Bujalski promoted to head of legal as Handford joins Couchmans
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has reconfigured its in-house legal team, promoting in-house lawyer Angus Bujalski (pictured) to head of legal following the recent departure of Polly Handford to become a partner at sports law firm Couchmans.
Former Slaughter and May lawyer Bujalski will report directly to the organisation’s legal and governance director, Karena Vleck. While Vleck has oversight of legal as well as other sports-related areas such as player discipline, Bujalski will have specific responsibility for the legal function.
During her time as deputy head, Handford dealt with a wide range of sports-related issues and was responsible for all contentious matters, including anti-doping, disciplinary, regulatory and sporting integrity. High-profile work during her time in-house included leading the RFU in a joint intervention, together with other sports governing bodies, in support of the appeal by the Premier League and Sky against media watchdog Ofcom in relation to Pay TV.
On Handford’s appointment, Couchmans’ chairman Nic Couchman, said: ‘Polly has the perfect combination of skills and experience. Not only has she worked in-house “at the coal face” with a major sports governing body gaining invaluable experience of topical matters relevant to many of our other sports clients, but Polly also has a strong background in [the] High Court and international litigation.’
The RFU has made other changes to its internal legal function recently, having hired Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer corporate partner and former City head Tim Jones as general counsel to England Rugby 2015 ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup.
England Rugby 2015 employs the corporate heavyweight three days a week since he took up the post in November 2013. Jones, however, continues to work on a part-time basis for the Magic Circle firm, and carries on with client matters.
In-house moves
High-profile Pfizer GC steps down
Pfizer confirmed in January that its high-profile general counsel (GC) and executive leadership member Amy Schulman left the pharma giant just weeks before she was due to take up a new post. The move comes despite Schulman being named as Pfizer’s head of vaccines, oncology and consumer healthcare business in July, a post she was expected to assume in the New Year. Pfizer said this role would instead be taken by Albert Bourla, while Pfizer counsel Doug Lankler has stepped into the role of GC. Former associate GC Rady Johnson is now chief compliance and risk officer.
Board level appointment for incoming TUI general counsel
Former Clifford Chance (CC) lawyer and Demag Cranes head of legal Hilka Schneider joined TUI as general counsel in January. Schneider – who in 2008 took over as head of the legal department at Demag and in 2011 saw the company through its $1.4bn takeover by New York Stock Exchange-listed heavy equipment manufacturer Terex – will join the management board of TUI and will assume responsibility for group legal affairs, governance, risk and compliance. German-headquartered TUI’s three business sectors are TUI Travel; TUI Hotels & Resorts; and TUI Cruises, with its 2012/13 group turnover standing at €18.5bn.