About

Following the 2008 purchase of ING Insurance Mexico for $1.5bn, French multinational insurance company AXA has been established in Mexico through its subsidiary, AXA Seguros México. In a unique legal set up, ‘all the regulatory, legal and litigious matters are consolidated in a single team with a mutualisation and polyfunctional organisation of in-house activities’. The large legal and compliance department of 51 members is divided into five separate functions and led by general counsel Javier Oroz Coppel. One particularly impressive feature of the team is the “Legal Partner” program, where one in-house counsel is appointed as a single point of contact for specific areas or vice-presidencies of the company. The program has been a resounding internal success as it simultaneously develops the understanding of areas of law in specific business divisions whilst also advancing the skillset of the in-house lawyer. The team has further extended the integration and knowledge of the legal function by publishing a monthly internal legal newsletter and by creating a community of employees with law degrees to make them aware of relevant matters – ultimately making them ambassadors of the legal function to help communicate with the rest of the organisation. Using their collective knowledge, the team has been involved in important M&A projects such as the acquisition of HSBC´s insurance portfolio and the implementation of difficult operative and commercial measures to comply with anti-money laundering regulation. Other recent achievements include closing two audits in a single year with no observations or penalties, being part of major government tenders and gaining success in high-profile litigations at both the Supreme Court and Circuit Court level. One of the most distinguishable achievements of the team has been its role in the discussion held with Comisión Nacional de Seguros y Fianzas on the final version of the law and regulation relating to Solvency II, the most significant change in Mexican insurance law in recent times.