Team size: 91

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Periods of instability demand, above all, cooperation, coordination and clear leadership. The Company needs to see in its legal leadership a precise, coherent and assertive direction during periods of instability and crises. In order to this, three elements seem particularly relevant, namely: in-depth knowledge of the business strategy, the goals and KPIs related to it, and the strengths and threats that may contribute to or hinder its achievement; clear domain of the legislation of the jurisdiction in which it operates, with the ability to connect it to the risks and opportunities related to the business strategy; and negotiation and cooperation skills, to anticipate the needs of the business and to be seen as a business partner, capable of adding value, avoiding losses and accelerating results.

What are the major cases or transactions you have been involved in recently?

The transition of CBD from a controlled company to a true corporation company, after a follow on primary offer in the Brazilian market involving the capture of BRL700m. This change in the shareholders structure demanded the creation of a PMO by legal team to manage deep changes and improvements in the organisation related to governance standards and bodies; investor relations practices; disclosure and communication, including the revision of all submissions presented to the market commissions and authorities in Brazil and USA; internal delegation of authority thresholds; compliance and internal controls structures; review and renegotiation of several material contracts in order to check and restate covenants, declarations, early maturity clauses and cross-default provisions, particularly with financial institutions; and training the board and the management for the new scenario.

The sale of 49 independent companies (gas distribution) to a single buyer through a unique and challenging M&A transaction involving several registers, authority approvals, licenses and permits for each company, timely scheduled to avoid the closure of each gas station due to regulatory aspects and requirements.

How do you prioritise diversity and inclusion within your legal department, and what initiatives have you implemented to foster a more inclusive equitable work environment?

To prioritise diversity and inclusion, it is mandatory to invoke the responsibility of each team member. On a daily basis, the members of teams (especially middle management) are responsible for decisions about hiring, dismissals, promotions and merits. It is essential that each member of the structure understands their responsibility for increasing diversity rates and inclusive practices in the Company. In addition, as a legal and compliance officer, I understand that I have a central role in raising awareness among management and the board on the topic, bringing not only legal and court trends, but also the legal, financial, operational, relational and reputational risks related to not adopting the best inclusion standards with employees, customers, suppliers, authorities and all partners with whom the Company has relationships.

In your opinion, what are the main trends that are salient in your country currently?

In Brazil, three major trends are currently affecting corporate activities and challenging not only management but also the role of the general counsel. First, the scenario of high inflation and recurring increases in interest rates, as a countermeasure, placing companies in a scenario of increased SG&A expenses, reduced demand (especially for B2C companies, such as the retail companies) and increased cost of money (especially for the companies with restricted free cash flow and with financing dependency). Second, local and global political instability, generating great uncertainty about current and future regulation, making short-term and medium-term planning challenging. Finally, judicial activism, in which the Judiciary extends its scope of action to acts closer to the actions of the Legislative and Executive branches, generating legal uncertainty and, once again, challenges in executive decision-making regarding business issues.