Jonathan Adelman
General counsel and company secretary
Ladbrokes
When Jonathan Adelman joined Ladbrokes in 2008, there was no internal legal team and a high external spend. In just four years, he transformed the gaming company’s in-house offering. The previous legal panel that was saturated with around 100 firms now has less than a dozen, reducing the typical spend of £8m-10m down to £4m-6m. He is particularly proud of his in-house team of six that he built from scratch.
Adelman says his panel revamp allows for a committed long-term delivery of value-added services and the end of hourly rate billing, which is good news for the company as 95% of work is outsourced.
Law firms used: Burness Paull & Williamsons, Clyde & Co, Harold Benjamin, Jonathan S Rose Solicitors, Onside Law, SJ Berwin, Slaughter and May, Trethowans
2012-present: General counsel and company secretary, Ladbrokes
2008-12: General counsel, Ladbrokes
2006-08: Senior vice president and board director, Hilton International
2003-06: Legal counsel, Hilton International
1999-2003: Associate, SJ Berwin