GC Issue: Summer 2015

GC talks to founders of legal departments in Asia about the risks and rewards of drawing up the blueprint for an uncharted legal function.

Why you need to examine the dark side of your company’s moon to really add value.

At the end of April, GC, in association with recruitment consultants MLegal, gathered together a range of Bay Area corporate counsel for drinks, dinner and discussion about talent management.

At the end of May, in association with Iken, GC gathered a group of GCs and heads of legal together in London to discuss how they structure their teams to bring out the best in them and prepare the next generation for the top legal role.

As director of the project management division and legal department at China National Offshore Oil Corporation [CNOOC], Leslie Zhang has presided over some sizeable transactions – not least the company’s $15.1BN acquisition of Nexen Inc.

GC explores what corporate counsel can do to further diversity – in their in-house legal department, the wider organisation, or throughout the business world. We pick the brains of general counsel across the globe about programmes they’ve pioneered or adopted to create a diverse workplace. In the first in a series of case studies, this issue we look at gender diversity.

GC speaks to Luis Alvarez, CEO of BT Global Services, about his thoughts on the legal department, his own role and how lawyers can get inside his head.

Julio Avalos, GC at open source software platform and hosting service GitHub, is a lawyer who has truly embraced the culture of his company. Now he is using this knowledge to question the way legal functions, with interesting results for his relationship with the business.

What’s the view like from Lawyerland? Paul Teta, vice president and general counsel of international trading and marketing company Kolmar Americas, probes the unique lawyer mindset.

Considering working on a more flexible basis of engagement? Why not start your own business? One high-flying GC-turned-entrepreneur takes to the skies on a venture that redefines the limits of getting commercial.