Team size: 34

Can you briefly explain how the legal team is structured, highlighting key individuals and their role within the department?

The legal team is responsible for providing legal advice to all business areas in DNV on a global basis and consists of 30 highly competent legal counsel and support staff located in Oslo, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai, Hamburg, London and Houston. We have a very diverse team, made up of 10 nationalities and the ratio between men and women is 1:3-2:3.

The legal function is headed by the group legal director who reports to the CFO. The team has a crucial role in adding value to the company and has consistently received high scores in client satisfaction surveys. In 2020 we went through a reorganisation from a geographical perspective of the business. Each business area — six in total, has a dedicated team of legal counsel headed by the senior legal counsel, supporting their business. The largest business areas are maritime and energy, managed by Dag Ove Solsvik and Gro Løge. Additionally, I want to mention the dedicated corporate and M&A team, headed by Torbjørn Bekken.

What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

In terms of litigation, we succeeded in the Helge Ingstad claim by the Norwegian authorities that amounted to NOK 15bn. The legal department normally handles several M&A transactions on an annual basis — the recent most significant was the divesture of the KEMA laboratories in 2020. In 2021, the team has been instrumental in the strategic acquisitions of Imatis — a software for the health sector, and cybersecurity services.

How does the team contribute constructively to the growth and expansion of the company?

DNV has the ambition to shape the future of assurance and the legal team will have an instrumental role in advising the business on the development of new assurance services and continuing to be a trusted advisor in relation to regulatory matters and the impact on our existing portfolio.

During the last decade the in-house legal team has been essential in all major M&A transactions and has demonstrated to be a strategic partner to the business. In the aim to support the 5-year growth plan of the group, the legal team has established an M&A team with four highly competent counsel headed by Torbjørn Bekken, dedicated to promoting the growth of the business.

How do you feel the pandemic has changed the world of work for in-house counsel and the function of the general counsel?

The pandemic has had limited changes in the world of work for in-house counsel and the function of the general counsel. However, it has called for the need of a more proactive approach towards the clients and the business, beyond digital.

Thor Winther
Group legal director
DNV