United Kingdom 2026
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
Deputy General Counsel (EMEA & APAC) | Ankura Consulting Group
Corporate Legal Counsel | Balfour Beatty
Rising Star
Head of Corporate Services | Battersea Power Station Development Company Limited
Executive vice president, general counsel and company secretary | Convatec Group Plc
General Counsel | University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Group General Counsel & Company Secretary | Samworth Brothers Limited
Head of Legal and Business Assurance | Kier Group
Rising Star
Partner, Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel | DG Partners LLP
Chief Legal Officer/General Counsel & Company Secretary | QBE Insurance Group, International Division
General counsel and company secretary | British Airways
Chief risk officer, global general counsel for investments, and head, EMEA | The Carlyle Group
Group General Counsel, Company Secretary & Chief Risk Officer | Smith & Nephew plc
Chief Legal, Governance and Corporate Affairs Officer | Rio Tinto
Director & Company Secretary | Donald Insall Associates
Director of legal - corporate and deputy secretary to the board | Virgin Media O2
Director of Legal Services & Company Secretary | Associated British Foods plc
Legal and corporate affairs director | Anglo American (soon to be Anglo Teck)
Group General Counsel, Director of Regulatory Affairs & Company Secretary | BT Group
General Counsel | International Consolidated Airlines Group
General Counsel Solution & Services Group, Global Contracting Team & Legal Operations | Lenovo
EVP, Chief Legal Officer & Head of Corporate Development | Arm
I am delighted to launch Legal 500’s GC Powerlist: UK 2026. As well as celebrating leading in-house counsel from across the country, this year’s edition includes a stellar cohort of Rising Stars.
The Powerlist recognises the integral role that in-house counsel play within their organisations. Today’s GCs operate in increasingly unpredictable and fast-paced environments, balancing business priorities with legal risk. After all, ‘all business inherently involves risk’, says Stephen Godsell, general counsel and company secretary and Guardian Media Group plc.
And risk is not necessarily damaging. ‘Not all risks should be avoided; many are an essential part of doing business’, Jennifer Beaumont, director and company secretary at Donald Insall Associates, reminds us. But, she warns, ‘businesses should only accept risks that can either be effectively managed through operational controls or appropriately insured’.
The role of the GC is to help organisations navigate risk, determining which risks can be mitigated and which should be embraced in pursuit of strategic objectives. ‘Commercial objectives and legal risk are not opposing forces’, notes Ekaterina Varela, head of commercial legal at the Fidelis Partnership. Effective in-house counsel understand their organisation’s business, its strategic aims and its risk appetite. Risk can then be ‘assessed in a practical, business-relevant way rather than through a purely theoretical lens’, advises Gary Rees, general counsel at Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water.
Legal teams must, therefore, be embedded in decision-making processes from the beginning. ‘It is really critical for a GC and the in-house legal function to have a deep understanding of the firm’s strategy and its business, and to be actively involved in discussions where material decisions are made’, says Simon Croxford, general counsel at UBS. Early involvement helps organisations identify and address challenges before they escalate. As Nigel Paterson, group general counsel and company secretary at Currys plc, observes, the ‘modern GC needs a strategic mindset, to “see around the corners” anticipating change and threats’.
Such integration within the business requires going beyond the traditional in-house role. ‘Technical legal skills are a given’, says Rani Wynn, general counsel at LiveScore Group. The most effective in-house lawyers take the time to ‘learn skills that they do not teach at law school or in private practice’, Wynn continues.
Artificial intelligence (AI) provides a clear example of the expanding remit of the modern legal function. ‘As organisations embed AI into core business processes, legal teams are being asked to move beyond traditional compliance and become architects of governance frameworks that address transparency, accountability, intellectual property, cybersecurity and privacy risks’, explains Christian Fahey, deputy general counsel and company secretary at Ankura Consulting Group.
Yet despite AI’s rapid development, legal teams remain at the heart of business strategy. As Bob Hoyt, chief legal officer at HSBC, reassures us: ‘regardless of the impact of AI more broadly, human judgment will remain central.’
Isabel Caine
Editor – corporate counsel
