A new mononuclear cobalt(III) complex, [Co(HL1)2]Cl (1), derived from the reduced Schiff base 2,2'-((ethane-1,2-diylbis(azanediyl))bis(methylene))diphenol (H2L1), and a new dinuclear cobalt(III) complex, [Co2(L2)2]∆2H2O (2), derived from the reduced Schiff base 6,6'-(2-hydroxypropane-1,3-diyl)bis(azanediyl)bis(methylene)bis(2-bromo-4-chlorophenol) (H2L2), were synthesized and characterized by infrared and electronic spectroscopy, and single crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. The ligands were synthesized first, and then bound to the Co(III) centre. Compound 1 contains a mononuclear [Co(HL1)2]+ cation and a chloride anion. The cationic moiety possesses crystallographic inversion center symmetry. Compound 2 contains a dinuclear [Co2(L2)2] molecule and two water hydrate molecules. The Co atoms in the complexes are in octahedral coordination. Both complexes showed potential antimicrobial activity.