First, can you please give us an idea of the sort of work your team has done recently?

Our Vienna-based legal function is providing a variety of legal services to the Germany-headquartered bank that we operate for – the core of our services are related to European corporate and investment banking transactions. The legal department’s function is to support transactions when it comes to structuring, negotiating and safeguarding the position of the bank from inception until repayment of a deal. Once a transaction closes and funds are disbursed, we advise during the whole lifecycle of a transaction.

A well-functioning legal department is indispensable to this – in particular considering the sanctions environment and recent changes related to this – as it applies legal and regulatory requirements correctly thereby ensuring together with regulators that the bank can function which ultimately protects the customer’s interests.

What would you say are the unique qualities required to be successful as an in-house lawyer in your industry?

An effective lawyer acts as a bridge builder. Like most industries, banking is a people business. Communication and translation are key for success. In-house lawyers are usually not ultimate dealmakers, but ideally deal facilitators.

It is crucial for the individual lawyer’s performance to add value to the work of the income generating units of a company. A major quality is applying decisions made by regulatory bodies correctly while translating these for colleagues and clients. Internal stakeholders must receive clear and detailed recommendations thereby offering them to see the big picture without missing details. External stakeholders shall be approached in a transparent way.

How do you suggest in-house lawyers build strong relationships with business partners?

In a global world, where we operate transnationally amongst various cultures, relying on trusted local business partners is essential as most jurisdictions demand local interaction. In fact, trust, sense of responsibility and ownership outweigh pure financial interest of service providers, especially during challenging times. It is during these times where in-house lawyers showcase their ability to understand and reveal ulterior motives of business partners.

In challenging situations, such as being confronted with business partners unwilling to cooperate, it must be clarified if in certain situations the clients’, regulator’s and bank’s interests enjoy great priority and must be shielded. When acted accordingly and in a conscious manner, former antagonists can turn into appreciated partners.