Key team members:

Rita Mendes de Oliveira, General Counsel

Kylie Barra, Legal Counsel

Gonçalo Pratas, Legal Counsel

Team size: Three

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

McDonald’s has been increasing the number of new restaurants it has opened around the world. Portugal, being no exception, has followed this trend. In order to execute this expansion strategy, the various departments at McDonald’s Portugal have the constant support of the legal department in several complex legal operations, specifically in terms of real estate, urban planning, commercial and corporate law. Alongside this expansion, McDonald’s is undergoing a profound transformation process, in a context of constant change and strong regulatory and legislative activity. Since it is difficult to specify specific topics or operations, we would tend to say that our main challenge is to seek legal solutions for situations and challenges, in some cases previously unknown to the business.

What factors influence your team’s decision to use external legal services versus handling matters in-house, and what criteria are used to evaluate their performance?

McDonald’s Portugal’s legal department has grown and focused on specialising in certain areas considered key to the business, considering the brand’s strategy, both nationally and globally. On the other hand, strengthening the internal team is essential to retain the unique knowledge of our activity internally. However, due to the very nature, pace and size of the business, as well as the multiplicity of issues we handle, which, in some cases, require a high level of specialisation, it is essential that we continue to rely on the support of external legal teams. Without prejudice to this external support, all issues are coordinated and monitored by the internal team, which determines, notably according to the complexity of the issue, required timings and volume of work, which issues are outsourced.

Can you share an example of a recent legal-led initiative that had a significant impact?

Supporting management decisions with a strong pragmatism and solution orientation, and renewing or creating processes that make those decisions, as well as the execution of projects and operations, more agile. In view of the current context of constant change, the department has maintained a strong focus on internal training of teams on legal issues and/or possible legal contingencies.

What are some of the biggest legal or regulatory challenges currently facing your industry, and how is your team preparing to address them?

In recent years, we have been faced with intense and complex legislative activity, particularly around ​​the environment and corporate reporting, with a potentially significant impact on our business. Monitoring and mapping the various legislative initiatives, early analysis of their impacts and networking, benefiting from the scale and synergies of the McDonald’s brand, have been essential in this context.

How do you approach talent development and knowledge sharing within your legal team? Are there any specific practices or programmes in place?

McDonald’s has a strong focus on its people and their development, with an extensive training program. For example, all employees, including all in-house lawyers who are part of the legal department, are responsible for developing a career plan. In terms of knowledge sharing, in addition to ongoing meetings and feedback, which are essential for the success of any teamwork, information management processes and tools have been implemented within the legal department that have contributed greatly to knowledge sharing and agility in action.