Romania 2023
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
Head of legal | Romanian Football Federation (Federatia Romana de Fotbal)
Director of legal and public affairs department and member of the executive committee | Up Romania
Central Eastern Europe general secretary director | Danone
South-East subregion legal counsel | DS Smith
Cristina started her career as a litigation lawyer immediately after graduation in a well reputed Romanian law firm. After several years as a litigator, Cristina made a bold move as...
Deputy group legal counsel | Photon Energy Romania
Florina Mariana Homeghiu is the deputy group legal counsel and manages the legal affairs of Photon Energy Group in Romania. She has over 15 years of experience and is a...
Head of legal department | Iulius Group
Iulian Ganju is the head of the legal department for the IULIUS group of companies, a real estate developer and operator specialising in mixed-use urban regeneration projects based in Romania....
Chief legal officer | Teleperformance
Laura Rudnyanszky possesses an LLB in Law, an LLB in Management, and an LLM in International Private Law. Laura is proficient in English, Spanish, and Hungarian. She has been an...
Deputy legal director – head of legal consultancy department | Banca Transilvania
Head of legal and general partner | Roca X Management
Sonia Fedorovici is a general partner and the head of legal at Roca X — the largest privately funded Venture Capital Fund in Romania. Under her guidance the fund’s management...
Group general counsel | E - Infra
Team size:Â 12Â Adina is currently acting as group general counsel for the reputable Romanian infrastructure group of companies, E-Infra Group, as well as a board member of Netcity Telecom (an...
Head of legal and compliance Central Eastern Europe | Danone
Adrian Manole is head of legal and compliance Central Eastern Europe in Danone, leading a team of five countries (Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary). Before moving to Danone,...
Manager, legal and compliance | Booking Holdings Romania
Alexandra Pintilie is manager – legal and compliance at Booking Holdings Romania and she has joined the team in October, 2022, managing the legal and compliance activity. Her role focuses...
Head of legal affairs and compliance | Samsung Electronics
With more than 15 years of expertise in the legal field, Alexandra Padurariu has been handling legal and compliance for Samsung Electronics Romania, ever since the start of company’s activity in our...
Legal and administrative manager | Amromco Energy
Alexandru-Valentin Dinuţă is the legal and administrative manager for Amromco Energy, possessing over 20 years of professional experience and expertise in the legal field for various industries, with an emphasis...
General legal counsel Romania – Bulgaria | Robert Bosch
Alice Radu has served as legal director at Bosch for five years, managing the legal services department in Region Romania – Bulgaria (also covering Moldova). In 2022 she was appointed...
Head of legal | Interbrands Orbico Romania
Alina has more than 15 years of professional experience as in-house legal counsel, she is a well appraised legal professional with extensive expertise in commercial business law, M&A, competition law...
Head of legal and compliance SEE Area | British American Tobacco
Head of legal and corporate affairs Romania | Enel Romania
Alina Dumitrascu is a passionate energy lawyer, with over 20 years of experience and has taken on several leadership positions, including senior roles in public, private and civic sectors in...
Legal and corporate affairs director | Edenred Romania
Ana Busuioc is legal and corporate affairs at Edenred Romani. She also oversees and coordinates legal operations in three other companies within Edenred Group: Edenred Digital Center, Benefit Systems and Benefit...
Legal director | Tenaris Romania
Arina Dobrescu is the legal director of Tenaris Romania. Arina has over 12 years of experience as a general counsel and ten years as a lawyer with several domestic and...
Head of legal | Fepra
Clementina Canel has been director of legal and compliance at Fepra since 2021. She has 17 years of experience in the legal field, in specific areas like environment, business law,...
Executive vice president (deputy CEO) | Engie Romania
Cristian is leading the RES activities and has been head of legal, IT, digital and innovation, and business development of ENGIE Romania since 2021.  Previously, he was managing director of...
Legal director | Transgaz
Cristina Iancu is currently holding the position of legal director within the Romanian National Gas Transmission Company Transgaz. Â Born in 1985, she graduated with a BA in Law at...
Legal director member of the board of directors | RetuRO
Head of legal and secretariat general department | Bucharest Stock Exchange
Head of legal, regulatory and public affairs | MOL Romania
Emanuela has more than 20 years of expertise in the legal field, she has been handling legal and compliance for MOL Romania for almost 10 years and regulatory and public...
Legal, HR, transformation and governance officer | Telekom Romania Mobile
Corporate, external and legal affairs head - Central Europe | Microsoft
Chief legal officer | Tesla Group
Horia Grigorescu serves as the chief legal officer at Tesla Group, where he plays a crucial role in linking legal governance with technological aspirations in the high-tech energy sector. His...
Senior legal counsel | Orange Romania Communications
Lucian Miulescu is a seasoned corporate generalist attorney with a wealth of in-house legal experience. Specialised in dispute resolution, contract drafting, and legal advice across various domains, including Business Law,...
Deputy CEO - head of legal and administrative | BRD - Groupe Societe Generale
Legal department manager | CEZ Romania
Monica Mihaila has been coordinating the legal activities of all CEZ Group companies in Romania as the manager of the legal department since 2017. Monica has 18 years of experience...
General counsel | eMAG
Oleg Roibu holds the position of general counsel of eMAG Group, where he oversees the group’s legal, public policy, and sustainability efforts across Central and Eastern Europe and in Brussels....
Legal and compliance director | Coca-Cola HBC
Raluca Alexandru serves as the legal and compliance director at Coca-Cola HBC Romania, the largest beverage company in the market and the second largest in the local FMCG industry, with...
Head of legal operations and innovation (senior director) | UiPath
General counsel | Nestlé Romania
Roxana Bumbac-Buture is a multidisciplinary lawyer with expertise in both consultancy and litigation. Roxana possesses over 12 years of experience and is a qualified lawyer within the Bucharest Bar. Roxana...
Head of the legal department | Premier Restaurante Romania
After more than 25 years of experience in the law field, Roxana Vasiliu joined in October 2016 McDonald’s team in Romania as Legal director. She started her career as a lawyer member of...
Head of legal | Forte Partners
Ruxandra has been general counsel of the Romanian real estate landmark developer, Forte Partners for the last seven years. She has over 20 years of experience and is qualified in...
Legal and compliance director | Haleon
Accomplished legal professional with over 20 years of experience across the healthcare, FMCG and technology sectors; managing legal operations and leading teams of in-house and external lawyers across multiple jurisdictions...
General counsel Romania and Moldova, compliance officer and board secretary | Holcim Romania
Team size: Seven Veaceslav Grosu has over 19 years of experience gained primarily in a Swiss multinational company.  Veaceslav provides the entire spectrum of day-by-day advice on competition, compliance, labour,...
Chief legal officer | One United Properties
Victor Savi-Nims currently serves as the chief legal officer (CLO) of One United Properties, the leading green investor and developer of residential, mixed-use, and commercial real estate in Bucharest, Romania....
The Legal 500 is delighted to recognise and gather the most exceptional corporate counsel in Romania, a feat only the GC Powerlist could achieve. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the accomplished general counsel who have rightfully earned their places on the final list. We are proud to be able to effectively showcase the full spectrum of top-notch corporate counsel present in the country.
Our in-depth interviews have provided insights into the world of contemporary high-level corporate counsel in the country. General counsel from various organisations have shared their perspectives on a wide range of topics, including the far-reaching effects of technological advancements, the state of legal representation in Romania, and their vision for the future of the general counsel role. Notably, Mateeas Anne Marie, Country Legal Head at Novartis Pharma Services Romania, envisions a significant transformation for in-house legal teams in the foreseeable future:Â ‘In the foreseeable future, in-house legal teams are poised for a substantial transformation. Legal professionals will harness advanced technology to streamline daily tasks efficiently. Emphasis will be on critical areas such as data privacy and cybersecurity, maintaining strict compliance within a constantly changing regulatory landscape. Collaboration will be central as legal teams forge strategic partnerships across organisational departments, aligning their work with broader objectives. Remote work will remain a vital aspect of operations, optimising productivity through digital tools and virtual communication. In this dynamic environment, legal professionals will diversify their skill sets, assume leadership roles in ethical initiatives, and address global challenges adeptly. Exploring innovative service models will enhance cost efficiency, while flexible work arrangements will adapt to evolving professional requirements. In-house legal teams, blending innovation with professionalism, are poised to shape a future where legal excellence and organisational success are seamlessly intertwined.
The dedication of general counsel in Romania to embracing change and digital innovation is evident, George Mihai Popa, Legal and Compliance Director at E.ON Romania, told us: ‘Implementing a simplification tool for developing the contract flow within the organisation by transforming the process from the print approvals stage to the automatic flow, finalised with the extended electronic signature. In the previous company, the legal and compliance department struggled with many documents from which the commercial contracts represented the most relevant part. The aim of the process meant the drafting simplification, verifying and approval flow efficiency, which was developed with the internal IT department. The result consisted of a very efficient method for the company by reducing the time of approving the contracts and, at the same time, better control for the management over these processes. The cost of this solution was reduced due to the involvement of internal resources from legal and compliance departments in cooperation with the IT Department’. Innovation is, of course, key, but the core skill of a top general counsel, alongside legal expertise, is communicating good advice to the businesspeople in their organisations collaboratively, cooperating across the departments.
These interviews provide a captivating snapshot of Romania’s in-house legal community, offering valuable insights into the paths, achievements, and skills that define today’s top in-house legal counsel. I encourage readers to delve further into these conversations to gain a deeper understanding of what makes these professionals stand out.
Thank you to all the in-house lawyers who spoke to us as part of our research into this first-ever Romania edition of the GC Powerlist. Congratulations to all the general counsel who have rightfully earned their place among the top legal professionals in the country.
Sara Maggi| Deputy Editor – The Legal 500 GC Powerlist SeriesÂ
We are delighted to present the most influential in-house lawyers and legal teams in Romania!
The inaugural edition of the GC Powerlist Romania highlights some of Romania’s most experienced GCs who excel at what they do, lead groundbreaking legal work and generally make a significant contribution to the success of their companies. They are not only great leaders, strategists and visionaries, but also valuable legal experts. They are mentors who build a positive culture, empower people to grow and develop, and guide their organisations in an ever-changing business environment. Through their dedication and hard work, they transform law and business every day.
We congratulate all the honourees on the GC Powerlist Romania and we are confident that more and more successful General Counsels and Chief Legal Officers will be recognised in future editions to give an even more complete picture of today’s legal talent.
Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații is proud to be the exclusive partner of The Legal 500 for its first GC Powerlist Romania 2023!
The 2025 edition of the GC Powerlist Colombia, held at the elegant Casa Medina in Bogotá, brought together some of the most influential general counsel and in-house legal leaders from across the country and region. The event highlighted how Colombian legal departments are evolving to meet the demands of an increasingly complex, tech-driven, and sustainability-conscious business environment. Key themes throughout the day included the strategic adoption of AI and legal tech, lean but agile team structures, shifting approaches to external counsel, and a strong commitment to ESG and inclusive leadership.
One of the most prominent discussion points was the integration of legal technology, particularly AI and large language models, into in-house legal work. Across companies like Uber, Unilever, Takeda, and GFT, there is strong momentum around the use of AI tools for contract lifecycle management—ranging from clause extraction and risk flagging to version control and automated drafting. However, rather than viewing AI as a replacement for legal professionals, most GCs described these technologies as strategic enablers that allow their teams to focus on higher-impact work. Laura Jaramillo Franco of Bayer provided one of the most detailed insights into how her team has deliberately structured their AI use. She emphasised that the value lies not in using AI for its own sake, but in tailoring each tool to specific use cases that align with legal risk standards and data protection policies. Tools such as Harvey, myGenAssist, Claude, Notebook, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Gamma are all part of Bayer’s ecosystem—each selected and implemented with clear purpose and governance.
Legal design was another emerging theme, with institutions like Scotiabank and Unilever investing in simplifying legal documents to make them more accessible to non-legal stakeholders. This is especially relevant in consumer-facing sectors where clear communication builds trust and mitigates risk. There is also growing interest in predictive analytics for litigation and compliance risk mapping, as legal departments seek more proactive ways to support business decisions.
Despite the growing influence of technology, staffing models remain lean. Most legal departments consist of teams ranging from three to nine professionals. However, size is no longer the defining factor of effectiveness. Instead, agility, business-embeddedness, and cross-functional collaboration are key. General counsel from companies such as Scotiabank, Cargill highlighted the increasing involvement of legal leaders in crisis management and business strategy, often working side by side with finance and communications teams. Upskilling, especially in technology and leadership, is an area of active investment, with Uber, for instance, noting formal programs aimed at equipping in-house lawyers for this evolving role.
The event also revealed a shift in the use of external counsel. In-house teams are now more confident in handling complex matters internally, including regulatory strategy, litigation, and M&A. Companies such as SierraCol and Bancolombia highlighted that while law firms remain essential, engagements are becoming more selective and strategic. The focus has moved from transactional work to long-term partnerships that add specialized value or support cross-border challenges.
Sustainability and ESG responsibilities continue to expand within legal departments. Legal leaders are increasingly central to ensuring compliance with ESG frameworks, advising on disclosures, and shaping product strategies aligned with social impact. Viviana Prada Rey of Grupo Cibest shared how her legal team plays a key role in advancing the company’s mission to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. From advising on sustainable finance initiatives to monitoring ESG-related regulatory developments in both Colombia and the United States, the legal function has become instrumental in driving long-term impact.
Another area of strong focus was crisis resilience. Legal teams are leading scenario planning and designing compliance playbooks, ensuring they are prepared for unexpected events. Leadership and inclusion also featured prominently. Companies are integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) into their legal team strategies. Juliana Hoyos Flórez, General Counsel of SierraCol, discussed the company’s ALMA program (Academia de Liderazgo para Mujeres de Alto Impacto), which has empowered over 180 women across the company and community with leadership skills and is expected to reach 300 by 2026.
In conclusion, the GC Powerlist Colombia 2025 was a testament to the transformation of the legal profession in the region. Far from being reactive support functions, today’s legal departments are strategic, tech-savvy, socially conscious, and embedded at the heart of business decision-making. As demonstrated once again, Colombia’s in-house legal leaders are not just keeping pace with global trends—they are helping define them.
