Deborah Prince
Head of legal affairs
British Heart Foundation
After 12 years’ experience of in-house roles at Tesco and Which?, Deborah Prince began work for the healthcare charity at the beginning of 2012 as its sole in-house lawyer. This is all a far cry from her early days as a neuroscientist at Imperial College where she spent seven years.
She mainly sticks to her legal panel, and is encouraged to try to keep matters in-house as much as possible. When dealing with particular firms, she says choosing the right lawyer can be a challenge for a GC, and she rates individuals rather than firms as a rule. ‘The best lawyers are those that treat your money as their own,’ she says.
Law firms used: Bates Wells & Braithwaite, DLA Piper, Field Fisher Waterhouse, Gallant Maxwell, Henmans, Sheridans, SJ Berwin, Withers
2012-present: Head of legal affairs, British Heart Foundation
2000-06: Head of litigation, corporate and commercial law, Tesco
2006-11: Head of legal affairs, Which?