British gas distribution company SGN has appointed HSBC deputy general counsel Emily Smith (pictured) as its new GC.
Smith spent nearly 15 years at HSBC, most recently as general counsel for the UK wealth and personal banking division, and previously as global head o competition law. She joined the FTSE 100 bank in 2011 from BT, where she held a number of senior legal roles. Before that, she worked at Freshfields as an associate in the firm’s antitrust, competition and trade department.
‘Emily’s depth of experience in legal leadership, risk management and regulatory matters will be invaluable as we continue to further strengthen our governance and enable the long-term success of the business,’ said SGN CEO Simon Kilonback.
She replaces Nick Porter, who has served as interim GC since early 2025. She is set to take up her role in the summer.
Insurer AXA UK & Ireland has appointed Caroline Riddy as GC, following the departure of Emily Coupland, who served as GC from 2021 until her departure last December.
Riddy rejoins AXA from Lloyds Banking Group, where she spent more than a year as company secretary for the insurance, pensions and investments division. She previously spent 12 years at AXA between 2012 and 2024, in a number of senior counsel and company secretary roles.
Outgoing GC, Emily Coupland, who has been with the company since 2001 in a range of senior legal roles, has departed for the top legal role at Intact Insurance UK, formerly known as RSA.
Rachel Walker has joined Canary Wharf Group (CWG) as group general counsel, after 10 years at GLP Capital Partners. She joined CWG in 2015 as general counsel – Europe, and became general counsel and chief administrative officer in 2021. Last March, she became a managing director at Ares Management, following its acquisition of GLP’s international business.
‘We are delighted to welcome Rachel to CWG. Her breadth of experience across legal, risk, compliance, and governance, combined with her deep understanding of the real estate sector, further strengthens our leadership team,’ said CWG CEO Shobi Khan.
‘Rachel’s track record of building and integrating high-performing functions will be invaluable as we continue to develop the business and advance our long-term strategy,’ she concluded.
Santander International, the bank’s offshore division, has appointed Michelle Turner as its first general counsel. She joins from Winterflood Securities, a financial intermediation company that was acquired by Nasdaq-listed financial services company Marex last year. She previously worked in a range of legal roles at HSBC between 2004 and 2023.
Finally in the UK, luxury and lifestyle brand Barbour GC Katherine Richards has retired from her post after nearly four years. Before moving in-house Richards worked as a corporate partner at Ward Hadaway.
In the US, consumer and household products supplier Colgate-Palmolive has elevated current deputy CLO, Betsy Fishbone to chief legal officer, following the planned departure of current legal head Jennifer Daniels.
Daniels has served as CLO and secretary since she joined the company in 2014. Daniels has extensive in-house experience, having worked in senior roles at NCR Corporation, Barnes & Noble, and IBM.
Fishbone has been with the company since 2001, before which she spent six years as an associate at Morgan Lewis.
Intel has appointed Aparna Bawa as its new executive vice president, chief legal and people officer, replacing April Miller Boise, who will leave the company in June after four years.
Miller Boise joined the multinational tech giant in 2022 from electronics manufacturer Eaton, where she was CLO. Earlier in her career, Miller Boise worked in private practice at both Cleary and Thompson Hine, while her other in-house experience includes roles at Veyance Technologies, AVINTIV and Meritor.
Bawa, who will be taking over the role in May, has worked at Zoom since 2018, first as CLO and then as COO from 2020. Before Zoom, Bawa worked in-house at companies including Magento Commerce, Nimble Storage, Inphi Corporation, Lehman Brothers, and Deutsche Bank, after starting her career as a corporate associate at Wilson Sonsini.
Finally, clinical-stage biotech company Avalyn Pharma has hired Adam Golden as GC and head of business development. Golden joins the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company from Freshfields’ New York office, where he was global head of life sciences for the last five years. Golden previously worked at Hogan Lovells, where he was head of the New York corporate practice group.
Avalyn CEO Lyn Baranowski said: ‘Adam brings deep legal experience guiding life sciences companies through critical inflection points involving business development and legal strategy, all of which will be invaluable as we transition to life as a public company.’
