The Legal 500 has been analysing the capabilities of law firms across the world for 28 years. In a new series, The Legal 500 is turning its attention to the in-house function, shining a spotlight on the role of corporate counsel, and in particular those individuals who are driving both legal business and the profession forwards.
The aim of the UK: Rising Stars is to highlight those standout performers coming into their own at major companies, typically but not exclusively during their 30s – the GCs of tomorrow if you like….read more
Given the relatively flat nature of the career structure below group GC level and the increasing breadth of the UK in-house profession, identifying and then narrowing down the field to 100 was obviously going to prove more challenging than highlighting a group of GCs who had already climbed to the top of their ladder.
Our research, which was led by Legal Business news editor Caroline Hill and reporters Francesca Fanshawe and Sarah Downey, went through several stages, beginning with the online collection of hundreds of individual nominations before we moved to directly canvassing senior figures in the profession. Inevitably, pulling together such a list is not an exact science once you go beyond the easy-to identify standout chief legal officers at major companies, but the breadth of nominations and weeks of research among our established contact base means we feel we’ve made a very credible start on which to build in future. To widen the scope of the project, we have also built on the core UK Powerlist itself to solicit commentary on the changing demands made of up-and-coming in-house counsel and to provide analysis of how the career outlook and opportunities of working with major corporates are evolving. To keep continuity with last year’s report and the 100 senior UK GCs we highlighted in 2013, this group was again canvassed for their input on the best mid-level talent on offer and how they as GCs are looking to develop more of this breed.
David Burgess
Publishing Director
On 23rd November, The Legal 500 was in Zurich again to host the GC Summit Switzerland 2022.
The event gathered leading general counsel and private practice practitioners from Switzerland to exchange their views on cutting-edge legal topics. The quality of the discussions was exceptional.
The Summit opened with a session, led by Fabian Martens and Nils Harbeke, of Pestalozzi, focusing on the changes brought by ESG in the legal and tax functions. The panel, which also included Eva Frehner (Sulzer), Romana Giesen (Swisscom) and Matthias Maurer (Lonza), discussed the recent shift in the weight of ESG, changing from being “best practice” to compulsory legal obligations. Following a comprehensive introduction, the panel explained the key legal ESG-related requirements for companies carrying out business in Switzerland, with a specific focus on competition and tax law.
Daniel Raun and Beda Kaufmann, of Advestra hosted the second panel. Along with Philippe Huber (SIG) and Robert Kuster (Zurich Insurance), they shared insightful comments on how to draft term sheets accurately and the main elements that parties should focus on at this early stage of a prospective deal.
The following session was chaired by Melissa Magliana, Daniel Lucien Bühr and Matthias Gstoehl, of Lalive. The discussion covered strategies to mitigate and manage dispute risks. The speakers examined how companies can prevent disputes, optimize amicable resolutions and prepare for legal proceedings, should they arise. Both litigation and arbitration were discussed, with a highlight on climate change litigation, stakeholder claims, and greenwashing-related enforcement.
To conclude the Summit, Irène Suter-Sieber and David Vasella, of Walder Wyss, moderated a panel that explored key issues of international private law, data protection and secrecy law, and labour, tax, and social security law, which relate to remote working from abroad.
After an excellent afternoon of exceptional panel discussions, attendees continued the conversation and enjoyed a valuable networking opportunity over Swiss gin, wine and canapes.
Thank you again to all our panellists for sharing their insights, and special thanks to Advestra, Lalive, Pestalozzi and Walder Wyss for partnering with us on this enjoyable and successful event in Zurich.
