Team size: 45

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

We completed a very complex and worldwide US$4.20bn acquisition of Arysta Group in 2019. The target company had over 200 subsidiaries in more than 100 jurisdictions. We signed the definitive agreements in approximately eight weeks from the day we started; it was nerve wracking, but we finished it in time. I had excellent support from both in-house legal team as well as external lawyers.

We advised the company on a very complex IP and trade secret dispute with an American company in the US. One leg of the dispute ended up going for jury award. The litigation involved several courts and forums in the US.

How important is choosing to work with external lawyers who align with your company’s values? Are you likely to reconsider what firms you work with based on this?

Yes, it is very important. Our company is very aggressive, and we need external lawyers who not only understand the commercial landscape, but also work on strict timelines. It is therefore important for us to have someone who can work on both of these goals.

In general, what would you like to see change about the external law firms you use?

Examples could be greater flexibility in billing, a more expansive suite of services offered, and more transparency in reporting ESG statistics.