Team size: Seven

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure organisational resilience?

Periods of instability often test whether a legal function merely reacts to developments or actively contributes to business resilience. My approach has always been to position the legal department as a strategic partner that enables informed decision-making while safeguarding the organisation’s long-term interests.

Operating within the Greek energy sector, we have experienced first-hand the impact of geopolitical developments, unprecedented energy market volatility, regulatory interventions, supply chain challenges and the accelerating transition towards a decarbonised energy system. In such an environment, legal strategy cannot be separated from business strategy.

My priority is to ensure that legal and regulatory considerations are embedded into the Company’s strategic planning process from the earliest stages. Whether we are evaluating investments in power generation, electricity and natural gas supply, battery energy storage systems (BESS), corporate PPAs, natural gas activities or strategic commercial partnerships, legal risk assessment forms part of the broader decision-making framework rather than a subsequent review process.

A critical component of organisational resilience is regulatory foresight. Energy markets are heavily influenced by evolving European and national regulatory frameworks. Accordingly, our legal team continuously monitors legislative developments, engages with regulatory stakeholders and works closely with management to anticipate potential legal and commercial implications before they materialise. This proactive approach allows the business to adapt quickly while maintaining regulatory compliance.

Resilience also depends on robust contractual and governance structures. Particular emphasis is placed on the allocation of regulatory, operational and market risks through commercial agreements, investment documentation and long-term energy arrangements. In parallel, strong compliance mechanisms ensure adherence to competition law, energy regulation, corporate governance requirements, data protection obligations and ESG-related expectations.

Equally important is cross-functional collaboration. Effective crisis management requires legal, regulatory, operational, commercial and finance teams to operate as a unified decision-making structure. One of my key objectives is to always translate complex legal and regulatory developments into practical business guidance that supports commercial agility while preserving legal certainty.

Ultimately, I strongly believe the role of an in-house legal leader extends beyond protecting the business from risk. It involves creating the legal and governance foundations that allow the Organisation to pursue growth opportunities, advance strategic projects and navigate uncertainty with confidence. In the rapidly evolving energy sector, organisational resilience is achieved when legal strategy not only mitigates risk but actively contributes to sustainable business transformation.

How do you see AI and automation reshaping the legal profession, and how are you leveraging technology in your own legal team?

Artificial intelligence is transforming the legal profession in much the same way that digitalisation has transformed the energy sector: by redefining processes, increasing efficiency and creating opportunities for more strategic decision-making.

I do not view AI as a replacement for legal expertise. Rather, I see it as a tool that allows legal professionals to focus on higher-value activities by automating repetitive processes such as document review, legal research, contract analysis and compliance monitoring. As legal departments face increasing workloads and growing regulatory complexity, technology has become an essential enabler of productivity and responsiveness.

Within our legal function, we are increasingly leveraging digital tools to improve knowledge management, contract administration, legal research and regulatory monitoring. Given the highly regulated nature of the electricity and natural gas sectors, the ability to track legislative and regulatory developments efficiently is particularly important. Technology enables us to process information more effectively and provide timely, business-oriented legal advice to internal stakeholders.

At the same time, legal departments have a critical governance role in relation to AI adoption across the organisation. As businesses integrate AI-driven solutions into their operations, legal teams are increasingly required to address issues relating to data protection, cybersecurity, intellectual property, contractual liability, transparency and compliance with emerging AI regulation.

Moreover, I believe that the future legal professional will be defined not only by legal expertise but also by the ability to combine legal judgement with technological literacy and commercial understanding. While AI can analyse vast amounts of information, it cannot replicate the strategic judgement, ethical reasoning and contextual assessment that underpin sound legal advice.

Ultimately, the most successful legal teams will be those that embrace technology responsibly while maintaining the professional standards, governance principles and business insight that remain at the heart of effective legal practice.

If you could change one thing about how businesses engage with their legal teams, what would it be and why?

If I could change one thing, it would be to ensure that legal teams are consistently involved at the strategic planning stage of business initiatives rather than only at the implementation stage.

In fast-evolving industries such as energy, legal and regulatory considerations are often integral to the success of a project. Whether the business is pursuing investments in, e.g., battery storage projects, corporate PPAs, strategic partnerships or mergers and acquisitions, legal input is most effective when provided at the outset of the decision-making process.

Too often, legal teams are engaged once commercial structures have already been designed and key assumptions have been established. While legal departments can still mitigate risk at that stage, opportunities to optimise transactions, address regulatory challenges proactively and create more sustainable business structures may already have been lost.

My experience has consistently demonstrated that early legal involvement generates substantial value. It enables organisations to assess regulatory feasibility, structure transactions more effectively, anticipate stakeholder expectations and reduce execution risk. This is particularly important in energy markets, where regulatory frameworks, licensing requirements, environmental obligations and evolving European policy objectives can significantly influence investment outcomes.

I also believe that modern legal departments should be measured not only by their ability to prevent problems but by their contribution to business objectives. Effective legal leaders combine legal expertise with commercial awareness, regulatory insight and strategic thinking. They help organisations identify opportunities, support innovation and facilitate growth while maintaining robust governance standards.
For legal teams to fulfil this role, they must communicate in commercially relevant terms and provide practical solutions rather than purely legal analysis. Equally, businesses should increasingly view their legal function as a trusted strategic advisor rather than solely a source of legal approvals.

In an environment shaped by energy transition, regulatory change and technological innovation, organisations achieve better outcomes when legal strategy and business strategy evolve together. That partnership ultimately creates stronger governance, better risk management and greater long-term value.