Legal manager Dominican Republic | Cerveceria Nacional Dominicana
Legal and compliance manager | E.T. Heinsen
Head of legal document preparation department | Ministerio de Hacienda de la República Dominicana
Vice president of legal services and corporate governance | Banco Múltiple BHD
General counsel | Banco de Desarrollo y Exportaciones (BANDEX)
Ena has more than 20 years of professional practice in different areas of law, with extensive experience in public and private management, handling highly complex cases throughout her professional career,...
In-house legal manager | Agentes y Estibadores Portuarios (Ageport)
Legal and compliance director | Primma Valores, Puesto de Bolsa
Vice president, legal and governmental affairs | AES Dominicana
Legal and compliance director | Nestlé Dominicana
Vice chancellor of foreign affairs and legal counselor | Universidad Tecnológica de Santiago (UTESA)
General counsel and corporate governance director | Banesco Banco Múltiple
Assistant general counsel, legal operations – Latam and Caribbean | Phoenix Tower International
Senior associate | GASA Consultores
Legal director | Asociación de Bancos Múltiples de la República Dominicana (ABA)
Corporate legal manager | Banco de Desarrollo y Exportaciones (BANDEX)
Head of the verification of standards and legal compliance department | Ministerio de Hacienda de la República Dominicana
Corporate legal manager | Pasteurizadora Rica (Grupo Rica)
Manager external affairs Caribbean | Philip Morris Dominicana
Legal advisor | Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM)
Senior manager of regulation | Asociación de Bancos Múltiples de la República Dominicana (ABA)
Legal director | Corporación Hotelera del Mar
Liliana Torres has 19 years of experience mainly in the in the eastern region of the Dominican Republic (Punta Cana, Bávaro, Cap Cana)., and her main practice areas are civil,...
Vice president of legal affairs and regulatory compliance | Banco Popular Dominicano, Banco Múltiple
Graduated in Law cum laude from the Pontifical Mother and Teacher Catholic University, has completed master’s studies in Economic Analysis of Law with specialisation in financial operations at the Torcuato...
Legal director | InterEnergy Group (Dominican Republic)
Legal affairs and compliance manager | Industrias Banilejas
Vice president, general counsel - Latam | Phoenix Tower International
Legal manager | Banco Múltiple Promerica de la República Dominicana
Vice president of financial intermediation unit, consulting | Banco Múltiple BHD
Legal director | Tesorería de la Seguridad Social (TSS)
Legal and compliance manager | UC – United Capital Puesto de Bolsa
Head of legal | Empresa de Generación Eléctrica Punta Catalina (EGEPC)
Legal counsel | Globalia Servicios Corporativos RD
In-House lawyer | Lifestyle Holidays Vacation Club
Legal and regulatory director | Altice Dominicana
Legal counsel | Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (AERODOM)
It has been a true privilege to lead the research for The Legal 500 GC Powerlist: Dominican Republic, 2024, once again highlighting the outstanding legal talent and innovation within this dynamic region. The energy and enthusiasm of the in-house counsel we had the pleasure of speaking to was truly inspiring, but what stood out even more was the remarkable evolution in the scope and complexity of the work they are driving across various industries. This edition offers a closer look at the key projects they’ve been involved in, how they navigate the ever-shifting legal landscape, and the issues that matter most to them personally and professionally.
This year, a significant theme that emerged from our conversations was the role of sustainability and ESG initiatives, particularly in how legal teams are embedding these values into their companies’ strategies. Many of the in-house counsel shared how their legal departments are becoming critical partners in driving sustainable growth and adhering to global standards on environmental, social, and governance matters. For example, Lauren Vargas, Corporate Legal Manager at Pasteurizadora Rica emphasised that ‘our role as legal counsel is to ensure that every step in our sustainability roadmap aligns with both local and international regulatory frameworks’.
Another striking trend we observed was the continued acceleration of digital innovation across industries. Legal teams are not just supporting this transformation—they are often at the forefront, crafting the frameworks that allow these advances to take place securely and within the bounds of the law. Yudith Castillo shared how ‘digital transformation is a significant and fascinating challenge in many countries, as it will inevitably bring about new laws or modifications to existing ones, which cannot be delayed. I am a firm believer in staying updated with such developments, striving to be open-minded and objective in recognising and understanding what we once considered unthinkable.’
Despite the challenges posed by global uncertainties and shifting regulatory environments, the resilience and adaptability of the in-house counsel in this edition shone through. Staying informed and agile was a common theme, with legal professionals detailing how they consistently engage with updates to laws and best practices. This includes everything from attending international conferences to seeking specialised advice from external experts.
In addition to their legal achievements, the counsel we spoke with also shared their dedication to causes that resonate with them personally. This year’s responses ranged from diversity and inclusion to mental health advocacy in the workplace, reflecting the broader role that in-house lawyers are playing in shaping company culture and driving positive change within their organisations.
We would like to extend our sincere congratulations to all the in-house counsel featured in this 2024 edition of the GC Powerlist: Dominican Republic. Their innovation, dedication, and leadership continue to set new benchmarks in the legal profession, and it has been an honor to engage with such a talented group of professionals. We look forward to seeing their ongoing contributions and impact in the years to come.
Margherita Birri, Lead researcher: GC Powerlist Dominican Republic 2024
Legal 500 launched the fifth edition of GC Summit Japan in Tokyo on October 3rd, bringing together the top in-house legal leaders and professionals from across Japan at the beautiful Grand Ballroom of the Peninsula Hotel, opposite the Imperial Palace. Gathering over 150 attendees, the event provided a great opportunity for legal teams to dive into the main challenges they’re facing and explore new opportunities among peers.
Opening remarks were provided by the highly accomplished and universally respected GC of Fujitsu, Kyoko Mizuguchi. Her speech touched upon a number of issues, but went into detail on technological advancements for in-house legal teams and how these can be used to increase efficiencies.
Tsuyoshi Ikeda of Ikeda & Someya was joined by associate Aya Yasui on stage to lead an extremely detailed look at their firm’s specialist subject, that of competition law. They had assembled a crack panel to feed in to the session, with Naoko Teranishi of The Japan Fair Trade Commission, Naokuni Kuwagata of Novartis Pharma and Keiko Uchida of Roche Diagnostics.
Rimon Law’s Intellectual Property session followed, which provided the four speakers on stage ample opportunity to showcase both their expertise and their engaging personalities. Eric D. Kirsch and David E. Case of Rimon Law were joined by Natsue Ishida, managing director of legal and intellectual property division at SEGA Sammy Holdings and Nobumasa Hiroi, global general counsel of Mujin for this hugely interesting discussion.
The post-coffee break session on Global Whistleblowing Systems in association with GI&T Law Office was extremely detailed, providing a practical look into the challenges faced by in-house lawyers in Japan in implementing global systems that meet varying regulatory requirements across jurisdictions. Mihoko Kawamizu (general counsel of Philips) and Koh Yamaki (senior manager, compliance dept., Hitachi) gave extremely valuable insights into their own companies’ systems and how they were set up, with founding partner Kengo Nishigaki being joined by Hiroko Miyazaki, Patrick Forman and Yuji Yamamoto of GI&T Law Office to give their expert perspectives.
Kenta Ikeb and Izuru Goto of City-Yuwa Partners then took to the stage to give their take on the current regulatory landscape for digital assets in Japan. Aided by a meticulously researched presentation, they provided a thorough overview of the state of play.
Atsumi & Sakai’s session on cybercrime received very positive feedback from the audience and inspired a lot of questions. Takafumi Ochiai and Daniel Jarrett of Atsumi & Sakai were joined by an interesting mix of in-house counsel: Brian Yu of Tencent, Mina Hoshizawa of Bayer and Andreas Höppel of Koki Group. Together, they outlined the threats and countermeasures each of their organisations face, providing an overview of the current cybercrime landscape for large corporates in Japan.
The next panel, managing international disputes, featured partners from two major international law firms (Peter Harris of Clifford Chance and Dominic Sharman of Baker McKenzie) and senior corporate counsel from two large international companies (Tomoya Hashimoto of Marubeni and Ryo Asakura of Olympus Corporation) to provide a balanced outlook of potential challenges in international disputes. As well as the theoretical side of matters, we looked at practical examples of challenges faced in disputes, advice on when to settle and potential traps to avoid, making this session a standout.
Finally, the Legal 500 invited a panel of some of Japan’s top general counsel from a variety of industry sectors to form a panel conversation on the changing role of in-house counsel, moderated by Editor Joe Boswell: Naoki Hamada, general counsel Japan, HSBC; Fumika Ito, general counsel, SAP; Toshimi Itakura, general manager, legal department, Sojitz; and Yuichiro Watanabe, lead counsel, Airbnb Japan were the hugely talented individuals who lent the benefit of their expertise to the audience. As well as discussing the ways in which corporate counsel’s responsibilities have changed in the past ten years, we discussed how to chart a rewarding career path as an in-house counsel and how to achieve the best work-life balance.
With every year, the audience for our Japan GC Summit grows, both in numbers and the seniority of attendees. We look forward to putting on an even more impressive 2025 event, and if you would like to be a part of it, please get in touch with [email protected]
