What are the most significant cases, projects and/or transactions that you and/or your legal team have recently been involved in?

My role allows me to participate in multi-sectoral projects. Recently, my team and I have been deeply focused on several key projects and transactions that are vital to our company’s growth and operational efficiency.

First and foremost, we spearheaded the comprehensive legal strategy for the deployment and implementation of our brand’s global identity transformation within the DR. Navigating a complex landscape of regulatory compliance and operational synergy, the legal department acted as a pivotal business enabler. Beyond standard legal risk mitigation, we designed and implemented agile contract management systems with vendors and fostered tight institutional collaboration, ensuring the market rollout was achieved within the scheduled launch deadline.

Second, we drove the legal framework for the company’s national expansion and operational convergence. Specifically, my team and I spearheaded the complex real estate restructuring, meticulously drafting and reviewing all lease agreements required to unify our health and insurance branches into single, integrated hubs across 7 of the country’s prime provinces. Furthermore, we structured and negotiated the critical engineering and construction contracts necessary for these remodelling efforts. By doing so, the legal department directly enabled a seamless, unified customer service experience while optimising the company’s geographical and operational footprint.

Third, I actively participate in the special commission dedicated to the comprehensive reform of the DR social security and insurance framework. In this high-impact role, I closely collaborate with business sector commissions and specialised legal committees to drive systemic updates across the country’s social security, insurance, and sector-specific healthcare and pension regulations. By fostering synergy between private-sector interests and regulatory objectives, my involvement ensures that these legislative modernisations not only align with international best practices but also provide robust, future-proof legal foundations for the entire financial and social protection ecosystem.

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

In times of instability, proactive legal and compliance management is crucial to safeguarding the organisation. Effective crisis leadership requires strategic planning and decisive action. To ensure resilience, my approach focuses on four key pillars: first, providing clear leadership to keep the team aligned with recovery goals; second, anticipating potential scenarios and implementing protocols for swift risk mitigation; third, maintaining transparent communication throughout the process; and fourth, reinforcing regulatory compliance and robust contract management to control third-party exposure and protect the organisation from potential liabilities.

What do you think is the greatest innovation you have enacted in the past year?

Our greatest innovation over the past year has been the integration of Harvey, a specialised Generative AI platform for the legal sector. Far from being a mere digital tool, Harvey has fundamentally redefined our legal operations. It has acted as a force multiplier for our team by slashing turnaround times on complex contract analysis and accelerating legal research from days to minutes. By leveraging its advanced capabilities to scrutinise multi-jurisdictional precedents and generate highly precise preliminary drafts, we have dramatically optimised our response times to internal business units. Ultimately, this innovation has freed our legal talent from repetitive analytical tasks, allowing us to pivot our focus towards high-value strategic decision-making and proactive risk management.

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

A modern in-house counsel must transcend the traditional role of a legal gatekeeper to become a pivotal business enabler. In my view, the most critical attributes are commercial acumen, adaptive leadership, and a commitment to continuous improvement. First, being a business enabler means understanding the company’s risk appetite and commercial goals, transforming complex legal frameworks into actionable, strategic advantages. Second, a dedication to digital and operational transformation—such as embracing LegalTech and AI—is non-negotiable for driving efficiency. Ultimately, the modern counsel must possess a growth mindset, ensuring the legal department evolves at the same speed as the business to proactively protect and drive corporate value.