In September 2003 Javier López Zafra was hired by L’Oréal Spain as general counsel. Nominators spoke highly of his capabilities as an expert in-house lawyer for the Spanish arm of the French personal care company, saying, ‘he is a committed and business-oriented lawyer, a good team leader who takes care of his team, and an individual who possesses excellent legal skills. He is also very commercial and well connected’.

Today he serves the company in the multifaceted role of general counsel, secretary of the board and public affairs and ethics director and has gained industry credit for working on a number of acquisitions in the beauty industry, navigating advertising issues whilst ensuring compliance to anti-trust policies in the process. ‘In 2017, he led the Spanish closing of the sale of the Body Shop to the Brazilian group Natura. Additionally, he has successfully represented the company in several litigation procedures, in which he has defended the selective brands of Grupo L’Oreal against a number of acts of illegal commerce including illegal import, free riding and counterfeits’, a nominator states. López Zafra has also taken an active role in the digital transformation of the company and ensures his legal department works closely with the operational teams as a business partner by being proactive in order to anticipate issues which has fostered greater cooperation with other departments. Before L’Oréal, he was general counsel of automotive company Dalphimetal (now TRW Group) for four years and spent time as an associate at the Spanish law firm Garrigues.