Jane MacLeod
Group general counsel
Phoenix Group
Jane MacLeod likes firms equipped with strong regulatory experience and knowledge of the current challenges facing the insurance sector. Last year, the group’s legal spend totalled approximately £6m, split equally between internal and external advisers.
She says the group structure is complicated, so there is a need for bespoke solutions to high-value issues. At present, MacLeod manages the group and life company legal team of 40, of which 19 are lawyers. While external counsel is sought for specialist work, day-to-day work is also kept in-house. Phoenix Group does not have a formal legal panel, but since 2010 the group has worked very closely with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer on group transactions and Hogan Lovells for its life business.
MacLeod oversees the legal and secretarial functions of the business and although she spends less time on the technical side of things, she finds aligning the governance and legal issues with the business objectives very rewarding. The group has had to adapt its regulatory framework and structures over the last four years and MacLeod says she is particularly proud of how her team has handled that process.
Law firms used: Ashurst, Berwin Leighton Paisner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Gateley, Hogan Lovells, Morrison & Foerster, Norton Rose
2009-present: Group general counsel, Phoenix Group
2008-09: Group legal director, Pearl Group
2006-08: Senior legal counsel, Pearl Group
2001-05: Senior legal counsel, Henderson Group