Team size: 5

What are the key projects that you have been involved in over the past 12 months?

The past year has centered on navigating organisational resilience during one of the most challenging periods in recent real estate development history. Simultaneously, I pursued deep AI expertise development through advanced courses with MIT and IBM, focusing on practical applications for legal and other operations.

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?

The real estate development sector has faced unprecedented challenges over the past few years – from COVID-19 disruptions to rapidly changing interest rates, supply chain constraints, and evolving regulatory landscapes. These experiences have shaped our approach to crisis management and strategic alignment.

Our crisis management framework centers on three principles. Proactive scenario planning has become essential. We regularly assess potential risk scenarios with the business team – interest rate volatility, regulatory changes, supply chain disruptions, or market downturns. This allows us to prepare contractual protections and legal structures before crises emerge. For example, we’ve strengthened our force majeure clauses and developed more sophisticated termination rights in our development agreements.

Communication and stakeholder management also becomes critical during instability. We’ve learned that maintaining transparent, frequent communication with investors, contractors, municipalities, and other stakeholders prevents minor issues from becoming major legal problems. Our legal strategy during crises focuses heavily on preserving relationships that are essential for long-term business recovery.

Finally, legal strategy must directly enable business resilience. During the recent period of real estate market volatility, our legal approach shifted from transaction facilitation to active business preservation – restructuring financing arrangements, renegotiating contractor terms, and developing creative solutions to maintain project viability. The legal function becomes a strategic partner in business survival, not just a compliance function.

Legal risks are evaluated through the lens of business continuity, and legal solutions are designed to preserve strategic optionality for when markets recover.

Have you had any experiences during your career as a lawyer that stand out as particularly unique or interesting?

Two experiences have particularly shaped my perspective as general counsel. The growth company journey provided invaluable insight into how legal infrastructure must evolve with business scaling. I witnessed firsthand how legal processes that work for a €50m company can become bottlenecks at €200m, and how the general counsel role transforms from primarily transactional support to strategic business partnership. This experience taught me to design legal frameworks that can scale with business growth rather than requiring complete restructuring at each expansion phase.

The market stress perspective has been equally formative. Having observed the real estate sector’s challenges from multiple vantage points – both as an insider supporting growth strategies and as an advisor during market downturns – has provided a unique understanding of how legal strategies must adapt to different business cycles. I’ve seen how companies that seemed invulnerable during growth periods faced existential challenges when market conditions shifted, and conversely, how well-structured legal foundations enabled organisations to not just survive, but also potentially emerge stronger from difficult periods.

This dual perspective has made me a more effective general counsel because I understand both the excitement of rapid expansion and the discipline required during contraction. It’s shaped my approach to risk management, contract structuring, and strategic planning in ways that purely growth-focused or purely defensive experiences could not have achieved.

What do you think are the most important attributes for a modern in-house counsel to possess?

The modern in-house counsel role has evolved dramatically, requiring a broader skill set than traditional legal practice.

Business acumen is fundamental – understanding how legal decisions impact business metrics, cash flow, and strategic objectives. In real estate development, this means grasping construction timelines, financing constraints, and market dynamics, not just contract terms.

Strategic thinking beyond legal risk management. Today’s general counsel must anticipate business needs, identify opportunities, and contribute to strategic planning. We’re expected to be business advisors who happen to have legal training, not lawyers who occasionally give business advice.

Technology fluency has become non-negotiable. Understanding how digital tools can enhance legal delivery, improve compliance monitoring, and provide business insights is essential. This includes everything from contract management systems to AI-powered legal research and document review.

Communication skills across multiple audiences – from technical legal explanations to board-ready executive summaries. The ability to translate complex legal concepts into business language determines your effectiveness as a strategic partner.

Adaptability and continuous learning because the regulatory landscape, business models, and technology tools are constantly evolving. What worked five years ago may be irrelevant today.

Most importantly, commercial judgment – the ability to make legal recommendations that advance business objectives while managing acceptable risk levels. Pure legal correctness without business context is rarely the optimal solution.

Based on your experiences in the past year, are there any trends in the legal or business world that you are keeping an eye on, of which you think other in-house lawyers should be mindful?

Several interconnected trends are reshaping both the legal profession and the real estate development sector, requiring heightened attention from in-house counsel.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration represents perhaps the most significant transformation in legal practice. We’re moving beyond simple document review to AI-powered contract analysis, regulatory monitoring, and risk assessment. However, the key is understanding AI as a tool that enhances legal judgment rather than replaces it. General counsel must become fluent in AI capabilities while maintaining critical oversight of AI-generated insights. The liability and ethical implications of AI-assisted legal work are still evolving, requiring careful navigation.

Regulatory complexity and velocity continue to accelerate, particularly in ESG, data protection, and cross-border compliance. The challenge isn’t just keeping up with new regulations but anticipating regulatory direction and building adaptive compliance frameworks. Real estate development faces particular complexity with the EU taxonomy, local environmental requirements, and evolving building standards.

Stakeholder capitalism and ESG accountability are transforming business decision-making processes. Legal departments must develop frameworks that balance traditional shareholder interests with broader stakeholder considerations while maintaining legal clarity and business viability.

Geopolitical risk management has become essential for any international business. Legal strategies must account for political instability, sanctions regimes, and changing international trade relationships. For real estate developers active across multiple markets, this requires sophisticated risk assessment and contingency planning.

Digital transformation of legal service delivery is accelerating, driven by both efficiency requirements and changing client expectations. This includes everything from AI-powered research to blockchain-based contract execution, requiring continuous learning and strategic technology adoption.

The overarching trend is the integration of legal strategy with business strategy becoming more essential and more complex simultaneously.