Focus on legal leadership in uncertain times

The requirement for high environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards in the different jurisdictions where industrial projects are currently being developed has become part of their design. However, the new global work paradigm, where digitalisation and uncertainty coexist, requires the deployment of capabilities that allow organisations to provide security in hybrid work environments -which combine face-to-face and virtual. Such environments are constantly changing economically, socially, politically, and technologically.

This new paradigm requires a different legal leadership in organisations; one that is capable of providing the legal certainty necessary to make investments, but which, at the same time, contemplates the design of legal vehicles with the necessary flexibility to adapt quickly to constant change, and thus mitigate legal and regulatory risks.

It is in this context that the role of in-house counsel has the potential to help the implementation or growth of an investment project to connect with the dynamism of civil society and ultimately with the long-term sustainability of the business. To play this game, not only an elevated level of legal knowledge and a deep understanding of the business is required; in-house counsel also need to possess the ability to understand the fundamentals of regulatory changes and the different scenarios towards which these could evolve.