How would you define your firm’s culture?

In our kind of business, a strong firm culture easily recognizable by clients is essential. Garrigues has developed a global culture, based on strong ethical values and a commitment with excellence, shared by our 2,000 people team in 13 countries.

The client benefits from the fact that they live the same kind of experience and receives the same excellent service in any office of our firm all over the world regardless of which professional he is working with. So, to answer your question, culture for us is key to consolidate our leadership through excellence.

Since becoming managing partner, what changes have you made that directly benefit clients?

I would say a new way of approaching growth on a twofold. First, a change of pace on the firm’s international expansion in order to achieve this unique and global culture mentioned before.

Instead of seeking partnerships or acquisitions, our bet is on organic
growth, opening our own offices and tracking down the market in search of professionals that are not only the best technically speaking, but who share the same values and are ready to embrace Garrigues’ culture and offer a seamless service worldwide. A perfect example
of this is our Latin American expansion.
Second, our approach to financial growth has also changed. I became managing partner during the last recession (probably the worst we have seen in our history) and my aim was to achieve financial strength subject to profitability. As a result, in the last five years our productivity ratio has increased by 25%. I truly believe our clients have benefitted from this strategy.

What are the biggest challenges facing firms in Spain?

Firms all over the world and across all sectors face a common challenge, to be able to adapt to an ever-changing scenario. Trying to predict how an industry will look like in 20 years is almost impossible. So I believe that we have to make sure that we have the best possible talent and provide them with the best possible training so that they can adapt to market demands any time.

What are your biggest success stories to date?

If you ask about my personal success stories, I like to think they are related to my clients and my activity as a lawyer, which I have never abandoned.

If you ask about my role as a managing partner, I would go back to my previous answer: the change of strategy in our international expansion is a guarantee that our clients receive the same outstanding service all over the world and our financial strength is a guarantee of stability.
Other than that, I am proud that over the years we have built a trusted brand in the top of mind of clients, potential employees, competitors, and all of our stakeholders that stands for both technical excellence and performance and impeccable ethics.

How have attitudes to diversity in law changed? What still needs to happen to make the legal industry more inclusive?

People are the biggest strength of a law firm; and ours include a team of 2,000. Fruit of this vision, is an organisation determined with attracting and keeping the best talent, promoting equal opportunities, applying objectivity in its promotions and retribution policy, continuous learning, collaborative working.

Ten years ago, Garrigues broke new ground as one of the first law firms to implement an equality plan. Year on year, the firm has continued to add new measures to the plan, which has now yielded measurable results. In 2017, the firm launched its second equality plan, upholding the measures introduced
under the first plan and adding new measures leading to greater retention
and professional development of our people.

Our team has a clear picture of our commitment to diverse talent: we
have 53% women and 23 nationalities in our firm. Nevertheless, we are fully aware that we need to work every day in order to make this industry more inclusive.

Is technology changing the way you interact with clients and the services you provide them?

That technology is reshaping the world is an undeniable fact. Our clients are changing and we have to change even faster to anticipate their needs and continue to be their preferred partner in this ever-changing world.
Having said this, technology cannot be a goal in itself: our strategy is to adopt those tools that, by enabling us to improve efficiency, allow us to improve our client service. I do believe that today human intelligence is far more important than artificial intelligence.

What is your one major prediction for the legal market?

As I mentioned before, I do not feel capable of grand predictions in this convulsed environment. If I look at Garrigues’ future, I believe our success would be to consolidate our leadership in Continental Europe, to build an even stronger Latin American presence, to continue anticipating our clients’ needs and offering them the best possible service, to remain a pioneer in our industry and to contribute modestly to our society’s challenges. Not necessarily in this order.

How fantastically supportive the partners and all of our staff have been. I am very lucky to work with such great.

How would you define your firm’s culture?

Culture is intrinsically linked to, and the foundation for, success. It is what drives behaviour and decision making at every level, and ultimately determines our ability to deliver outstanding results for our clients.

At Corrs, our culture is focused on excellence, collaboration – both internally and with our clients – and energy.

How has your involvement in client-facing work changed since becoming senior partner and CEO?

All our leaders are client-facing, and this extends to me as CEO. While I am involved in less day-to-day client work than I was, I continue to play an active role on significant, high-value matters. This is something I intend to continue as l enjoy the legal work and the client interaction.

It is also important in terms of staying close to the market and relevant to developments and ensuring you are able to adapt quickly to what is happening.

Since becoming CEO what’s surprised you most about running the firm?

I always expected it to be a people role and my experience has confirmed that. When I started this job as an external appointee, the first thing I did was to meet with every partner individually and to hear from them about their views on the firm – what was working well and what could be improved.
I have also done a series of Q&A sessions and focus groups with staff to have similar conversations with them. I have been pleasantly surprised by people’s willingness and appetite for change.

For a firm to be providing clients with exceptional service, the whole firm needs to be engaged and working together to successfully implement our strategies and continuously improve the way we do things.

If you are standing still, you are essentially going backwards in a time of fast change. That is true for any business, but at the moment, it is particularly true for the legal services sector.

What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm that will benefit clients?

I have prioritised a high-performance culture and commitment to excellence in everything that we do. Our core focus is the delivery of exceptional legal services.

Our approach to clients and matters, our internal structures and leadership, and our recognition and reward of our people, are all designed to achieve this.

What does innovation mean to you and how can firms be better at it?

Innovation is about improving efficiencies, adding value, and enhancing client experience. It is also a mindset, continuously considering and being willing to implement new ways of doing things better.

The evolution of the digital space and the development of technological tools in the processing and analysis of information offer exciting opportunities for law firms.

My own view is that law firms need to be fast followers in the technology space, to be across developments and to ensure that we are offering our clients the most efficient and best systems in the market.

Law firms do not have the resources, capability or culture to compete with the best technology companies, and it is not something they should necessarily try to do.

Our strategy is focused on providing clients with high-quality services that are dependent on expertise and judgment, and quickly adopting the very best tools in the market to facilitate this.

Is technology changing the way you interact with and service your clients?

Technology allows us to respond to client needs and market developments more quickly and efficiently than ever before.

We are able to use robotic process automation to optimise internal processes that traditionally have been labour intensive and repetitive, and this allows us to work more efficiently and utilise our lawyers’ time in more productive ways.

We also use data integration and machine learning as part of our offering to clients in a variety of contexts.

What are the biggest challenges facing firms in Australia?

A key challenge for all laws firm in Australia remains people, in particular, engaging new generations of lawyers and providing them with the career development and the opportunities they need to succeed and feel fulfilled.

Our international secondment and scholarship programs are two areas we are investing in as part of our strategy to address this. By providing our people with high-quality international opportunities, they return with enhanced experience, knowledge, perspectives, and relationships which position them and our firm well for long-term success.

What do clients want and why?

In my experience, the things clients want most are expertise, the ability to deliver value in any situation, and responsiveness.

They need to be confident you will understand their needs and deliver what they want, in the way they want it. This includes ensuring your teams have the right mix of seniority and expertise tailored for every matter, with every member of your team able to be relied upon on to deliver high quality legal advice, excellent service, and value.

It is particularly critical you are able to deliver insightful strategic advice on their most challenging issues. This is what really sets one firm apart from the next.

What have you found is the best way to retain talent?

People need to feel valued, that they are part of a team, and that they are rewarded for their efforts. It is important to ensure they have opportunities to develop – at whatever stage of their career – and have access to interesting work in which they feel engaged, challenged, and stretched.

All of this needs to be balanced with the recognition they have a life beyond work, to ensure the expectations and pressures placed on them are appropriate. You also need to ensure your culture is consistent with their values, for example in relation to issues such as diversity and community contribution.

What are your firm’s policies on diversity and inclusion?

Corrs is committed to all forms of diversity and inclusion and this remains a strategic priority for the firm. Attracting, retaining, and advancing the best talent is critical to our success and to achieve this we continue to promote a culture in which everyone is valued, supported and encouraged.

The key objectives of our diversity policy include increasing gender and cultural diversity in senior management and partnership roles and creating flexible career paths for all our people.

Corrs’ diversity policy is compliant with Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) corporate governance guidelines. Although the firm is not publicly listed, we took the decision to emulate the requirements of our ASX listed clients. We were the first national law firm in Australia to make this commitment.

What advice would you give to the next generation of partners?

The most important thing for all lawyers – at partner level or not – is that they focus on areas in which they have passion, enthusiasm, and interest. Lawyers who enjoy what they do are far more likely to succeed.

It is important also to be forward looking in terms of areas of expertise and what is most valuable to clients. This includes identifying market trends, developments and future opportunities (and conversely the areas which are becoming commoditised as the market evolves), and ensuring you are developing a skillset which will be valuable to clients both now and in the future.

How would you describe your practice?

A wide-ranging and extensive sports practice covering football, rugby union, rugby league, cricket, horseracing, cycling, boxing, and athletics. Football is the best known and most extensive. We cover the full range of football entities from the Premier League, Leeds United, Harrogate Town in the National League to the Bostik League.

Football is what I am most involved in – I am the chairman of the Football Board and the Legal Advisory Group of the Premier League, vice chairman of the FA, chairman of the FA Professional Game Board and Group Remuneration Committee. I am the chairman of Football Stadia Improvement Fund Ltd and a trustee of the Football Foundation, Britain’s largest sporting charity.

How has the practice of sports law changed over the years?

One of the biggest changes is the proliferation of lawyers and law firms across the country seeking to handle sports work. I first became involved in sport in 1989, three years before the formation of the Premier League. Anyone doing sport then was a rarity. Now everyone is trying to jump on the bandwagon.

Another change is the huge development of precedents in sports law – the Court of Arbitration for Sport, FIFA, UEFA, the FA, the Premier League, the EFL, and the courts have all developed a huge precedent bank.

Finally – the biggest change of all is the way in which sport and football, in particular, has become such big business!

How do you split your time between fee earning and management?

Thanks to my excellent management support at the law firm and at the Premier League and FA, the split is about 80/20 in favour of fee-earning work. Some years ago it was at a level of 50/50 and that is not what I signed up for. So we have pursued a deliberate policy of having great management, leaving me free to do the day job! There is nothing worse than a client wanting an urgent word with a lawyer, only to be told that the lawyer is in a weekly management meeting!

What are the biggest challenges facing firms of your size?

The first challenge is competing with much larger firms who have considerable infrastructure advantages, more capital, and more people. The way we compete is to get up earlier and stay up later!

The second challenge is maintaining the quality of lawyers coming to the firm. Younger lawyers have become more nervous, especially since the 2008 financial crisis. They want security, good pay but no risks. We have to offer a more participatory approach in order to attract them.

What do you think are the top three things most clients want and why?

Clients want quality advice and a definitive view – not ‘it could go either way’ or ‘it’s 50/50’; they want that advice promptly, if not yesterday; and they want value for money. The days of the open cheque book have gone. Why? Because they are entitled to the above. They are the paying customer!

What do you think lawyers generally could be better at?

Asking for money and collecting it. Too many lawyers want to enjoy the delights of doing the work but are embarrassed to ask for payment, particularly costs on account and then they are reluctant to chase unpaid bills. There is no better person to ask for the money than the fee-earner dealing with the matter.

Marketing – networking and selling are skills. The complete lawyer brings in the work, as well as doing it. Too often, one attends a networking event at which lawyers from other firms are standing about talking to each other – ask for the business!

Giving more decisive advice – clients need a definitive view but too many lawyers are frightened of being sued or being wrong and so they leave the client to make a decision without the benefit of the lawyer giving the client a proper steer.

What is it like acting for such high-profile clients – does this bring added pressures?

Yes, this does bring added pressures. Failure is more public for both the client and the lawyer. Media harassment of the client can produce urgent need for advice with thinking time reduced or non-existent.

It often brings the added logistical problems of needing to enter buildings with the client through backdoors, underground entrances or covered in blankets in the back of vehicles!

What has been the highlight of your career?

Developing my reputation in football and in particular working with the Premier League and its member clubs since 1996, leading to them appointing me chairman in 2014.

As far as individual cases are concerned, two stick in the mind. In 1992 Leeds United lost in the European Cup to Vfb Stuttgart but it was found that Stuttgart may have fielded an ineligible player. Equally, they complained that Leeds United had done the same. I appeared before a UEFA Disciplinary Tribunal and we succeeded. The tribunal awarded a third game to decide the tie and a few days later in Barcelona’s Nou Camp Stadium, Leeds were victorious and went through to the next round. On our return to Leeds/Bradford Airport, the entire team applauded me off the aircraft. A second memory was representing the legendary racehorse trainer Jenny Pitman at the Jockey Club when she was accused of entering a ‘spoiling horse’ in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Again, we were successful (I tend to forget any failures!) and we were besieged by over 50 journalists on our way out of the building. Jenny is a tough and resourceful woman who calls a spade a shovel. We had the odd fiery moment but we are lasting friends.

You happen to be a Leeds United supporter. As the club is a client of yours, does that bring any extra dynamics or pressures?

As a Leeds United supporter from childhood and a former director of the club in the early 1990s, when we won the league title, there is always an extra dynamic or pressure when acting for the club because you want to win both on the pitch and off. Nonetheless, it is imperative that you act as an objective lawyer and not as a fan in a suit.

Was there a sports-related case you were not involved in that you wish you had been?

Kathryn, my wife and business colleague, gave me some advice at an early stage in our relationship which has stayed with me forever – never envy anyone. Following that policy, there is not a case that I wish I had been involved in but was not.

What advice would you give to those just starting out in sports law?

Do not be starry-eyed or a groupie. Learn the basics of legal practice and then apply them to sport. Acquire that skillset before narrowing your career.

Work hard and be prepared for some unsocial hours. Sports clients are demanding and football, in particular, is a very immediate business. Clients want answers and they want them now.

How would you describe your firm’s culture and how important is it to you? Is it different in Asia from the home base in Chicago?

Mayer Brown has a strong one-firm culture that enables us to be seamless in serving our clients. This is possible because we operate as a global partnership, rather than in a siloed or Swiss Verein structure.

We have a common set of values, which promotes collaboration and encourages our lawyers to be responsive to our clients. Our clients appreciate our integrated culture because they have access to the best knowledge and service from our lawyers, no matter where they are.

Since becoming senior partner what’s surprised you most about running a firm?

Having played the role of senior partner for almost three years, I am pleasantly surprised by the contribution of our support departments to the success of the firm. These include business development, marketing and communications, finance and accounts, information technology, knowledge management, legal risk and compliance, pricing strategy, and legal project management.

We have many talented colleagues overseeing these functions allowing our lawyers to focus on client service, which is our firm’s top priority.

How has your role in client
facing-work changed since becoming senior partner?

I believe that practice and management are in fact complementary with each other. Maintaining an active practice enables me to learn about the practical challenges faced by all of us. Performing the role of senior partner offers me the opportunity to overcome these challenges collectively with my partners.

What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm across Asia that will benefit clients?

When I took on the leadership of Mayer Brown in Asia three years ago, integration was my top priority. I sought to integrate
our Asia offices with other offices in three areas: our people, our practices, and our systems.

Our success as an Asia powerhouse and now, as a distinctively global law firm following the combination of Johnson Stokes & Masters with Mayer Brown ten years ago, is the direct result of this integration exercise. This has enhanced cross selling and efficiency. We pride ourselves with our brand – one that will allow us to speak in one voice and tell one story.

Aligning our expertise with the needs of clients globally requires lateral hiring. Accordingly, we have made a significant number of strategic appointments to strengthen our capabilities
in Asia.

What are the biggest challenges facing firms in Asia?

There have been several changes in the legal landscape in the past ten years. Increased competition from within and outside the legal industry is a major change and challenge.

Within the legal industry, Mainland Chinese law firms have been expanding into Hong Kong, and accounting firms have also been setting up their legal arms.
Outside of the legal industry, alternative service providers (ALT) are expanding in Asia. Some law firms have even joined the bandwagon by launching their own ALT arms.

What is the firm’s strategy in Asia? Do you have plans for expansion and where are you seeing growth?

Backed by a well-established Hong Kong practice in a mature market, we always listen to our clients and understand their businesses. As our clients themselves are globalising, they require global offerings.
To align our products, we make strategic hires and reinforce our position as a distinctively global law firm beyond a regional powerhouse. As part of Asia’s role in helping the firm achieve its overall goal of being a top ten international business law firms in the world, we leverage the capabilities of our Asia practices to the benefit of our global platform.

By way of example, we opened our Tokyo office last year after due consideration of our clients’ needs, the alignment of our products and the availability of talents in the market. We do not simply view the financial performance of our offices in Asia (Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Bangkok, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Tokyo) on a siloed basis; instead, we focus on how we can best serve our clients.

As international counsel, we serve clients all over the region, including in frontier markets such as Myanmar and Mongolia and we do not restrict our service coverage merely to office locations.

What do you think are the top three things clients want and why?

Clients expect their outside counsel to adopt extremely high and uncompromising standards in their problem-solving skills. When selecting outside counsel, clients will also bear cost efficiency in mind. Accordingly, we offer seamless service to our clients in a cost-effective manner.

Global clients also want to work with a law firm that has a global platform with extensive reach across continents. As the only integrated law firm globally with approximately 200 lawyers in each of the world’s three largest financial centres – New York, London and Hong Kong – we are well-positioned to offer global
solutions.

In an increasingly demanding world, our clients are insisting on fast and efficient service. Due to our global platform, Mayer Brown is able to service our clients 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?

Without question, a top priority of Mayer Brown is to leverage technology to enhance client service. Today, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) is a critical area in
which we must be at the technical
forefront.

For example, we are deploying matter management tools which provide
monitoring systems for project management. We are using sophisticated software
for document management and
e-discovery.

Finally, we are evaluating AI tools which have the capability to rapidly identify
anti-assignment, change of control, and other key clauses in large scale due diligence work. Having integrated systems enhances efficiencies flowing from a centralised function.

What does innovation mean to you and how can firms and individual lawyers be better at providing it?

Innovation is providing out-of-the box solutions to our clients. One standout example in Asia is the landmark restructuring solution we provided to Z-Obee.

With no Chapter 11-style legislation in Hong Kong and the inability to appoint provisional liquidators solely for restructuring purposes, our unprecedented solution enabled the appointment of provisional liquidators in Bermuda to allow them to seek recognition and assistance from the Hong Kong Court under common law. No other firm had addressed the issue through common law before, and for this our firm was widely praised.

Our firm has been recognised several times as one of the most innovative law firms in Asia, North America and Europe by Financial Times, not only for client-related work but also for our pro bono programmes.

Our lawyers are inherently innovative. We are fortunate to have developed a collaborative culture through teamwork that sparks and nurtures innovation. In our case, the drive to deliver extremely high and uncompromising standards of work to our clients, complemented by the constant exchange of ideas and new perspectives, are important factors in our innovative solutions for clients.

Tell us about your commitment to pro bono – why is it important to you and why should firms give back to their local communities?

We believe we have a responsibility to give back to the community and to help the disadvantaged. Our lawyers possess unique skills that allow them to serve our community. We have recently stepped up our pro bono programmes in Asia by hiring a US-qualified public interest lawyer dedicated to assist our pro bono work.

The move has sparked additional internal interest in providing pro bono legal services and created a positive impact for both our pro bono clients and our lawyers. Towards the end of last year, we launched in Asia the ‘Got 20’ initiative encouraging our lawyers to voluntarily devote 20 hours to pro bono work that can be counted towards billable hours when assessing performance.

We also collaborate with our clients on pro bono projects. For example, we partner with a local organisation, Christian Action, on an initiative to provide pro bono legal assistance to recognised refugees (also known as substantiated refugees) in Hong Kong who are waiting for resettlement overseas.

In addition, we have embarked on a large-scale project with the Hong Kong Council of Social Services’ (HKCSS) NGO Corporate Governance Platform. Through this opportunity, we assisted with developing a model corporate governance manual for HKCSS’s members alongside our corporate client. This manual provides many NGOs with a practical toolkit, helping them better understand the corporate governance requirements.

What have you found the best way to retain talent?

At the partner level, our global partnership structure and traditional culture is a key reason for partners to remain with the firm. New joiners are amazed at our integrated and collaborative culture. Lawyers work collaboratively as teams, which impresses clients because we are able to pull resources from many areas.

At the associate level, it is important we provide our junior lawyers with meaningful and successful careers. We need to be transparent in our process and adaptable to the needs of young millennials, many of whom will become the pillars of the firm.
We also develop and have been proactive in providing policies around diversity
and inclusion and pro bono work, demonstrating to our younger lawyers our commitment to core values. Through the sophisticated and cutting-edge work we do, we provide a stimulating and exciting environment in which our lawyers at all levels can thrive and improve.

What are the firm’s policies on diversity and inclusion?

Achieving a diverse and inclusive work force is critical at Mayer Brown. We are committed to recruit, develop, and promote the highest calibre lawyers regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation.

The firm has established three committees in Asia under the umbrella of diversity and inclusion: the Pride and Ally Network, Family Network, and Women’s Network (branded as Retain and Advance Women). These three networks regularly organise talks and activities to promote diversity at all levels of the firm.

Due to its innovation and excellence, the Asian arm of Mayer Brown’s diversity and inclusion initiative has recently been nominated for a number of awards.

What advice can you give the next generation of partners looking to rise the ranks?

History always repeats itself provided circumstances remain the same.
What hasn’t changed today is the need to build and strengthen client relationships.

Working collectively to better serve our clients is baked into our culture as a firm. If we can adapt to the advent of new technologies, the challenge of new competitors and the constant drive for innovation, we will evolve. Talent retention is critical and unity is strength!

How do you define your firm’s culture and how important is that culture to you?

We have a very collaborative, supportive, family-based culture in the firm. I am not saying this because I am the managing partner, but it has been described as such by outsiders who have observed us and it is a culture that I am very proud of and invest in maintaining.

As managing partner, what’s the main change you’ve made that has benefitted clients?

We have streamlined many of the supporting processes and roles in order to (i) deliver on the strategic plan and (ii) provide the best support to the staff to allow them to provide exceptional service to the client.

How do you split your time between fee earning and management?

This is difficult especially as I have an open door management policy. I have tried many different methods – e.g. specific days or times for client work and others for management issues.

I find doing client work very early in the morning, which often means from home and before I get to the office, works best and I have excellent support from secretaries, paralegals, and associates.

What are the biggest challenges facing BVI firms and how are you tackling them?

The biggest challenges are the external threats to the industry such as the possibility of EU blacklisting which we are in the middle of dealing with.

We tackle such threats by working very closely with the government on legislation and policies to address such threats and by advising clients in a very clear and precise way on how to handle such threats.

With the recent establishment of a New York office, the firm is one of the few offshore firms to make this step into the US. What advantages has this move given you?

The New York office puts us blocks away from many of our key clients. We are in a position to meet and work with them at their convenience and to seek opportunities that we may not have found had we not been on the ground.

What do you think are the top three things most clients want and why?

Responsiveness; clear, concise advice; and the ability to think outside the box.

What do you think lawyers generally could be better at?

Mentoring and passing knowledge from one level to another. The best knowledge management systems cannot capture all aspects of the practice. A lot of this information and understanding is simply known by the attorney and can only be passed on with mentoring and training.

What have you found is the best way to retain talent – both at partner and associate levels?

Giving them a clear understanding of the mission and vision of the firm and their role in the bigger picture. Information and the sense of knowing where you stand, your purpose, and contribution goes a far way in retaining talent.

How do we get more women into leadership roles in firms?

By women being mentors to other women. Guidance on legal and non legal soft skills from those who are established and viewed as role models is essential in creating new leaders.

What advice would you give to those, particularly women, just starting out in law?

Listen, learn, be focused, and don’t be afraid to ask questions as learning the practice of law has just begun.