How do you feel the pandemic has changed the world of work for in-house counsel and the function of the general counsel?

The pandemic represented a huge opportunity for companies to accelerate significant changes in the organisation and in the business structure. Legal departments and general counsel had to quickly understand the new necessities of the corporations and to build new legal architecture to reflect previously unexplored needs arising from the pandemic.

What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

My legal team has been involved in several M&A projects and in several transactions related to residential and commercial development projects that are helping to change the face of our cities: Chorus Life in Bergamo, CityLife with its residences and the iconic Libeskind Tower in Milan, several stores and commercial malls in Northern and Central Italy, strategic public projects such as new installations and maintenance services on elevators and escalators in railway stations, subways and airports, to name just a few. Moreover, the legal department is constantly dedicated to actively promoting compliance rules and policies in line with the ever-increasing regulations.

What do you feel are the pros and cons of an in-house legal role compared to a private practice one?

The pros of an in-house legal role are that you get to know the company’s business in depth, in a way that you can give legal assistance to the company in a wide range of matters, sometimes even going beyond the legal scope. In this way, the company sees the legal department as an opportunity to grow in the business by mitigating legal and compliance risks. The con of the in-house legal role is that you often do not have enough time to think about issues, but you need to give an answer and find a solution very quickly. But personally, this is at the same time a benefit, because you can actively guide the business and take part in the company’s challenges.