Serving for the last 17 years as the general counsel for VINCI, a global player in concessions and construction which earned over €40bn in revenue over 2017, Patrick Richard has occupied a prominent position in France’s in-house legal market since 2001. He started his career as a conference interpreter, and then went on to join the legal department of Dragages et Travaux Publics in 1983, before moving to the legal department of Vallourec in 1986.

Richard was appointed general counsel of Degrémont in 1991, a company specialising in the production of drinking water, and then as the general counsel of Dumez in 1993, then GTM in 1996 and then finally taking up his current position at VINCI in 2001. In addition, since 2006, he has served as secretary to VINCI’s board of directors. The in-depth knowledge he has amassed of the company’s operations is complimented by his expert legal skills allowing him to contribute effectively to VINCI’s business strategy including their recent ventures into Japan, Sweden and Brazil.