About

What are the most important transactions and litigations that you have been involved in during the last two years?

There are a number of agreements I’ve been involved with. Among them are finalising a three-year-long agreement where cutting-edge technology was introduced to ground handling activities.

Also, negotiating a longterm lease for a new headquarters for our company, completing a specialised International Air Transport Association Standard Ground Handling Agreement (SGHA) with international airlines and facilitating the purchase of specialised ground handling equipment worth millions of Euros from providers across Europe.

I’ve also worked on insurance agreements with an insured sum reaching well into tens of millions of Euros, took part in the creation of Polska Grupa Lotnicza (PGL) of which LS Airport Services became a part of.

I have advised on a variety of high-risk cases from a broad legal spectrum, including a toxic waste incident with human casualties, decades-spanning employment law cases, multimillion-Euro credit agreements and many more.

How important are “soft skills” or personal attributes outside of technical legal skill, and which “soft skills” do you feel are most important for an in-house lawyer to possess?

Without a doubt, a general counsel’s most important attribute is simply their sincere willingness to provide help to co-workers and contractors in need. This attitude translates directly to the creation of long-term, beneficial relationships to all involved. From the aforementioned should come a mental flexibility in presenting problems in different ways and creating equally diverse solutions, as well as patience and a hands-on, forward attitude. Lastly, everything should be complemented by foresight of the employer’s needs and problems.

What are the main qualities you look for in a potential new hire?

The candidate should have a willingness to learn and challenge past experiences, be humble, have an open-minded attitude and genuine friendliness combined with sincerity when dealing with co-workers.

What advice would you give to any peers or colleagues working in the Polish market for the first time?

It is important to gather as much experience as possible from different sectors of the industry. The ability to present different perspectives of the same problem and its solution become invaluable regardless of which part of the sector you will finally end up in. Each and every person has some qualities and knowledge which you should adopt – just look for them. Don’t be disheartened by small failures.

What can law firms in Poland, and the wider CEE region, do to win more business from you?

I am always looking for a more down-to-earth, straightforward approach from law firms. That should present itself not only in a friendly and direct contact between a general counsel and the external lawyers but also extend to the way the law firm handles direct contact with the company’s employees. One should never forget that laconic or overly formal and complicated solutions, even though legally correct, may dishearten employees in the future, if not presented in a user-friendly manner.

Furthermore, I require law firms to be aware that providing legal services extends not only in dealing with the problem itself but also in providing justification for the proposed solution, examining different aspects of the solution for different parts of the company.

FOCUS ON… SPECIALISATION

A genuine generalist general counsel – necessity or myth?

Specialisation is the new go-to word in the legal market. Should a general counsel adopt this position? My initial reaction is to strongly disagree. However, can you remain a generalist after years of practice? Not really, and that is the problem, a general counsel should actively seek exposure to different areas of law.

The emerging trend for students and young lawyers is to specialise early as a fast-track to gaining recognisability in a difficult job market. Usually the first decision boils down to choosing between civil and criminal law and – as a consequence – corporate and private practice. Even though we finish university with a supposedly general legal knowledge, each of the aforementioned decisions effectively makes us drift towards specialisation. As a result, relatively quickly for a young lawyer, such specialisation allows them to reap financial benefits, while providing stability and certainty of employment. It also provides highly sought after self-confidence and good self-esteem.

Said specialisation occurs even for us – general counsels. Obviously, we tend to gravitate towards the area of law most requested and beneficial for our employers. Continued exposure to the same element increases the risk of repeating the same process as the aforementioned law students and young lawyers. However, in comparison, we have the advantage of wisdom and experience to distinguish between short-term and long-term rewards.

At this point, we have to remember the realities of a general counsel’s position, where you are the focal point of a constant stream of queries from all areas of law. There is also an expectation to be able to at least supervise in all those different areas. How can one fulfil those expectations if we all drift toward specialisation? The answer is simple – a general counsel has to actively seek experience in different areas of law, even if it means requesting the tutelage of an external specialist.

A general counsel has the opportunity of requesting external help if necessary. We cannot allow ourselves not to use this tool just because we are afraid of being regarded as unqualified for the job at hand. We cannot fall under the dictate of our own pride to appear as the all-knowing lawyer to the non-practitioners who are not aware of the rapid and extensive development of certain branches of law. The goal which we should aim for is the mythical expert-generalist. Truthfully, a calm assessment of our own strengths and weaknesses is only beneficial to our employer, who should only be concerned about the final result. The most important thing is for the job to done well, by the best people with the necessary expertise to deal with the current problem, even if that is not the general counsel himself or herself. Such conduct creates a long-lasting relationship based on mutual understanding and trust, which is the foundation of our job – helping our employers to safely reach their objectives and to plan together for the future.