Team size: 3

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

During the past twelve months, my team and I have focused on the legal and contractual framework for developing and bringing online the facilities required to launch production at the Sirius Field — Colombia’s largest deepwater gas discovery and the country’s biggest gas find overall.

Can you describe an instance where your legal advice directly influenced business strategy or commercial objectives?

We found ways to renegotiate and strengthen our contract with the regulatory body overseeing Colombia’s subsurface resources. These changes gave us more flexibility in our planning and allowed us to deploy resources more strategically, ultimately extending our exploration activities well beyond what would have been possible — we’d have wrapped up this work by now or in 2028 otherwise.

How has the role of general counsel evolved, and what are the most important attributes for the modern in-house lawyer?

It happens more often than people admit, and I think the instinct to frame it as legal versus business is already the wrong starting point.

My role isn’t to block commercial decisions — it’s to make sure the risk is understood before one is made. When I push back, I do it with specifics: what’s the exposure, what triggers it, what it looks like if it materialises. That tends to move the conversation forward more than a flat refusal.

Where I don’t negotiate on is regulatory compliance and anything that could cause serious harm. Those aren’t judgment calls — and the earlier that’s established, the fewer late-stage conflicts you have.

What major challenges or risks should in-house legal teams be preparing for over the next twelve months?

Regulatory change, without question — AI governance, data privacy and ESG disclosure are all moving faster than most compliance programmes can keep up with.