On-demand: Law firm relationship status update: it’s all about value, efficiency and doing things differently

Ruth Daniels, Group General Counsel and Company Secretary, Superdry

Ruth Daniels joined Superdry in February 2020 bringing 30 years of legal, governance and commercial experience from private practice as well as in-house roles at Ancestry.com, CPA Global and Global Media & Entertainment. Ruth has acted for key brands and brings extensive experience of working in digital and international environments as well as those undergoing transformation. Before qualifying as a lawyer Ruth began her career in Retail.

Claire Betty, Head of Legal – Commercial, John Lewis Partnership

Claire is Head of Legal for John Lewis & Waitrose. Her focus is on operations and supply chain and supporting activity across the property portfolio. She also leads on regulatory compliance in both general merchandise and grocery. Claire started her career in real estate. In 2009 she moved into commercial law, joining the legal team at the Ministry of Defence and advising on a large scale and complex procurement. She spent several years as Assistant GC at Nest pensions and subsequently became Head of Legal at Royal Mail. Claire moved in retail in 2019 at what was a particularly exciting time, advising one of the country’s most trusted brands as it goes through a period of unprecedented change.

Mark Turner, COO – Legal, Compliance and Risk, TP ICAP

Mark is the Chief Operating Officer for Legal and Compliance at the global inter-dealer broker TP ICAP.  He has previously worked within law firms and in-house teams as well as consulting with them.  He was formerly Operations Director at a global investment bank, Head of Business Transformation at a Magic Circle Firm and established a legal consulting practice within a global management consultancy.

Mark brings a broad perspective across legal and professional services markets to his work and is an advocate for change and the development of technology and culture which helps to support it.  In his role, he focuses on defining the strategic agenda, translating this into commercial, people, financial and technology priorities and delivering against those.

Peter McCusker, Deputy General Counsel, Royal London

With a passion for legal operations, Peter is a leading figure in the development, implementation and continuous improvement of Royal London’s Legal Operating Model, seizing the opportunity to transform the traditional role of the in-house lawyer.  The creation of a more dynamic relationship between in-house and external counsel, particularly one which disrupts existing practises, nurtures relationships and challenges bias, is one of many initiatives.

Peter joined Royal London in 2012, notably providing advice and support in relation to the digital transformation of Royal London’s pensions business, the implementation of Brexit preparations for overseas customers, and a variety of corporate and commercial activity.