Robert Ivens
Head of legal
Marks & Spencer Group
Robert Ivens qualified as a solicitor back in 1983. Two years later he joined Marks & Spencer Group and has been there ever since. The iconic retailer hit headlines in 2004 when Ivens helped fight off a £9.1bn bid to acquire it by multi-billionaire businessman Philip Green who owns some of the biggest retail brands on the high street.
Ivens heads a legal team of 17 lawyers that focuses on employment, commercial contracts, marketing, real estate, intellectual property, consumer protection and regulatory law.
While a lot of work is retained in-house, external legal spend is never less than £4m a year. The group recently expanded in France, Germany, Spain and Belgium within very tight timelines, while trying to protect the company’s trade mark quality standards. Ivens says he enjoys having to solve the sheer variety of problems that he could face on any given day.
Law firms used: Bond Dickinson, DWF, Osborne Clarke, SJ Berwin, Slaughter and May, Wragge & Co
1989-present: Head of legal, Marks & Spencer Group
1985-89: Solicitor, Marks & Spencer Group
1984-85: Solicitor, Cripps Harries Hall