The Client Profile: Sonya Branch, Bank of England

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The Client Profile: Sonya Branch, Bank of England

Bank of England (BoE) general counsel (GC) Sonya Branch puffs her cheeks as she ponders how much work Brexit has created for her team. ‘It has been absolutely vast,’ she says.

About 65% of the UK central bank’s legal team, which has grown from 90 to more than 150 since she joined four years ago, has been involved since the mid-2016 referendum in reviewing about 10,000 pages of legislation and tracking 39 statutory instruments, to which it has contributed drafting. ‘The total count was 6,000 pages of binding technical standards, 6,000 rules that had to be changed, as well as 4,000 pages of secondary legislation,’ she comments. ‘That’s just having a regulatory framework for the UK financial services sector that’s fit for purpose on the point of exit.’ Continue reading “The Client Profile: Sonya Branch, Bank of England”

In-house: TfL stations enlarged panel roster as WorldRemit GC exits for regtech start-up

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In-house: TfL stations enlarged panel roster as WorldRemit GC exits for regtech start-up

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Simmons & Simmons and Lewis Silkin have lost spots on an expanded Transport for London (TfL) legal panel, while the general counsel (GC) of mobile payment platform WorldRemit has left for a regtech start-up.

TfL has appointed 15 firms across eight areas – employment and industrial relations, major commercial, rail, routine commercial and real estate, housing, property and commercial development, highways and major consents, and planning – for a panel which will last four years from 1 June, with an option to extend for a further two years. Continue reading “In-house: TfL stations enlarged panel roster as WorldRemit GC exits for regtech start-up”

In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo

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In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo

Royal Mail has filled the void left following former general counsel (GC) Maaike de Bie’s departure to easyJet, hiring in-house veteran Mark Amsden as its group GC and chief risk and governance officer.

Amsden was group GC and company secretary for Morrisons between 2013 and 2017, before a brief stint last year as interim company secretary at Yorkshire Water. Prior to going in-house, Amsden spent 14 years as a partner at Addleshaw Goddard, after starting out at Manchester firm Slater Heelis. Royal Mail has historically counted Addleshaws among its preferred external counsel. Continue reading “In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo”

No alarms and no surprises – Behind the Mindful Business Charter

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No alarms and no surprises – Behind the Mindful Business Charter

Any lawyer of a certain vintage can recall the dawn of the BlackBerry age, the watershed moment at the turn of the Millennium that meant you could always be on call. It was a blessing and a curse.

But the initial freedom of being able to work anywhere at any time has become a crippling 24/7 expectation for some, with the inability to ‘switch off’ being an oft-cited issue. Continue reading “No alarms and no surprises – Behind the Mindful Business Charter”

Corporations with benefits – Assessing the rise of US public benefit companies

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Corporations with benefits – Assessing the rise of US public benefit companies

When looking for good in the world, corporate governance law is not the most obvious place to train your eye. However, there is a sizeable band of corporations – thousands, in fact – who have opted to start just there, using corporate governance as a springboard to the greater good.

Shareholder primacy, often cast as the villain in corporate scandals or blinkered business decisions, operates on the theory that the job of directors and management is to maximise returns to investors. In turn, corporate law is traditionally viewed as a contract between corporations and investors that the company will, in the balance of law, deliver the highest return. Continue reading “Corporations with benefits – Assessing the rise of US public benefit companies”

Tom Johnson, Federal Communications Commission

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Tom Johnson, Federal Communications Commission

I have always been attracted to public service. A number of my colleagues from my time at Gibson Dunn had gone on to serve as solicitors general in state attorney generals’ offices. Those offices provide unparalleled opportunities, such as the chance to argue appeals and challenge areas in which the federal government has exceeded its powers and placed onerous regulatory requirements on the state. So I was very grateful to have been offered the opportunity to work in the West Virginia solicitor general’s office.

In 2017, I became the general counsel (GC) of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). I am primarily responsible for two components – reviewing Commission rules and orders to ensure they are legally sustainable, and defending those actions in court. I also oversee units that deal with fraud and bankruptcy issues, as well as various internal issues like employment matters. In West Virginia, I supervised four or five attorneys at any given time. Now, I oversee a team of more than 70 lawyers, so I’ve had to focus a lot more on learning how best to allocate my time and how best to delegate. Continue reading “Tom Johnson, Federal Communications Commission”

The Client Profile: Christine Dekker, McDonald’s

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The Client Profile: Christine Dekker, McDonald’s

Chicago-born Christine Dekker’s decade-long run as legal counsel for McDonald’s has seen her relocate from the US to Shanghai for work in 2014 on a gamble that paid career dividends, ultimately earning her the role of general counsel (GC) for the UK and Ireland three years later.

As vice president-GC for the restaurant chain’s Chinese market, Dekker had played a prominent role in handling the sale of a $2bn equity interest in the China and Hong Kong business to strategic investors. In Shanghai she ran a team of 23 lawyers but also found time to travel to smaller Chinese cities, not to mention visit the odd local potato farm. Continue reading “The Client Profile: Christine Dekker, McDonald’s”

Out of office: Freshfields, HSF among nine new Mindful Business Charter signatories

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Out of office: Freshfields, HSF among nine new Mindful Business Charter signatories

A further nine law firms have signed up to the Mindful Business Charter, an initiative devised by banking giant Barclays alongside Pinsent Masons and Addleshaw Goddard to try to mitigate unnecessary stress for in-house and external lawyers.

Capsticks, CMS, DWF, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith Freehills, Michelmores, Osborne Clarke, Stone King and Weightmans have today (9 May) signed up to the charter – six months after it launched – bringing the total number of signatories to 20. Continue reading “Out of office: Freshfields, HSF among nine new Mindful Business Charter signatories”

In-house: Facebook appoints US State Department adviser as new GC

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In-house: Facebook appoints US State Department adviser as new GC

Social media giant Facebook has recruited Jennifer Newstead (pictured), a legal adviser to the US State Department, as its new general counsel (GC) after incumbent GC Colin Stretch announced his intention to leave last July.

Newstead was appointed a legal adviser to the State Department by President Donald Trump, with her new role likely to be just as challenging as Facebook faces increasing criticism for how it handles its data across its vast social network. Continue reading “In-house: Facebook appoints US State Department adviser as new GC”

In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo

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In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo

Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo have all made senior legal hires in a busy period for in-house recruitment.

Royal Mail has filled the void left following former general counsel (GC) Maaike de Bie’s departure to easyJet, hiring in-house veteran Mark Amsden as its group GC and chief risk and governance officer. Continue reading “In-house round-up: New GCs for Royal Mail, Sky and Deliveroo”