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United Kingdom 2018: The Team Elite

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United Kingdom 2018: The Team Elite

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About

No year is uneventful at global consumer goods giant Unilever, but 2017 in particular was memorable, thanks to the unsuccessful blockbuster merger with Kraft Heinz. It would have been the second-largest M&A deal in history, but on 17 February 2017 Unilever and Kraft Heinz issued a joint statement announcing that the deal would not take place. Klaas Evelein, Unilever’s global legal operations director, says that the aborted merger had a prolonged effect on the company, noting: ‘We’re still in the process of deciding where we want to be.’ General counsel (GC) for corporate and transactions Robert Leek, and group secretary Tonia Lovell, were the key players for Unilever on the Kraft Heinz bid. As a result of the deal falling through, Unilever sought to boost returns by selling off its householdname spreads business to US private equity house Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. The €6.8bn buyout was finalised in December, with Unilever chief executive Paul Polman describing the sale as a ‘further step in reshaping and sharpening our portfolio for long-term growth’. Well-regarded transactional lawyer Leek oversaw the sale. One of the more pioneering aspects of Unilever’s in-house legal team is its enthusiastic adoption of a legal operations function. Evelein is Unilever’s second legal operations director and says his role mirrors the progression of the modern GC: ‘In the past, the life of a GC was a bit simpler, but with all the challenges at the moment they realise life is more complicated! You need someone focusing on the operations. The role is looking at the strategic view as well as our IT projects and communications.’ Evelein has a legal background, having worked for six years at Dutch firms Boekel de Nerée and later SOLV. He argues this can be advantageous: ‘It’s very important to understand the needs of the legal counsel. When you’re dealing with local law, it’s a plus because you really know what’s going on.’

 

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