Since Katja Roth Pellanda joined Zurich Insurance in 2020, a lot has changed. The GC has broken down the silos in the 700-person legal function, reducing the distance between the regions and the corporate centre. Zurich Insurance is a Swiss-based insurance company that has a presence in approximately 80 countries. With such a large business, […]
For legal head Judi Gadsby, a lunchtime walk through the Goodwood Estate, with her golden retriever in tow, is one of the many perks of her day job. The 300-year-old estate is the seat of the Duke of Richmond and comprises nearly 11,000 hectares of land in Chichester, West Sussex. As head of legal at […]
“Everyone is a music lover at PPL,” says Camilla Waite, general counsel of the music licensing company. Waite keeps her interests broad: her pre-lawyer days were spent running middle distance for the junior GB team. She details the galvanising process of training for Team GB, likening the bonds created to that of a training contract. Now, […]
Catie Sheret, general counsel at Cambridge University Press & Assessment, admits that she was hesitant to take on a GC role. Having switched from Linklaters to Charles Russell at 2 years’ PQE to get more commercial work and exposure to clients, she became aware of a buzz around in-house IP roles. Her interest drew her […]
Rather than by design, Associated British Foods’ Claire Eldridge found herself in legal operations by default. Though she studied a law degree, Eldridge never had a view of practising herself. Instead, she went down a completely different career path, graduating into the army for four years in Joint Services Intelligence. It was there she ran […]
Five train operators, five heads of legal: how this all-female team manages the legal functions for the likes of LNER, Northern and Southeastern railways.
For Kelly Young, incumbent general counsel and company secretary at Marie Curie, the charity feels more like a corporation than any other entity. Marie Curie is the largest funder of palliative care in the country, and its business lines include 160 shops, 450 doctors, clinical services and licensing intellectual property from garden supplies to stationery. […]
Longtime in-houser Mel Rowlands had a knock-out year in 2023, making a juxtaposing career change last July. The former group general counsel of Smiths Group, a 170-year-old diversified industrial conglomerate with 20,000 employees, made the move to 15-years young Sonnedix, a renewable energy producer. Rowlands couldn’t have joined the sustainable power sector at a better […]
Fighting referendums and interfacing with nearly 300 cities is all in a day’s work for Sarah Binder. Relocating from London to San Francisco, she joined the legal team at micromobility company Lime in May 2021, which now comprises 20 lawyers and eight paralegals. Since then, Binder has celebrated some major wins. She led Lime in […]
Since The Lawyer last interviewed Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group’s co-general counsels James Morgan and Prabhat Kumar in 2020, the globe has witnessed enough significant events to last a few decades. Specifically highlighting Covid-19, the Russia/Ukraine conflict, high inflation and the gilt crisis, the pair have focussed on how they adapt their team to cope with […]
In 1997, Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club was one goal away from collapse. Now, 26 years later and the Seagulls are flying high in the Premier League and have negotiated the group stage of this season’s Europa League, in the first year they’ve ever played European football. Lloyd Thomas joined the club two years […]
Kevin Athow’s first job was making snooker tables in a factory in Lincolnshire. He later worked as a roadie, touring with bands for seven years. His first foray into law was during jury service, which inspired him to qualify as a barrister at 32. As routes in-house go, his is up there with the unconventional. […]