German automotive giant Mercedes-Benz operates in Turkey through its Mercedes-Benz Türk subsidiary, which provides a full range of services to customers including the sale of new and used cars, after sales service and financial services. Gamze Gökçen Pilevne is the chief legal counsel of Mercedes-Benz Türk, and is a highly recommended lawyer known for her all-round legal and business skills that are applied in a variety of contexts. In her own words, Pilevne explains her transition through the company: ‘After working several years in different law offices I started as an in-house counsel at Mercedes-Benz Türk in 2011. I had a chance to be involved with various projects in the legal and compliance department, having an essential role in the evolving phase of the function. I [was] appointed as legal manager in 2015, and afterwards was promoted and took over the office as corporate secretary, chief legal counsel and local compliance manager in August 2016’. Leading a team of five lawyers and an additional five non-legal staff allows Pilevne to sharpen her management skills, and lead initiatives including restructuring the distribution network, implementing an antitrust compliance culture and program in the company and carrying out intensive negotiations with authorities. Challenges within the industry pose threats to lawyers within the automotive sector, and Pilevne also contends with unique issues related to operating in Turkey. She states that, ‘regulatory changes have posed several new challenges to the company and I have been at the forefront of the risk management plan. However, political tension between two countries was the most challenging factor in the recent past. I acted as an ambassador between government officials and top management to improve the efficient cooperative dialogue’. Able to predict and weather these challenges, her reputation in the market is outstanding, and as a nominating source explains, Pilevne has ‘proven herself to be highly driven and efficient both as an individual and within a team, with a genuine understanding of their core business along with a unique sense of commercial awareness’.