Head of Legal, Corporate Affairs and Compliance (LSC)
Why is a company's Legal Department strategic for the business?
The Legal Department of a company plays a strategic role in various ways: it ensures the company's compliance with the regulations applicable in the sector in which it operates, helping to foresee legal risks and avoid sanctions or litigation that could damage the company's reputation. It identifies and assesses the legal risks associated with the company's activities and its transactions, developing strategies to mitigate or avoid them. This includes reviewing contracts, managing disputes and assessing the impact of new laws or regulations on the company's operations. It protects the company's interests, handling the protection of intellectual property rights, trade secrets and other critical corporate assets. It provides support to the various business functions and their activities and operations, contributing to the achievement of business objectives.
In short, the Legal Department is instrumental in ensuring that the company operates legally and ethically, reducing risks and protecting the company's interests, contributing to the long-term success and sustainability of the business.
What do you think about the impact that technology is having and will have in the legal environment?
The impact of technology in the legal environment is significant and constantly evolving. Technology is revolutionising the way legal processes are handled, making operations such as legal research, document management, contract review and data analysis more efficient. In addition, technology is affecting access to justice, facilitating dispute resolution and improving the efficiency of the courts. It is crucial that companies keep pace with these technological developments to remain competitive and ensure effective and efficient legal management.
Your thoughts on two topical areas: women in senior positions and women with a non-STEM profile.
The increased presence of women in senior positions, including leadership roles in the legal field, is a positive sign of progress towards gender equality. On the issue of women with a non-STEM profile, it is important to promote diversity and inclusion in all areas, creating an inclusive work environment that values and supports female talent, regardless of educational background. It is also important to foster a corporate culture that values everyone's contribution, regardless of gender, and creates a fair and inclusive working environment for all employees.
What do you think training will be like in future for young people wanting to work in corporate legal departments?
The training of young people wishing to work in corporate legal departments could evolve in various ways in the future. With the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence and automation-based tools in legal sectors, training could include a greater emphasis on learning the technological skills needed to use and manage such tools. In addition, it will be important to develop soft, transferable skills - like effective communication, leadership and cross-functional collaboration, which are crucial for success in corporate legal work - and specialisation by industry - given the increased complexity of regulations in specific sectors such as technology, healthcare, energy and the environment. Training could offer specialised programmes to prepare future lawyers to meet the specific challenges of these sectors. Overall, the future training of young people aspiring to work in corporate legal departments might be characterised by an increasing cross-over between traditional legal skills, technology, industry specialisations and interpersonal skills.
Do you have a message to share?
In an ever-changing world, the legal department is a key pillar for business sustainability and success. We are committed to providing expert, innovative legal advice that supports growth and the achievement of business objectives, while ensuring regulatory adherence and effective risk management. Our vision is to be a strategic partner to business functions, actively contributing to the long-term success of the company.