Team size: 10

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

Over the past year, my team has managed a range of highly sensitive cases for the Group. A notable success was the rapid closing, without sanction, of a European Commission inquiry into Soitec. We are also currently leading several high-stakes pre-litigation and litigation cases involving former suppliers and a customer.

Additionally, we concluded two major financing agreements in under three months—a Schuldschein and a loan with the EIB – totaling €350 million. We also successfully completed the sale of loss-making assets.

On a broader and more strategic level, we have been streamlining and aligning the Group’s decision-making and risk management processes by creating and deploying 14 Group General Management Policies over the past four years, which have proven highly effective. We have also implemented automated tools to manage the review and conclusion of smaller-stakes agreements, delivering significant time savings for all internal stakeholders.

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

Team cohesion across the organisation is critical to maintaining motivation. At a minimum, the simple pleasure of working together is a strong motivator, so I ensure we spend quality time as a team and emphasise how crucial each member’s role is in protecting and defending the Group’s interests at such a critical time. At the same time, I manage our budget prudently, controlling expenses and keeping processes lean to avoid overwhelming the team. We implement automated tools wherever possible, allowing the team to focus on high-stakes projects rather than low-stakes or administrative tasks, while continuing to invest in solutions – such as AI tools for contract review – that save both time and money.

Have you had any experiences during your career as a lawyer that stand out as particularly unique or interesting?

Yes, I have been involved in managing multi-jurisdictional antitrust investigations and the follow-on claims by customers. The stakes for the Group I was working with at the time were such that its financial survival was at risk. The first phase involved defining a global strategy for handling the various investigations and preparing the defence, with the challenge that actions in one jurisdiction could impact others. The work required was colossal but ultimately successful: we managed to contain the sanctions – in some jurisdictions the case was closed without any sanctions, while in others the sanctions were limited – resulting in an overall very positive outcome. We then managed the follow-on actions by customers, which were all effectively contained.

Given the current geopolitical shifts and growing uncertainties around international free trade, has your company’s risk profile evolved, and are you taking measures to address these challenges?

Yes, Soitec, being in the semiconductor industry, is highly exposed to trade sanctions and export control regulations. The growing regionalisation of the world, driven by the policy directions of the USA and China, is forcing the industry to adjust strategies, ensure local presence, establish partnerships, and adapt contracts to maintain business continuity and anticipate potential tariff increases.

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?

It is beginning to have an impact. We have tested a number of AI tools designed for contract review; some are promising, while others lag behind. So far, we have not yet found a tool that fully meets our expectations, although we are getting close. We are also using more general AI tools, such as ChatGPT Pro, which we find useful for certain tasks. We fully anticipate that the use of such AI tools will continue to grow, and we look forward to it.

What is a cause, business or otherwise, that you are passionate about? Why is this?

Securing business while protecting the company’s best interests, while also promoting ESG throughout the value chain. Soitec manufactures substrates that enable power savings in an industry often criticised for rising energy consumption.

What factors influence your team’s decision to use external legal services versus handling matters in-house, and what criteria are used to evaluate their performance?

We use external counsel for matters requiring a high degree of expertise, such as cross-border M&A transactions, group financings like securitisation programmes, or when required, such as in court litigation. For day-to-day matters, we manage everything internally.

How does your team contribute to the overall business strategy of the company? Can you share an example of a recent legal-led initiative that had a significant impact?

We deployed several Group management policies, including the Contract Review Policy, which aims to align the Group in identifying, making decisions on, and managing risks when entering any new sales, purchase, or R&D business relationship. This has had multiple impacts across the organisation: raising awareness of risks and aligning the entire organisation on the various options available to manage them efficiently.

Looking forward, what trends do you foresee in the legal landscape over the next 5–10 years that companies should prepare for?

Definitely AI: it will revolutionise the way we work, enabling lawyers to focus more on strategic thinking, as they will no longer need to be occupied with low-level contract review, conclusion, and administrative tasks.