Norway 2026
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
General counsel | Saint-Gobain Distribution Norway AS and Brødrene Dahl AS
Head of legal section | Forsvarsbygg (Norwegian Defence Estates Agency NDEA)
Vice president, head of legal, privacy and security management | Intility
VP, General counsel | Adecco/Akkodis Group Nordics
General counsel, personal banking [Head of legal Norway and branch manager] | Nordea
Head of Legal Norway & Iceland | Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Group chief legal, compliance and HR officer | Viking Assistance Group AS
General counsel and Executive director for legal, compliance, risk and assurance | Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)
VP, legal and compliance | LINK Mobility Group AS
VP Group legal director/general counsel | DNV AS (DNV Group)
General counsel, European and international affairs | Statnett SF
Group EVP and general counsel and chief of staff | KONGSBERG
Head of Legal Telenor Norge AS & Vice President Group Legal Telenor ASA | Telenor
Chief Legal and Compliance Officer | Torvald Klaveness
I am honoured to introduce Legal 500’s GC Powerlist: Norway 2026, recognising leading in-house counsel from across the country. In association with DLA Piper, this year’s edition pays testament to the integral role that in-house counsel play within their organisations and celebrates their commitment and dedication.
Today’s legal and business landscape is characterised by economic, technological and geopolitical change. In-house counsel must guide their organisations through periods of uncertainty, while preserving commercial objectives.
The modern in-house lawyer requires an in-depth understanding of the company, its needs and priorities. ‘A core responsibility for any in-house counsel is to always be curious about the business and have the interest in the business’ success’, explains Fredrick Holm-Hansen, group legal counsel at Avinor AS.
This curiosity that forms the foundation of constructive legal advice. Frode Lillebakken, general counsel at Gelato ASA, agrees: ‘business acumen is one of the most important attributes: understanding the commercial landscape, product strategy and growth levers of the company is essential to delivering relevant, actionable legal advice’.
However, leading businesses through periods of instability often means that legal advice conflicts with commercial priorities. In-house counsel must strike a balance between the legal and the commercial: ‘the goal is rarely to eliminate risk entirely, but rather to enable informed choices that align with the company’s strategy and values’, notes Sigve Reme Sand, chief legal officer at Höegh Autoliners ASA.
It is therefore the responsibility of in-house counsel to ‘quantify, contextualise and prioritise risk in a language that resonates with commercial colleagues’, says Håvard Vikse, general counsel at EY Norge. ‘In uncertain environments, advice that helps the business understand the range of outcomes, enables the business to make risk-based decisions, and suggests alternative solutions is more valuable than just pointing out that something is risky’, he goes on to explain.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is an area that encapsulates this tension. While AI can drive efficiency, it also introduces associated risks: ‘the outcome can be unreliable without rigorous legal validation against trusted sources and professional judgement’, explains Ole Garborg, general counsel at Elkem ASA. ‘The general counsel’s challenge is to ensure efficiency gains do not come at the expense of quality and legal integrity’, adds Ane Løchen Johnstad, general counsel at Alliance Healthcare.
AI should be used to enhance, not replace, the legal function. It is ‘ideal for automating repetitive tasks, accelerating research and handling the straightforward work that does not require nuanced judgement’, says Annette Asper Berg, head of legal at Ringnes. In turn, this frees up ‘lawyers to focus on what only humans can do’, Berg adds, underscoring the enduring and indispensable role of in-house counsel.
Isabel Caine – Editor, corporate counsel
On 4th August, Legal 500 returned to Bogotá for the launch of the GC Powerlist: Colombia 2026, in partnership with Baker McKenzie.
Guests arrived at Castanyoles Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Casa Medina for an evening of celebration and networking with peers and colleagues.
Isabel Caine, editor – corporate counsel at Legal 500, kicked off the evening, touching on the increasingly integral role of the GC as a trusted partner and strategic decision maker within the business. Paying tribute to the nominees’ achievements, dedication and commitment over the past year, she reflected on the vital contributions in-house counsel make within their organisations and beyond.
Alejandro Mesa, managing partner at Baker McKenzie Colombia, then delivered a welcome address on behalf of the firm, congratulating those included in the Powerlist and recognising the invaluable partnership between in-house and external counsel.
This year’s Powerlisters were then invited to collect their certificates and have their official photographs taken. The evening continued with lively discussions and networking as attendees shared insights, ideas and experiences over drinks and canapés.
Legal 500 would like to congratulate everyone included in the 2026 edition of the GC Powerlist: Colombia and thank Baker McKenzie for their partnership in bringing this event to life.
