Michael Coates – GC Powerlist
GC Powerlist Logo
Benelux 2022

Energy and utilities

Michael Coates

General counsel and chief ethics and compliance officer | Shell

Download

Benelux 2022

legal500.com/gc-powerlist/

Recommended Individual

Michael Coates

General counsel and chief ethics and compliance officer | Shell

What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

Shell has more than 80,000 employees in 70 countries. We also work with over 150,000 contractors and seek to ensure they all work according to our high standards of ethics and compliance (E&C). Shell’s Ethics & Compliance Office supports Shell businesses and functions in a range of E&C activities including legal advice, direct E&C management, training, communications, and counter-party screening. In 2021, the team had the opportunity to work on high profile M&A transactions including the acquisition of ubitricity, a leading European provider of on-street charging for electric vehicles. More recently, Shell legal is providing support across a broad range of issues arising from the devasting war in the Ukraine.

What will be the main focus for the company in the next 12 months and how do you intend to assist with this?

Managing the impact of the war in the Ukraine is likely to be a key focus in the next 12 months and beyond. In addition, in early 2021, Shell announced its Powering Progress strategy which sets out our accelerated transition of our business to net-zero emissions. Importantly, Powering Progress is underpinned by our core values of honesty, integrity and respect for people. As chief ethics and compliance officer I focus on the integrity and ethical conduct of all staff and 2022 will be no different. Shell recently developed an Ethical Decision-Making Framework (EDMF) to help staff make values-based, ethical judgements regarding significant business decisions. A key focus in 2022 will be to continue to embed the EDMF in the day-to-day work and processes across the company.

What do you feel are the pros and cons of an in-house legal role compared to a private practice one?

In-house legal roles allow a greater scope for independent working. You are very invested in the work you do and how it forms part of the company’s bigger picture, and there are also opportunities to get involved in broader non-legal career paths. Linked to this, in-house counsel has an exposure to a variety of lawyers, law firms and working styles, which allows you to become a commercial and pragmatic lawyer. However, as an in-house lawyer you are confined to one industry, and that is why we encourage colleagues at Shell to stay connected with the profession externally through activities such as seminars and peer events.

Michael Coates - Benelux 2019

Associate general counsel - upstream | Shell International

Michael Coates started his current role in April 2017, relocating to Shell’s global headquarters in the Netherlands from London, where he served as Shell’s UK head of legal and associate...

View Powerlist

Related Powerlists

Susannah Collier

Associate general counsel - new energies

Shell International

View Powerlist

Michael Coates

Associate general counsel - upstream

Shell International

View Powerlist

Susannah Collier

Associate general counsel - new energies

Shell International

View Powerlist