Administrator: Legal Support (X3) - Legal Costs Recovery

About the Position

An exciting opportunity has arisen in the Litigation Unit of the South African Revenue Service for a Legal Support Administrators who will provide critical administrative and operational support across the full legal cost management and recovery lifecycle. This role is not court‑specific but supports litigation matters across the unit.

• The Legal Administrator will be primarily responsible for the day‑to‑day administration of bills of costs and cost recovery processes, ensuring that all cost orders granted in favour of SARS are properly recorded, actively progressed and collected. This includes supporting the end‑to‑end process from receipt of a cost order through to taxation and final recovery of monies due to SARS.


• A key function of the role is the preparation, drafting and administration of bills of costs. The incumbent will assist with compiling draft bills of costs, coordinating supporting documentation, liaising with internal case owners, attorneys, cost consultants and the State Attorney where applicable, and tracking the progress of taxation.


• The Legal Administrator will also monitor timelines, follow up on outstanding steps, record outcomes of taxation, and ensure that all recoverable amounts are accurately captured and updated on the relevant registers and systems.


• The role further includes performing all administrative tasks necessary to secure payment on cost orders, including opening and maintaining recovery files, recording cost orders on registers, issuing follow‑ups to opposing parties or their legal representatives, tracking payments received, escalating non‑payment, and maintaining evidence of recovery for audit purposes.


• In addition, the Legal Administrator will support the management and recording of legal cost applications, including capturing applications, amendments and top‑ups on internal systems, maintaining accurate registers, tracking approval status, and ensuring alignment between approved costs, invoices and recoveries.


• In relation to invoicing and payments, the Legal Administrator will receive, log and track legal invoices, check completeness of documentation, follow up on outstanding approvals, assist with resolving payment queries, and support monitoring of invoices from receipt through to payment in accordance with PFMA requirements and internal controls.


• The position further includes administrative responsibility for State Attorney claims, including the recording, tracking and reconciliation of such claims, and supporting the processing of reimbursements due to SARS.


• The Legal Administrator will be responsible for accurate data capturing, record‑keeping, filing and system maintenance, ensuring that all legal cost, invoice, recovery and taxation information is current, complete and audit‑ready. The role includes assisting with the compilation of management and audit reports, extracting data from registers and systems, and supporting responses to internal and Auditor‑General audits relating to legal costs and recoveries.


• The successful candidate must be highly organised, detail‑oriented, able to manage multiple concurrent tasks, and comfortable working in a regulated environment requiring strict adherence to governance and financial controls. Through effective administration of bills of costs and cost recovery processes, the Legal Administrator will play a direct role in safeguarding SARS’ financial interests and supporting the overall litigation function.

Job Purpose 

To provide administrative support within the legal function and provide supportive information in order to enable execution of core legal processes.

Education and Experience

Minimum Qualification & Experience Required

• Higher Certificate in Office Administration / Business Management (NQF-5) AND 2 years' experience in a Legal / Tax environment.

Alternative Minimum Experience:

• Senior Certificate (NQF 4) with 3 years’ experience in a Legal / Tax environment.

Job Outputs:

Process

• Apply procedures in order to deliver set objectives to the best advantage of the functional work area.


• Assist with functional and administrative tasks and procedures relating to the functional area.


• Communication of transactional outputs and queries in area of work according to policies and quality requirements.


• Contribute to the development and improvement of area specific standards, procedures and processes to ensure continued quality and service improvement.


• Contribute to the successful implementation of change initiatives by providing support in area of work.


• Deliver on contracted performance objectives and escalate unresolved delivery and quality issues to management and process owners.


• Draw on own knowledge and experience to identify and develop solutions that leads to improved service delivery and quality.


• Effectively plan and schedule own activities to continuously improve quality and service delivery in area of work.


• Follow up on outstanding documents or payments.


• Identify and resolve queries and problems timeously, apply known solutions in line with guidelines provided and escalate unresolved problems.


• Report on transactional and process activities within set guidelines to provide timely information for decision making.

Governance

• Comply to set governance and compliance procedures and processes related to an area of specialisation and continuously identify and escalate risks.

People

• Drive own performance in order to achieve work outputs in line with required response time, quality and service delivery standards.


• Maintain professional interaction and ensure ethical dealings with stakeholders at all times.


• Search for, integrate and share new knowledge attained through formal and informal learning opportunities in the execution of your job.

Finance

• Adhere to specified polices, standards and procedures to prevent wastage on resources and report violations.

Client

• Contribute to a culture of service excellence, which builds positive relationships and provides opportunity for feedback and exceptional service.


• Ensure client satisfaction by delivering excellent service that is consistent and in line with SARS service delivery standards.


• Ensure own understanding and adherence to customer service delivery and provide specialist support to meet or exceed customer expectations.

Behavioural competencies

• Accountability


• Analytical Thinking


• Attention to Detail


• Commitment to continuous learning


• Conceptual Ability


• Expertise in Context


• Fairness and Transparency


• Honesty and Integrity


• Organisational Awareness


• Respect


• Teamwork


• Trust

Technical competencies

• Business Knowledge


• Data Collection and Analysis


• Efficiency Improvement


• Functional Policies and Procedures


• Legal Administration


• Legal Knowledge and Knowledge of Ethics


• Legal Records and related Systems


• Quality Orientation


• Reporting


• Service Delivery


• Standard Operating Procedure and Compliance

Compliance Competency

• GOC Confidential

Employment Equity

The Employment Equity policy of SARS will be considered as part of the recruitment and selection process and Persons with Disabilities are encouraged to apply. Successful candidates will be required to undertake an oath of secrecy, pre-employment screening, case study, pre-assessment, psychometric assessment and or vetting, and a declaration of private interest. The appointment is also subject to appropriate reference(s) and security clearance where applicable.