Kirsty Cooper
Group general counsel and company secretary
Aviva
Kirsty Cooper manages a total of 270 individuals, half of whom are based overseas. This includes all the lawyers and chartered secretaries across the group. In 2011, the company spent a whopping £60m on its legal spend, excluding any UK-based general insurance claims. Of this, half was spent on external law firms.
Aviva has restructured over the last year to create a more agile and less bureaucratic work environment. While the in-house legal team rewired the governance structure, external firms were used to restructure the company’s business portfolio. Cooper likes to use firms that are prepared to work to high standards and at agreed fee rates.
Law firms used: Addleshaw Goddard, Ashurst, Clifford Chance, Latham & Watkins, Linklaters, Slaughter and May
2010-present: Group general counsel and company secretary, Aviva
2006-10: Deputy group company secretary and legal counsel, Aviva
1998-2006: Director group legal, Aviva
1997-98: Property operations director, General Accident