Colombia 2026
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
Legal and compliance manager, Colombia | FURA Gems Inc.
VP, legal affairs | Steward Health Care International Colombia S.A.S.
Legal lead Colombia – contracting counsel senior manager | Accenture Ltda.
Senior advisor | Grupo Energía Bogotá S.A. E.S.P.
Associate legal director, NOLA & South Cone region | BioMarin
Legal director, Colombia; Global director of corporate and finance | Rappi
Senior corporate and legal counsel, Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Central America and Caribbean Islands | Avaya Communication de Colombia S.A.
Legal and compliance director | Job&Talent
Legal director, Andean Cluster & Central America and the Caribbean | Haleon Colombia S.A.S.
Senior legal manager | GlaxoSmithKline Colombia S.A
VP, legal and corporate affairs | Alpina Colombia
Legal and compliance manager and compliance officer | Mazda de Colombia
VP, corporate and legal affairs and chief transformation officer | Organización Terpel S.A.
Chief legal officer, Middle Americas region | Teleperformance (TP)
Deputy general counsel and head of legal, Latin America | McKinsey & Company
Legal director | Bavaria & CIA S.C.A. AB-Inbev
Legal, public affairs and sustainability director; antitrust, data privacy and ethics and compliance officer; Renault foundation director, Colombia | Renault Sofasa
Director of corporate affairs, head of legal and corporate affairs function | Grupo Energía Bogotá
Head of law, patents and compliance, Central America and Andean Countries | Bayer S.A.
Legal director | Riga Asset Management SAS
Head of legal, Colombia & Ecuador (until May 2026) | Hitachi Energy Colombia S.A.S.
Cluster legal counsel and data protection manager | Kuehne + Nagel
Head of legal, corporate, international and treasury banking | Banco de Bogotá S.A.
Senior director, assistant general counsel, lead commercial lawyer (Colombia) | Cargill
General counsel and corporate secretary | ADL Digital Lab S.A.S.
Legal counsel and brand protection manager | Diageo Colombia S.A.
Head of legal | ALPINA PRODUCTOS ALIMENTICIOS S.A.S. BIC
Legal and compliance director, Northern South America | Bureau Veritas
Legal and compliance manager, Andean Region | McCain Foods Limited
Head of legal and judicial legal representative | Organización Terpel S.A.
Legal director, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela | Abbott
Lead counsel, Colombia and Andean region | Takeda Colombia
Legal manager, CCA and legal lead for Latin America distribution business unit | Cummins Inc.
Chief counsel of non-sovereign operations, legal affairs | Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF)
General counsel, beauty and wellbeing and head of legal Andean region | Unilever
Global counsel, global commercial operations | Energizer Holdings, Inc.
Legal director | Concesión Aeropuertos de Oriente S.A.S.
Senior legal and compliance director, America, Andean Countries, Chile and Venezuela | Mondelēz International
Senior legal director, Latin America North, Central America and the Caribbean | Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine Latinoamérica
Legal and compliance director | Novo Nordisk Colombia
Head of legal, Colombia & Peru and executive director | Banco J.P. Morgan Colombia
Contracts manager, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru | SLB
I am delighted to introduce Legal 500’s GC Powerlist: Colombia 2026, in recognition of the key role that in-house lawyers play in today’s legal and business landscape.
Against a backdrop of rapid geopolitical, economic and technological change, companies and their legal teams are being called upon to navigate increasing complexity, manage risk and support business growth.
As Ana Maria Galindo Lozano, senior contracts counsel at SLB, notes, ‘the practice of law has undergone a profound transformation’. The role of general counsel (GC) has had to evolve alongside it. GCs are no longer solely advisors, but also business partners, strategic interpreters and decision-makers.
Their influence within organisations continues to grow. ‘The role of the in-house lawyer is not to act as a barrier to growth, but rather to help the organisation achieve its commercial objectives within a sound legal and ethical framework’, explains Carlos Andrés Bonilla Sabogal, legal VP Colombia and Perú at Cemex Colombia S.A. Achieving this requires a ‘deep understanding of the business, industry dynamics, corporate governance and enterprise risk’, adds Beatriz Eugenia Rivera Polanco, senior advisor at Grupo Energía Bogotá.
But the modern GC’s expertise must extend beyond the legal – and the business. The role’s ‘evolution requires a combination of strong technical expertise and a deep understanding of the business environment’, points out Carlos Calderón, associate legal director NOLA and South Cone region at BioMarin.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a key example. No longer viewed as an emerging technology, AI has become a strategic priority for organisations, many of which are now moving beyond implementation towards optimisation. As a result, legal teams are playing a central role in enabling its integration.
‘AI presents a significant opportunity for legal departments to enhance efficiency and focus resources on higher-value strategic work’, explains Adriana Londoño Ángel, legal VP at Hoteles Decameron. But, she continues, ‘legal teams should ensure that the use of AI complies with confidentiality obligations, data protection requirements, cybersecurity standards and ethical considerations’.
AI’s potential is accompanied by significant risks. ‘Its use must be governed by clear policies to protect confidential and personal data and ensure accountability’, warns Tatiana González C, head of legal, Andean Region, at Unilever. Human oversight remains essential to maintaining quality, governance and trust. As Fernando Victoria Pena, legal and compliance director, Andean Region, at Teleperformance, observes: ‘In practice, this means AI does not replace legal judgment; it amplifies it’.
On 4th August, Legal 500 returned to Bogotá for the launch of the GC Powerlist: Colombia 2026, in partnership with Baker McKenzie.
Guests arrived at Castanyoles Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Casa Medina for an evening of celebration and networking with peers and colleagues.
Isabel Caine, editor – corporate counsel at Legal 500, kicked off the evening, touching on the increasingly integral role of the GC as a trusted partner and strategic decision maker within the business. Paying tribute to the nominees’ achievements, dedication and commitment over the past year, she reflected on the vital contributions in-house counsel make within their organisations and beyond.
Alejandro Mesa, managing partner at Baker McKenzie Colombia, then delivered a welcome address on behalf of the firm, congratulating those included in the Powerlist and recognising the invaluable partnership between in-house and external counsel.
This year’s Powerlisters were then invited to collect their certificates and have their official photographs taken. The evening continued with lively discussions and networking as attendees shared insights, ideas and experiences over drinks and canapés.
Legal 500 would like to congratulate everyone included in the 2026 edition of the GC Powerlist: Colombia and thank Baker McKenzie for their partnership in bringing this event to life.
