GC Legal Tech Pulse 2024 – in association with Thomson Reuters

GC Legal Tech Pulse 2024 – in association with Thomson Reuters

Tech and AI are at the top of everyone’s agenda right now. Legal Business and Thomson Reuters canvassed the opinions of UK GCs and heads of legal on everything from securing budget, to the tech they want and need to invest in and how to best approach CLM implementation.

Find out how your team compares in our brand new GC Legal Tech Pulse 2024 insight report. You can download the report for free here. Continue reading “GC Legal Tech Pulse 2024 – in association with Thomson Reuters”

The Client Profile: Nigel Paterson, Currys

The Client Profile: Nigel Paterson, Currys

‘I’m an extrovert and I like to get out there. An in-house role is much more team orientated than private practice,’ notes Nigel Paterson, the general counsel (GC) of British electricals retailer Currys, on his decision to go in-house some 25 years ago.

And it soon becomes apparent that, so illustrious has been his career, somehow none of the gravitas is lost through Paterson drinking from his daughter’s Little Miss Naughty mug throughout the interview with LB. Continue reading “The Client Profile: Nigel Paterson, Currys”

The in-house debate: Look to the future now

The in-house debate: Look to the future now

David Halliwell, Pinsent Masons Vario: The world is now seen through a ‘VUCA’ lens – it’s Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous. Are the risks that businesses are facing much more uncertain? What does that mean for how you are working in your roles?

John Ventress, Lombard Odier Investment Managers: As in-house lawyers, we need to be aware of the risks faced by our business, but our role is to support the business in navigating the future and helping it to develop, rather than being risk managers. Continue reading “The in-house debate: Look to the future now”

The Client Profile: Lida Khanverdi, EG Group

The Client Profile: Lida Khanverdi, EG Group

Fresh off a train from Blackburn, suitcase in tow, Lida Khanverdi arrives at the interview shortly after closing a new deal for EG Group. Having moved in-house just three years ago, the former Shoosmiths real estate associate is quickly making a name for herself, winning Rising Star In-House Counsel of the Year at the 2023 Legal Business Awards, and helping EG Group through a period of transformative growth.

Despite her rapid ascent, her route in-house has had its fair share of challenges and uncertainties. Khanverdi is not the type to claim she possessed a burning desire to enter the legal profession from an early age. Instead, her decision to study law came about after her family’s plans to emigrate to Canada fell through at the last moment, leaving her with only three weeks to make her university applications in the UK. Flummoxed on what subject to pick, her dad delivered the classic line: ‘Well, why don’t you do law? You can do anything with law.’ Continue reading “The Client Profile: Lida Khanverdi, EG Group”

The Ireland debate: Don’t fear the robots

The Ireland debate: Don’t fear the robots

Nathalie Tidman, Legal Business: Welcome everyone. We have a fantastic panel of extremely talented and insightful people here this evening.

As a starter for ten, what do you see as the real opportunities and benefits for in-house lawyers using generative AI in your day-to-day dealings? Continue reading “The Ireland debate: Don’t fear the robots”

The Client Profile: Alessandro Galtieri, Colt Technology Services

The Client Profile: Alessandro Galtieri, Colt Technology Services

It is fair to say that Colt Technology Services does not look out of place in its trendy environs of Shoreditch, East London. Decorated with the UK’s largest wall mural, which the company commissioned a collection of graffiti and street artists to create, the building comes complete with its own beehive, shortly to produce its first batch of honey. Colt’s deputy general counsel (GC) Alessandro Galtieri, ever the attentive host, proudly shows the artwork off when LB drop by for a chat.

As both his parents studied law, it was perhaps inevitable that Galtieri would pursue a legal career, despite initial attempts to resist: ‘I did try to escape!’ he quips, ‘I wanted to do something else – I was passionate about astrophysics.’ Continue reading “The Client Profile: Alessandro Galtieri, Colt Technology Services”

The in-house debate: Time for a quick Chat(GPT)?

The in-house debate: Time for a quick Chat(GPT)?

Nathalie Tidman, Legal Business: How much access do you have to the board? How intrinsic are you to the decision-making processes of your business?

Aurea Garrido, Warner Bros. Discovery News & Sports: My team sits with the business. For me, a decisive factor was being part of the executive committee, which I have been for three or four years now. I needed to be part of something; not just advising on technical legal issues. Not everyone is as lucky. I know lawyers who have more senior positions than me in the same industry who don’t get access to the exec team or the board. Continue reading “The in-house debate: Time for a quick Chat(GPT)?”

The Client Profile: Aleksandra Schellenberg, UBS

The Client Profile: Aleksandra Schellenberg, UBS

Aleksandra Schellenberg, UBS’ global head of legal sustainable finance, knew she wanted to be a lawyer from the age of 14, revealing that she made her decision after watching the first episode of American legal comedy drama Ally McBeal, while growing up in Poland in the late 1990s.

She recalls: ‘I remember after watching the show, going to my mum and telling her I wanted to be a lawyer and she said, “Hey honey, we don’t have any lawyers in the family, that might be a bit difficult!” Continue reading “The Client Profile: Aleksandra Schellenberg, UBS”

Sponsored briefing: How GCs can manage the opportunities and risks of the Unified Patent Court

Sponsored briefing: How GCs can manage the opportunities and risks of the Unified Patent Court

The unprecedented global events of the past three years and growing importance of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, have highlighted the role of innovative solutions in addressing new challenges. These events, including the Covid-19 pandemic and green transition, as well as the present economic slowdown, have led businesses to evaluate risk management strategies and exploit every opportunity to maximise revenue and reduce costs.

The success of businesses in technology-rich sectors – such as life sciences and communications technologies – is often underpinned by robust intellectual property (IP) strategies. However, sound IP management strategies are not limited to one sector: they play a role in the success of all businesses. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: How GCs can manage the opportunities and risks of the Unified Patent Court”

The Client Profile: Terra Potter, Hexcel Corporation

The Client Profile: Terra Potter, Hexcel Corporation

Terra Potter (whose middle name is Cotta – LB has seen the proof) proudly proclaims on LinkedIn that she originally hails from a cornfield outside Chicago and, while many lawyers claim to have had an unconventional path into a legal career, hers has been more so than most. Growing up in Rochelle, Illinois, she started working in kitchens, first as a dishwasher at the age of 14, before working her way up the cooking ladder, and so set her sights on a culinary career. A move to Hyde Park, New York and The Culinary Institute of America at the age of 17 had the unexpected consequence of a passion for the law.

‘The penultimate class was restaurant law, which is actually just like contract law’, Potter recalls. ‘It was so cool and the world made sense through it. That sparked the joy for law in me.’ Continue reading “The Client Profile: Terra Potter, Hexcel Corporation”