemed NWSC Customers, when the legal team is camping at your branch for the day, please do come to our legal Aid Clinics so we can resolve your issues amicably.
To the lawyers, let us try to think outside the box and come up with solutions for our clients that propel business and do not destroy it.
The Legal team together with NWSC staff from WALOPU unit after an internal Legal Aid Clinic 
Legal Officer, Apollo Magezi, attending to a NWSC customer
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Article 14: Fintech, a key disruption to the traditional banking sector
Written by Adv. Brownie Ebal
On 22nd July, 2022, I attended a zoom panel discussion by The East African Law Society.
The zoom discussion highlighted the growing importance of fintech technology and dominance in the financial sector. In this regard, the rapid mobile penetration in the East African economy, has led to fintech taking a high gear in the emerging economies. Fintech refers to firms leveraging technology to deliver financial products capabilities to customers or other financial services firms, it has also curved out a distinct offering to create a fully fledged sector group, complete with its own service providers, accelerator and market. Once a conduit of the traditional financial service sector, today, fintech holds its own as a mainstay service sector.
Fintech as a nontraditional player has increased non-financial companies offering financial services. These refer to new market entrants outside the traditional banking institutions and carter specific financial services to it’s customer segment and they include; technology companies, mobile network operators, Cash Network, E- Retailer. Many Fin Tech’s due to their robust business models have been able to taste success and have enabled traditional financial institutions to explore areas of co-operation and partnerships to improve reach and efficiency. Due to this new phenomenon, traditional banks have been challenged to become more innovative, promote economic growth and partner with various key players to remain relevant.
Currently, the fintech space is not regulated and further discussions are underway to regulate the space.
The discussion concluded that consumer protection is needed to protect clients of fintech. The panelists urged for better collaboration across all sectors. Currently, various companies use mobile money payments for bills to be paid. E.g. MTN Mobile money, Airtel money.
Further discussions were held in regards to the practicality of fintech to the banking sectors in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania.
I urge young lawyers to always attend such informative discussions so as to remain relevant in this ever changing space.
An informed lawyer is an asset.
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Article 13: Public speaking: A novice toast master’s journey
Toastmasters International is a nonprofit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of clubs.
It has objectives such as;
Improve members public speaking skills.
Build leadership skills.
Maximize one’s potential.
Enjoy unlimited personal growth.
Work on networking in a small and supportive environment.
On 30th June, 2022, Toast Masters Muyenga Club had its regular meeting and new members were given a change to practice their speeches. This first speech for every toast master is known as an Ice Breaker speech. It is a speech where members can talk about their lives freely and are given 6 minutes to deliver a memorized speech.
Since, I was a new member, this was my first memorized speech in toastmasters. Since, the speech had to be personal, I decided that I would talk about something very dear to me. This was “leadership.” The title of my speech was “She leads.” As I began my speech, I was excited and nervous. I had presented various intellectual speeches but not personal ones. The thought made me nervous as this was the first time for me to deliver a speech that was personal.
I prepared and headed for the stage. I started quite well with introducing myself, the title to my speech and began telling my childhood leadership journey. Midway, the story, I became nervous and my mind went blank, I could not remember, how my childhood contributed to my leadership journey. As I watched my audience, I panicked and laughed nervously. I was startled by myself but the audience was very supportive and I gained the courage to start afresh.
I asked for a few seconds to calm down, get my thoughts together and then head back to the stage. I returned more determined than ever to convey my truth, not from what I had memorized earlier on but from my heart. This sense of self assurance, that, this is my story and I have the right to tell it as I deem fit, awakened the confidence in me. I was able to tell my leadership journey through my eyes. I specifically shared instances where I failed at elected positions and how I had to get back up despite the failure. For example; in Primary 3, I stood for class representative and was shocked to learn that I lost because my opponent had bought sweets for the entire class. As a young child, this devastated me but it taught me the need to influence people to like me and speak to their hearts and show that I cared so that I could win votes. Despite this loss, I did not give up, I stood again for an elected position in my O’ level and won overwhelmingly with 90 % of the votes. The lessons I learnt from my first campaign journey, helped me secure the votes, this time round. From these elected positions, I have learnt not to quit and to keep serving even without a title. As I grew older, I have started organizations, not because I am the smartest in the room but because, I am not a quitter and I have learnt to start trends. I then my shared journey, from where I was able to start Kitabu- Buk Project a local NGO that has served over a million Ugandans country wide.
As I concluded my speech, I asked the young people, not to give up, keep doing good, keep serving and God will lift you higher than you have ever imagined.
As I concluded my speech, I looked back at how I began, the nerves, forgetting my story and simply freezing on stage.
This article is a call to everyone, not to be afraid to speak as “Public speaking is a journey that you can only move forward through walking in it.
In-case you are interested in joining toast masters, kindly follow the link
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Article 12: Key leadership and career tips for Young Lawyers
On Monday 19th December, 2022, the Young Lawyers mentorship Series was privileged to host The ULS President Emeritus, SC. Pheona Nabasa Wall.
The Young Lawyer’s mentorship Series is an initiative by the Uganda Law Society which is platform that was established to enrich the knowledge of young legal practitioners in Uganda. This platform enables the young people gain insights on how to make it big in the Ugandan legal field and emerge as respectable persons of society.
These are the key insights I picked from her talk:
According to Pheonah, leadership is a calling and not a career as anyone can be a leader. In this light, each one of us should strive to walk the talk so as to inspire others to be the best version of themselves.
The ULS President emeritus tasked young people to embrace leadership. Leadership is not in a title but how you carry yourself. She encouraged all young people to strive to be relevant in this digital age and innovate new ways to solveproblems. She encouraged the youth to grab the opportunity that social media brings and use it to positively impact the lives of others.
She further highlighted that one’s success depends on one’s daily routine. She encouraged members to wake up early and discussed her morning routine which starts at 5 am. This, she said, has helped her reach office early and dedicate an hour to complete her pending work on time without the interruptions that come from office interactions.
The Guest Speaker further encouraged members to take up the spirit of volunteerism. She said that giving back to your community and those less privileged than you will open doors that you never knew existed. Acts of service are a blessing to all. As the Bible says: “It is better to give than to receive.”
She challenged members to create a brand for themselves so that they are known for something positive. She stated that one way to achieve this is through being consistent and keeping your word. This will enable people trust you and give you more responsibility. “If you cannot be trusted with little, then you cannot be trusted with much, “She reiterated.
Key tips on how to progress in one’s career
She stated that each one of us needs to know what we want and work towards it. Sometimes, life can throw various challenges at us but we need to keep steadfast and on track in order to accomplish anything.
She encouraged members to keep learning, retooling and reskilling in an area that interests them.
Key tips on dealing with difficult bosses
She encouraged listeners to read “The 48 laws of Power by Robert.” It will provide insights on how to deal with power.
She encouraged members to pick their battles wisely. Always ask yourself, is it worth it? Also, always remember who is the boss, respect and understand your boss and ensure that they are happy. A happy boss will always vouch for you.
Key tips to keep motivated
She advised members to always put God first. She challenged members to have accountability partners who will keep them on track especially with their faith. This will keep one centered and motivated to keep doing good as Jeremiah 9:11 states:
“I alone know the plans for you, plans not to harm you but plans to prospers you and give you hope and a future.”
Parting shots
She told members not to be afraid to fail as it is part of the leadership journey. You can only learn by trying, not by spectating.
About Me
I love reading, writing, attending events, learning, leadership and meeting new people.
I hold a Masters Degree in International Law and I am passionate about life.
If you are interested in learning more about self discovery and becoming the best version of yourself.
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