Colombia 2024 – GC Powerlist
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Colombia 2024

Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel

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  • Industries

  • Powerlist

Adriana Combatt

Vice president legal | Altra Investments

Financials

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Adriana Londoño Ángel

Legal director and general counsel | Ocensa - Oleoducto Central

Energy and utilities

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Alejandra Bonilla

General counsel and secretary | Frontera Energy

Energy and utilities

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Alejandro Amelines Guerrero

Legal and compliance manager Colombia | Fura Gems

Materials and mining

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Alejandro Jose Noguera Gutierrez

Legal and GR senior manager | Mercado Libre Colombia

Information technology

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Alvaro José Tovar Reyes

In-house legal counsel SR | Comunicacion Celular Claro Colombia

Telecommunication services

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Alvaro Montero Agón

Legal vice president | Banco Davivienda

Financials

Ana María Navarrete Frías

Legal lead Colombia – contracting counsel senior manager | Accenture

Information technology

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Ana María Flórez Ocampo

Legal vice president Colombia | Steward Health Care International Colombia

Healthcare

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Ana Maria Galindo

Senior contracts counsel | SLB

Information technology

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Andrea Eugenia Camargo Niño

Legal and compliance director, Colombia, Central America and the Caribbean | SGS Colombia

Commercial and professional services

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Andrea Zambrano

General counsel, compliance officer and head of corporate affairs | Tecnoglass

Industrials and real estate

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Andrés Felipe Silva Córdoba

General legal counsel of palm oil business | Aceites Manuelita

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Andrés Gustavo Varón Virguez

Legal manager | Primax Colombia

Energy and utilities

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Beatriz Eugenia Rivera Polanco

Advisor legal vicepresidency | Grupo Energía Bogotá

Energy and utilities

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Carlos Andrés Bonilla Sabogal

Legal vice president – Colombia and Perú | Cemex Colombia

Materials and mining

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Carlos Calderón

Associate legal director - North Latam | BioMarin

Healthcare

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Carlos César Barrero Vicuña

Head of legal and compliance | Mazda

Consumer products

Carlos Ernesto Ariza

Legal manager for Andean countries | Mercado Libre Colombia

Information technology

Carlos Felipe Payán Rodríguez

Corporate and legal counsel for Andean, CCA and Mexico. Compliance officer for the Andean Region | Avaya Communication de Colombia

Information technology

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Carlos Rave

Vice president of legal and corporate affairs | Valorem

Financials

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Carola Rojas Wulkop

Head of arbitration group | Refinería de Cartagena

Energy and utilities

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Carolina Botero Kling

Legal manager | Valorem

Financials

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Carolina Correal Rodríguez

Gerente legal | Coca-Cola FEMSA

Food

Carolina Fandiño Reyes

Gerente legal | Alquería

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Carolina Romero

Head of legal department | Haleon

Healthcare

Catalina Torres Artunduaga

Legal and corporate governance vice president | Grupo Colpatria

Financials

Catalina Guío Español

Directora Jurídica de Innovación  | Banco Davivienda

Financials

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Catalina Robledo Ramirez

Coporate counsel - legal, compliance and sustainability | Organización Espinosa

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Catalina Saavedra Ferreira

Senior legal manager for Colombia | GlaxoSmithKline Colombia

Healthcare

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Cesar Augusto Lozano Gutierrez

Legal and compliance manager | Riopaila Castilla

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Claudia Echavarria

Legal vice president and general secretary | Bancolombia

Financials

Claudia Renée Caballero-Leclercq

General counsel | Grupo Alpina

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Cristian Cruz Gonzalez

Legal director - general counsel | Credicorp Capital

Financials

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David Quiroz

Legal director Northern Cluster | Johnson & Johnson MedTech

Healthcare

Diana Marcela Silva Giraldo

Head legal M&A | Promigas

Energy and utilities

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Diana Patricia Ramirez Castro

Compliance officer and senior counsel for LATAM | Convatec

Healthcare

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Diana Solano

Legal director, general counsel - Colombia | Compass Group Services Colombia

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Diego Gaitán

Chief legal officer | Huawei Technologies Colombia

Information technology

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Dolly Murcia Borja

Legal vice president | Itaú Colombia

Financials

Elizabeth Villa Mesa

Legal affairs executive | ISAGEN

Energy and utilities

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Erwin Santamaria

Legal manager | Repsol

Energy and utilities

Fabian Moreno Barbosa

Head of legal and compliance Latam | WTW

Insurance

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Fernando Arbelaez Soto 

General counsel | ISAGEN

Energy and utilities

Fernando Victoria Peña

Chief legal officer | Teleperformance Middle Americas

Commercial and professional services

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Helena Álvarez Uribe

Head of legal and corporate affairs | Gases de Occidente - GdO   

Energy and utilities

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Ignacio Imas Innella

Legal counsel | IDB Invest

Financials

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Ingrid Pahl Maya

Senior legal counsel Covec Cluster | Mastercard Colombia

Financials

Jorge Adrián Rincón Plata

Chief legal officer | Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores

Financials

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Jorge Alberto Diaz Gomez

General secretary and legal director | Caracol Primera Cadena Radial Colombiana

Sports and media

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Jorge Andrés Torres Velandia

Legal business partner Latam and acting lead compliance manager Latam | Betsson Group

Hotels, restaurants and leisure

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Jorge Mario Castillo Salas

Senior general counsel | Automotores Toyota Colombia

Consumer products

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Juan Camilo Castro Salcedo

Managing counsel for Latin America | McKinsey & Company

Commercial and professional services

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Juan Carlos Restrepo

Director de lex | British American Tobacco

Food

Juan Felipe Cruz Ulloa

Associate legal director Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela | Abbott Laboratories

Healthcare

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Juan Guillermo López Palacio

Legal director | Bavaria & CIA

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Juan Háiver Arévalo Tovar

Legal manager | Scania Colombia

Consumer products

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Juan Pablo Barrera

Legal vice president, general counsel  | Hoteles Decameron

Hotels, restaurants and leisure

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Juan Pablo Ovalle Arana

Country counsel and LCR | IBM

Information technology

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Juana Beltrán Echeverri

Vicepresidente legal,secretaria general | Banco Pichincha

Financials

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Julian Graciano

Vice president legal | Yellowstone Capital Partners

Financials

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Juliana Hoyos Flórez 

General counsel | SierraCol Energy

Energy and utilities

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Juliana Castaño Ortiz

Senior vice president, legal | SURA Investments

Financials

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Katherine Rueda Chavez

Senior legal director Andean region | Visa

Financials

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Katherine Elizabeth Silva Hernández

Subdirector jurídico | Grupo Alsea Colombia

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Laura Jaramillo Franco

Head of law, patents and compliance for Bayer Andean, Central America and Caribbean Countries (PACA) | Bayer

Materials and mining

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Leonardo Berrio

Head of the legal department | Refinería de Cartagena

Energy and utilities

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Liliana Rodriguez Venegas

Gerente corporativa de asuntos legales | Darnel Group

Materials and mining

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Lillyana Cavelier Rueda

Legal director Latam | Yara

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Lina Nader Danies

Gerente de estrategia y asesoría legal | Ocensa - Oleoducto Central

Energy and utilities

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Lina María Betancourth Betancur

Legal manager | Colombina

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Luz Angela Maria Márquez Useche

Head of legal Colombia and Ecuador | Hitachi Energy Colombia

Energy and utilities

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M. Camila Quintero Leguízamo

Legal vice president | Ashmore CAF-AM Management Company

Financials

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Magda Morales Reyes

Legal manager Andean Cluster | Kuehne+Nagel

Transport and infrastructure

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Margaret Hirsch Coleman

Legal and compliance director | adidas

Consumer products

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Margarita Llorente

Vice president of corporate affairs, legal affairs and sustainability | Amarilo

Industrials and real estate

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Maria Del Mar Robles Zambrano

Head of legal | Grupo Sanford

Consumer products

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María Camila Silva Mogollón

Legal manager of Investment Banking | Investment Banking at Bancolombia (BIB)

Financials

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María Camila Molina Uribe

Legal manager | Rappi

Information technology

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María Fernanda Sánchez Álvarez

General counsel | ADL Digital Lab 

Information technology

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María Fernanda Acosta

Legal counsel | Fondo Latinoamericano de Reservas (FLAR)

Financials

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María Margarita Suárez Camargo

General legal counsel and corporate secretary | BBVA Valores Colombia

Financials

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Maria Neira

Legal affairs manager - Colombia and Dominican Republic | Air Liquide

Materials and mining

Mateo Arturo Rojas Guzman

Legal and compliance manager | Mattilda Colombia 

Information technology

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Mónica Jiménez González

Chief strategy, SPEED and legal officer | GeoPark

Energy and utilities

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Natalia Encinales Ariza

Legal director Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela | Abbott Laboratories

Healthcare

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Natalia Gutiérrez de Larrauri 

Legal director | Avianca

Transport and infrastructure

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Natalia Alarcón Bernal

Head of CIB legal | BNP Paribas Colombia

Financials

Natalia Caroprese

Senior regulatory counsel, Mexico; antitrust POC Latam; women of CLO global co-chair | Uber

Information technology

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Nelly Raquel Zegarra Villar

Legal director Colombia and Venezuela | PepsiCo Colombia

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Nestor Fagua Guauque

Legal and compliance vice president | Grupo Energía Bogotá

Energy and utilities

Nicolás Rozo Villarraga

General counsel | UBITS Learning Solutions

Information technology

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Nicolás Ruiz

Vice president legal, product and churn - Latin America | Grupo EMI / Falck

Healthcare

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Norma Constanza Arbelaez

Corporate legal manager LATAM | Manuelita Corporativa

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Oscar Vela Rentería

Legal manager | Petrobras International Braspetro

Energy and utilities

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Paola Valero

Legal director | L'Oréal

Consumer products

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Paola Alvarado Ariza

Chief business and legal affairs officer - CBO | Dynamo Producciones

Sports and media

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Paola Andrea Carrillo Zuluaga

Legal manager | Unilever

Industrials and real estate

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Paola María Posada Cuello

Lead counsel Colombia and Andean | Takeda Colombia

Healthcare

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Phyllis Gleiser

General counsel and compliance officer | Nestlé Colombia

Food, beverages and tobacco

Richard Galindo Sánchez

Chief legal officer | Avianca

Transport and infrastructure

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Rosalía Román Urcuyo

Chief counsel of non-sovereign operations, legal affairs | Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF)

Financials

Rosalía Roman-Urcuyo is chief counsel of non-sovereign operations, legal affairs at the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), leading the division within the legal department that supports...

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Santiago Castellanos

General counsel | Aris Mining Colombia

Materials and mining

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Santiago Lizarralde-Méndez

Legal director | Alianza Team

Food, beverages and tobacco

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Sara Calderón V.

Head of legal and business conduct | Gilead Sciences Colombia

Healthcare

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Sebastián Fernández Bonilla

Corporate legal manager | Sociedad Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones y Cesantías Porvenir

Financials

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Silvia Lucía Reyes Acevedo

Chief legal officer | Sociedad Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones y Cesantías Porvenir

Financials

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Tatiana Andrea González Cerón

General counsel beauty and wellbeing Latam, head of legal Andean region and data privacy and governance leader Latam | Unilever

Industrials and real estate

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Tatiana Hoyos Juliao

Legal counsel - Colombia and Peru | SLB

Information technology

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Victor Hugo Guerra Hernandez

Senior Counsel illicit trade prevention for Latam, Canada and the US | Philip Morris International

Food, beverages and tobacco

I am a dual-authorised lawyer in Colombia and Venezuela, with over thirty years of international experience as a business lawyer. My expertise lies in leading legal projects and navigating complex...

Viviana Prada Rey

Legal director of corporate affairs | Bancolombia

Financials

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William Enrique Olaya Pestana

General legal counsel sugar business | Manuelita

Food, beverages and tobacco

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The Legal 500 is thrilled to announce the release of the latest edition of the GC Powerlist: Colombia. This eagerly awaited publication celebrates the outstanding achievements of the country’s leading in-house lawyers.

In this edition, we highlight the pivotal contributions of in-house counsel to Colombian businesses, showcasing their expertise, leadership, and unwavering commitment to excellence. The 2024 edition shines a spotlight on the extraordinary accomplishments and innovative approaches of these legal professionals as they navigate the intricate landscape of Colombian law. From managing crises and adapting to regulatory changes to implementing artificial intelligence and advancing sustainability and diversity initiatives, these leaders exhibit remarkable resilience and adaptability in a rapidly evolving legal environment.

This publication includes detailed profiles and exclusive interviews with the most influential and esteemed in-house lawyers across various sectors in Colombia. These professionals excel in formulating legal strategies, managing risks, and offering strategic advice to their organisations. Their achievements not only serve as inspiration to the legal community but also demonstrate the significant impact in-house lawyers have on shaping their organisations’ business strategies and success.

Our research underscores the growing importance of aligning legal departments with senior management, highlighting the evolving role of general counsel as crucial business partners. As Ana María Navarrete Frías, Legal Lead Colombia – Contracting Counsel Senior Manager at Accenture, observes, “Maintaining a positive attitude is essential. Work with the business and leadership to develop strategies for navigating periods of instability or crisis, and align the legal function with that strategy. Encourage closer communication between business and legal departments, and support your legal team in staying calm and resilient during challenging times.”

In-house lawyers are also at the forefront of integrating sustainability measures within their organisations. Adriana Londoño Ángel, Legal Director and General Counsel at Ocensa – Oleoducto Central, highlights, “My legal team is instrumental in embedding sustainability into Ocensa’s governance framework. In addition to providing expert advice on sustainability reporting and regulatory compliance, we focus on creating robust contractual frameworks to support ESG strategic objectives. This includes developing clauses related to the circular economy, water management, social responsibility, and stringent HSE and human rights protections in our supplier contracts.”

This publication provides exclusive insights into the challenges and opportunities facing in-house legal teams. Delve into the GC Powerlist: Colombia 2024 to uncover the remarkable stories of these distinguished individuals. Through their experiences, we aim to offer a comprehensive overview of Colombia’s legal landscape, underscoring the vital role of in-house legal teams.

We extend our sincere gratitude to all the featured in-house lawyers for their invaluable contributions and for sharing their professional journeys with us. We are proud to present this distinguished list, celebrating Colombia’s most exceptional, dedicated, and esteemed in-house lawyers.

Sara Maggi| Lead editor – The Legal 500 GC Powerlist Colombia 2024

GC Powerlist Japan 2025

The Legal 500 was proud to host the third edition of the GC Powerlist: Japan 2025 at the Capitol Hotel Tokyu, honouring the top General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers, Legal Directors, and senior in-house legal professionals operating at the highest level of Japan’s corporate legal landscape. Held in Tokyo, this year’s reception welcomed around 100 of the most respected and senior corporate counsel from across Japan. It was an unrivalled success, and cements Legal 500’s status as the leading force in legal media supporting the achievements of in-house counsel in Japan. The GC Powerlist: Japan 2025 marks the continuation of our commitment to recognising excellence in-house, and this year’s edition represents the most competitive and selective list to date.

Joe Boswell, lead editor of the GC powerlist publication at The Legal 500, opened the evening with an introduction that reflected on the growing prestige of the Japan list. He emphasised how the Powerlist has grown stronger each year, both in scope and quality, making the task of selection more difficult. This year’s honourees emerged from a deeply competitive field, making their recognition even more meaningful.

Boswell extended heartfelt congratulations to all honourees and acknowledged the critical support of key partners and sponsors who made the evening possible. Special thanks were given to Anderson Mori & Tomotsune, Morrison Foerster, iManage, JustLegal, and SS&C Intralinks for their generous sponsorship and ongoing collaboration.

In a moment of reflection, Joe paid tribute to Tim Mackey, chief legal officer at SoftBank, who sadly passed away unexpectedly earlier this year. Tim had contributed to the Powerlist in each of its three editions and was known not only for his exceptional legal acumen but also for his warmth and generosity.

The evening featured insightful remarks from distinguished speakers representing our partners and the broader legal community: Mischa Mulligan, Japan Director at SS&C Intralinks; Hiroki Kodate, Partner and Management Committee Member at Anderson Mori & Tomotsune; Jeremy White, Global Co-Chair of M&A for Morrison Foerster; and, representing those awarded in the Powerlist, Naoki Hamada, General Counsel for Japan at HSBC.

Each speaker provided reflections on legal innovation, leadership, and the evolving role of in-house counsel in Japan’s corporate landscape. Their remarks added valuable context to the achievements celebrated throughout the evening.

The formal awards segment celebrated this year’s GC Powerlist honourees. With assistance from long-time collaborator Isaac Uchiyama who read out awardees’ names, recipients were invited to collect their certificates, pose for photographs, and be formally recognised by their peers.

Certificates were presented on stage by Hiroki Kodate or Anderson Mori & Tomotsune and Jeremy White of Morrison Foerster, whose participation further underlined the deep support of the Japanese and international legal communities.

The GC Powerlist: Japan 2025 reception reaffirmed Legal 500’s commitment to spotlighting the very best of in-house legal talent. With record levels of interest and unmatched quality among candidates, the Japan edition continues to solidify its place as one of the most respected publications in the global GC Powerlist series.

We extend our sincere congratulations to all honourees and thank our partners, sponsors, and speakers for making the evening a success.

We look forward to returning to Tokyo again next year. As a parting gift, you can view Naoki Hamada’s excellent keynote address below, where he touches on a lot of issues and themes that many other GC, whatever country they operate in, will recognise:

‘Good evening, everyone. I am Naoki Hamada of HSBC. I am very pleased to be here speaking to you today. It is a great pleasure and honor, and at the same time, I feel a bit overwhelmed being surrounded by the busiest and most expensive lawyers in the industry—even if I know that nobody will be charging us for their time. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Legal 500 for organizing such a great event, and Anderson Mori & Tomotsune, Morrison Foerster, iManage, SS&C Intralinks, and Just Legal for sponsoring and supporting it. And, huge congratulations on the recognition each of you is receiving, which is truly a great accomplishment and the result of your hard work and the accumulated trust the entire industry has placed in you.

It must be emphasized that this award is given only to general counsels. Being a general counsel means a lot more than just being a subject matter expert. You are a most reliable strategic partner for the business, and I am sure that you have distinguished yourself from the crowd by your ability to identify underlying risks, devise legal solutions, ensure the right processes and governance for corporate decisions, influence others, and educate the next generation of lawyers. This is what you are being recognized for.

Looking back on my career, I have been hugely helped by lawyers in other companies through various industry communities. When I joined the in-house world 12 years ago from a Japanese law firm, large international banks were all struggling with a huge wave of regulatory reform. Back then, I was relatively new to that particular area of finance, and my hiring was somewhat potential-based. Nonetheless, I was assigned to lead the regulatory reform efforts locally. My predecessor had left the bank before I joined, there was no sufficient handover, and I was completely lost as to what to do. What helped me most were the industry peer group discussions, where in-house counsels from major banks would get together to discuss common issues. I learned so much from what was discussed there and absorbed as much as I could. Without that network, I am sure that I wouldn’t have survived that time.

However, our situation today is far more difficult. The changes in the landscape we face today are unprecedented. Technological developments and the corresponding shifts in geopolitical and industrial landscapes are completely unpredictable, and the speed at which they happen is far faster than before. We might face a time that requires us to pivot, forcing us to redefine how we add value and rebuild the way we work. That is somewhat intimidating. But, I am confident that a way forward will be found through the collective wisdom and effort of the people in this room. I would like to be a part of that, and this network of people is enormously valuable and truly priceless.

Finally, let’s have a drink and celebrate our achievements for now – before your CEO calls asking you to join a call! Thank you so much.’