Italy 2024
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
Head of legal Italy at BBVA - corporate and investment banking | Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) - Italian Branch
General counsel | Gucci
Antonella Centra is executive vice president general counsel, corporate affairs and sustainability at Gucci. During a career spanning more than 25 years, she practiced law as a transformational tool to...
Legal affairs, external affairs and corporate communications director | Vodafone
General counsel | Generali Italia
Cristina Rustignoli graduated in law with honours at the University of Trieste and passed the Italian Bar exam. In her professional career she has gained extensive and consolidated experience in...
Director of Corporate Affairs and Major Transactions | Wind Tre
General counsel and company secretary | Dolce & Gabbana
Fabrizio Caretta is an Italian lawyer, graduated at the University of Turin and admitted at the Bar in Turin in 1996. In 1995, he joined Fila Group, one on the...
General counsel and head of legal and compliance | Italiaonline
Head of legal affairs and commercial negotiations, legal assistance, finance, M&A and strategic partnerships | Eni
Human Resources&Legal and Corporate Affairs Director | Kuwait Petroleum Italia
General counsel | Enel
Francesco Puntillo was appointed head of legal, corporate, regulatory and antitrust affairs of Enel group in June 2023. An expert in corporate law, he has extensive experience in corporate acquisitions,...
Head of Legal and Compliance Italy | Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty
General counsel, chief compliance officer and head of corporate governance | Iveco Group
President region North America, ESG director and general counsel | Interpump Group
General counsel, head of legal and compliance | Schindler
General counsel | illimity Bank
Giovanni began his career at Deloitte & Touche, before kicking off his legal career at Gianni Origoni Grippo & Partners and then helping found Studio LMS in 2006. In 2013,...
Head of legal – Italy, and antitrust compliance officer | DS Smith
Legal director Italy and Greece, and ethics and compliance officer Italy and Greece | Saint-Gobain
Gloria Bertini is a lawyer with extensive experience in the legal and compliance sectors. She is currently the Legal & Compliance Director for Italy and Greece at Saint-Gobain, where she...
Legal director | Prada Group
Luca is a lawyer and senior executive with over 20 years of experience managing legal and corporate affairs departments of multinational groups listed on the stock exchange, operating in the...
Global general counsel | GE Offshore Wind
Massimo Sanvito is currently the Global General Counsel for GE Offshore Wind where he holds full responsibility for Legal operations and strategy on a global scale. After working in Milan...
Chief legal officer | Pirelli
Nicola Verdicchio joined Pirelli Group, the Italian tiremaker and one of Europe’s best-known industrial brands, as chief legal officer in January 2014 in charge of all legal issues, international corporate...
Head of corporate and legal; secretary of the board of directors | Prelios SGR
Head of legal | DeA Capital Real Estate
Roberto Schiavelli is the general counsel and board secretary of DeA Capital Real Estate, the asset management company leader in Italy, specialised in real estate mutual funds. He is the...
General counsel, secretary of the board | Infrastrutture Wireless Italiane
General counsel | Aeroporto Guglielmo Marconi di Bologna
Group general counsel and chief compliance officer | Pillarstone
Head of legal and corporate affairs | Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank - Italy
Chief legal and corporate affairs officer – board secretary | Brembo
Director of legal services contracting | Accenture
It has been an honour and privilege to research and work on this year’s edition of The Legal 500: GC Powerlist Italy. This experience has been incredibly rewarding, not only because I have had the opportunity to engage with some of the most talented and impressive in-house counsel in Italy, but also because of the enthusiasm and level of engagement these professionals have brought to the project. Their involvement has truly elevated this edition, making it one of the most popular GC Powerlists of the year.
The in-house lawyers featured in this edition have played pivotal roles in driving the success of their companies through significant transactions, negotiations, and cases that extend far beyond Italy’s borders. What sets these legal professionals apart is their ability to seamlessly integrate legal expertise with business acumen. They demonstrate not only legal knowledge and outstanding talent, but also a commitment to teamwork, innovation, risk management, and a deep understanding of business strategy.
One of the key themes that emerged from this year’s research is the focus on resilience and crisis management. Many in-house counsel highlighted the importance of aligning the legal function with other departments, particularly senior management, to navigate challenges effectively. As Daniele Santoro, General Counsel Italy at ArcelorMittal Italy Holding, put it: “Anticipating instability and crisis factors is key. As general counsel it is key to have constant contact with management and use legal reflexes to enrich the discussion and anticipate legal issues identifying the main area of risks. A risk management approach is the driver. Be aligned with business objectives and with a positive approach aimed at finding solutions mitigating risks.“
Another significant trend revealed through this research is the anticipation of further legislative and regulatory shifts that will impact Italian businesses. Andrea Megale, Head of Legal Italy at BBVA, shared his insights on these evolving challenges: ” Over the next five years, businesses in Italy will face significant legal challenges primarily due to the evolving regulatory landscape. Key areas of concern include data privacy, cybersecurity, and fintech regulations. To effectively address these challenges, our team is committed to closely monitoring legislative developments at both the national and EU levels. We are at the same proactively enhancing our compliance frameworks to ensure they are robust and adaptive to new regulations. A heightened focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria presents another significant challenge for businesses. Companies must adhere to stringent ESG standards, encompassing environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and ethical governance.“
In this publication, you will find a wealth of insights—ranging from legal technology to performance measurement—alongside detailed biographies of the remarkable in-house counsel who make up this year’s Powerlist.
I want to extend my deepest gratitude to every in-house lawyer who participated in this edition of the GC Powerlist: Italy. It is with great pride that I present this collection of Italy’s most innovative, dedicated, and brilliant in-house legal professionals.
Sara Maggi| Deputy Editor – The Legal 500 GC Powerlist Series
Legal 500 was proud to host the second edition of the GC Powerlist: East Africa 2025 in Nairobi, honouring the top General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers, Legal Directors, and senior in-house legal professionals across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. This year’s reception brought together over 100 of the most influential and innovative corporate counsel from the region, and was an unrivalled success, cementing Legal 500’s role as the leading voice in recognising in-house legal excellence across Africa.
The evening was opened by Joe Boswell, lead editor of the GC Powerlist publication at Legal 500, who highlighted the growing prestige of the East Africa edition and the increasing challenge of selecting honourees from such a deep (and rapidly growing) pool of talent.
Guests were then treated to some particularly relevant insights from distinguished speakers. Rachel Musoke, Head of ENS Uganda, delivered a thoughtful welcome that reflected on the importance of collaboration between private practice and in-house teams. This was followed by a powerful keynote from Habil Waswani, Company Secretary & Director Legal Services and Regulatory Compliance at Kenya Airways, who shared reflections on leadership, regulatory stewardship, and the evolving role of corporate counsel in East Africa.
The highlight of the evening was the certificate ceremony, where this year’s honourees were formally recognised. Certificates were presented by senior representatives of ENS, including Désiré Kamanzi (Head of Rwanda), Rachel Musoke, Nigel Shaw (Head of Kenya), Donald Nyakairu (Executive, Uganda), Dieudonne Nzafashwanayo (Executive, Rwanda), Rahema Nakirya Ssemyalo (Executive, Uganda) and Binti Shah (Executive, Kenya) whose participation underlined the depth of the firm’s support for the GC Powerlist initiative.
The GC Powerlist: East Africa 2025 reaffirmed The Legal 500’s commitment to shining a spotlight on the region’s most talented in-house lawyers. With an even stronger field of candidates, this year’s edition stands as a powerful testament to the influence and expertise of East Africa’s legal leaders. Habil Waswani’s excellent speech, which got a raucous reception from those in the room, is reproduced below with his permission:
‘My name is Habil Waswani, and I have been an inhouse legal practitioner for the past 21 years in different sectors (having done law-firm practice for 2 years before that). Tt is indeed a true privilege and honour for me to be here tonight, surrounded by the sharpest legal minds and calmest crisis-handlers the East African corporate world has to offer.
First, let me thank the Legal 500 and ENSAfrica teams, for organising such a fantastic event and for bringing us together in such style. Congratulations to each of tonight’s honourees. You represent the very best of general counsel in this very dynamic corporate space the businesses we support operate in. Strategic, ethical, resilient, and, let’s be honest, often underappreciated leaders of industry.
I am so happy that this evening is not about contracts, or compliance checklists, or board packs. Tonight is about celebrating you, the people behind all of that. The steady hands guiding companies through complexities, uncertainties, and ensuring that the opportunities that lie within those difficult circumstances are lawfully realized.
We all know the role of GCs has evolved. We are no longer tucked away at the end of a corridor marked “Legal” or labelled the proverbial “cost centres”. These days, the GCs sit at the big table – helping drive corporate strategy, shaping desired culture, providing leadership and safeguarding business reputations. We have become indispensable partners to businesses, interpreters, navigators, protectors… and on some (many) days, therapists with law degrees. And yet, we mostly do it all so quietly. No victory laps, no press releases. Often, success for us means the expected disaster didn’t happen.
But tonight, we break that rule. Tonight, we raise a glass to the GCs who’ve blazed the trail courageously, with clarity, conviction, and tremendous resilience that only matches the expectations of the Leadership Guru John Maxwell when he said, “resilient leaders don’t wait for the storm to past — they learn to dance in the rain”. You have managed to balance growth and governance, risk and reward regularly. And, of course, always managed to deal with those 10pm messages: “Hey, just a quick question…Are you able to talk right now…?”
Let this evening serve as a reminder that you are not just experienced legal advisors. You are leaders — spear heads and enablers of execution — and without a doubt critical pillars of business strategy.
To all the honourees, congratulations once again for the well-deserved recognition. This is for the heavy lifting that you do, the standards you uphold, and the impact you make – quietly, consistently, and brilliantly so. You’ve earned this spotlight.
