Northern England 2026
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
Assistant General Counsel - Business Development and Technology | AstraZeneca
Regional Lead Counsel EMEAI/ANZ and Assistant General Counsel | Sherwin-Williams
Assistant Director of Legal Services: Commercial and Strategy | Manchester City Council
Vice President, Legal Counsel, Barclays Corporate Real Estate Solutions | Barclays
Director of Legal Affairs and Board Secretariat | The University of Manchester
General Counsel and Company Secretary | Nuclear Transport Solutions
General Counsel and Group Company Secretary | Northumbrian Water Group (NWG)
On behalf of The Legal 500, I am pleased to introduce our inaugural GC Powerlist: Northern England 2026.
This first edition recognises general counsel and senior in-house legal leaders operating across one of the United Kingdom’s most commercially and industrially significant regions.
Our research this year reflects a community closely integrated within their businesses. Legal leaders in the region typically operate with broad mandates, often spanning legal, governance and risk responsibilities across lean teams. The role is highly practical, with a strong focus on enabling commercial decision-making while maintaining robust oversight.
Across sectors, legal leaders are increasingly central to organisational decision-making. In Northern England, this is often operational in nature, with teams supporting investment decisions, regulatory engagement, disputes and governance processes directly alongside the business.
Technology and efficiency remain a clear focus, but the emphasis is pragmatic. The priority is on tools and processes that reduce friction, improve delivery and support leaner operating models, rather than large-scale experimentation or transformation programmes.
Governance and resilience continue to be central concerns. Senior legal leaders play a key role in strengthening internal controls, supporting boards and ensuring decision-making is properly structured and defensible, particularly in environments shaped by ongoing economic and operational uncertainty.
The GC Powerlist: Northern England 2026 recognises those helping to shape this environment. They are trusted advisors within their organisations, combining legal expertise with commercial awareness and a clear understanding of operational realities. As the first edition of this regional Powerlist, it highlights the strength and depth of the in-house legal community across Northern England.
The recent news that elite US firm Sullivan & Cromwell had apologised to a judge over AI hallucinations in a court filing prompted a collective wince from the legal profession.
But while some lawyers remain wary of AI, others are striking a more open-minded note, and at the LexisNexis AI Forum hosted this Wednesday (20 May) by Legal 500 and Legal Business, panelists argued that the risks are far outweighed by the opportunities.
Barbara Zapisetskaya, principal technology counsel at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, made the case that hallucinations and other potential pitfalls can be overcome with a shift in mindset.
‘What makes a difference,’ she said, ‘is empowering your lawyers to take responsibility for AI output – helping them become active AI operators, not just passive AI users. You have agency to decide whether you agree with the output or not.’
Zapisetskaya was among a line-up of leading in-house figures speaking on two panels, which covered everything from practical steps for AI implementation to the key decisions GCs need to be making in the coming months.
Financial Times general counsel Dan Guilford began by stressing the importance of building the right culture for AI adoption. In addition to proactively upskilling himself, Guilford talked about how he had implemented a voluntary weekly ‘show and tell’ meeting for team members to share successful use cases – or an exercise that became a gratifying measure of progress.
Other panelists discussed how increased in-house productivity is altering the dynamic with their external counsel.
While some see the use of AI by law firms as a precursor for reduced fees, Russell Davies, head of global operations for legal and compliance at Dentsu, said that faster results – however they are delivered – are something to be valued.
GSK assistant general counsel Anthony Kenny agreed, saying that while there was an expectation that external counsel would be utilising AI, the focus should be on the value of the output, rather than an overemphasis on identifying AI use as a justification to reduce fees.
Speaking on the second panel, MUFG EMEA general counsel James Morgan stressed the critical importance of education, noting that educating the C-suite on the advantages and risks of AI is just as important as enabling large in-house teams to use these tools.
Shanthini Satyendra, vice-chair of the AI Committee, Society for Computers & Law, CEO and founder of Manisain, offered a reminder of the importance of making the connection between tasks and the purpose behind them, extolling the virtues of identifying use cases for AI that can solve a meaningful problem.
Zapisetskaya concurred, adding that one of the most important tasks for GCs across the next six to twelve months is to create AI playbooks and templates, noting that ‘it is easy for lawyers to see problems – much harder for lawyers to see opportunities.’
There was also broad agreement among panellists that GCs should focus on upskilling their junior lawyers on AI, rather than – as some may expect – cutting back their workforce. As Satyendra summarised: ‘Some people are replacing human capital with AI without thinking about what’s required to make AI work. Retain your people and train them up.’
The panels were moderated by Emma Millington, head of the UK Lexis+ Finance Group, and LexisNexis director of segment management Stuart Greenhill.
