What are the most significant cases, projects or transactions that you and/or your legal team have recently been involved in?

El equipo legal de E.T. HEINSEN, S.A.S. es un departamento enfocado al cumplimiento obligatorio, negociaciones y asesorías dentro del sector logístico, por lo que, de forma general, el tipo de trabajo se engloba en lo siguiente:

Advice on operating permits and licenses: In the logistics sector, there are a series of permits and/or licenses very specific to the sector, which must be kept up to date in order to guarantee operations. Among the most important are the bond renewals that are presented to the General Directorate of Customs and the Ministry of Finance, taking into consideration that in order to carry out the aforementioned procedures, the corporate lawyer must know the terminology used in the customs sector. Therefore, it is evident that it is not only necessary to know the laws, likewise, when working in a particular sector, you must be legitimised in it in order to carry out the procedures correctly.

Verification of legal documents focused on prevention: The work of the corporate lawyer, regardless of the sector in which he or she works, focuses on the preparation and/or verification of legal documents. However, in the logistics sector in particular, it can be confirmed that the documentation is more delicate, because the legal team must have the ability to see risks on a large scale, such as how much damage can occur to merchandise and how much the company could cover, taking into account the clauses stipulated in insurance policies. Thus, it is evident that the sector goes hand in hand with insurers and risk mitigation. Therefore, it can be seen that the verification of documents from a preventive approach is of utmost importance in this sector.

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

The Legal Department works in coordination with the company’s management to ensure that, in the event of a major issue such as an interruption of operations by government institutions, responses and actions are taken immediately, as legal issues that arise outside of routine business routines typically require authorisation to proceed.

Likewise, it is important to note that the organisation is managed under previously established security and prevention criteria. Therefore, most risks and appropriate actions are already properly addressed. Consequently, we can say that the Legal Department performs prior verifications before the risk materialises, thus ensuring the organisation’s operational capacity.

AI has been taken seriously as a potentially revolutionary technological change in the legal world for a number of years now. Has it had a meaningful impact in how your legal team works in this time?

Artificial Intelligence is a tool that has impacted legal teams. This is because it allows us to verify any type of documentation more quickly and efficiently. Years ago, lawyers had to draft documents from scratch. However, over time, a database of documents has been created that we can view online. Today, this has been further enhanced by AI, as it focuses the document according to the applicant’s needs. Therefore, it takes less time to draft, which translates into greater efficiency.

Similarly, when analysing legal bases, AI allows for highly accurate comparisons with different regulations, allowing lawyers to be more critical and have a better foundation when issuing an opinion. Basically, it has become the best assistant, since it would not replace the lawyer as such, but would assist them in their daily activities.

Based on your experiences in the past year, are there any trends in the legal or business world that you are keeping an eye on that you think other in-house lawyers should be mindful of?

In my experience, a notable trend in the corporate world is the integration of legal departments into Management Systems. This strategy allows lawyers to play a more preventive role, focused on risk, quality, and transparency policies, which generates more sustainable results.

A practical example is the control of legal document expiration dates. This not only serves as a reference but also allows for the inclusion of useful observations for future procedures. These mechanisms support the organisation of the legal team, enabling more strategic management aligned with the company’s operational objectives.