Can you tell us about your journey to becoming an in-house counsel? What inspired you to pursue a career in this field?  

Ever since I decided to become a lawyer, I knew I wanted to be an in-house counsel. Corporate life and being part of big projects, supporting and advising companies on their decisions, risks related to, and possible outcomes (legally) were exactly what I wanted, so for me it was an easy decision because I always knew I wanted this. 

In your role as an in-house counsel, what are the main responsibilities and tasks you handle on a day-to-day basis?  

I have a lot of internal clients in very important and relevant areas to the company, on a day-to-to-today basis, giving consultations and support in meetings, negotiations and operations is key. Likewise, I work along with my internal client on different strategies to implement new projects, review the availability and possibility of doing something new in a new way. 

What are some of the key challenges you have faced as a rising star in-house counsel, and how have you overcome them?  

The main challenge for me has always been change. We, as humans, love to feel comfortable but in the legal corporate world that is just a hint that your growth is stuck. So, change enters as a key support in continued growing. Of course, it is not always easy or pleasant. Having to learn new tasks, new areas, familiarise yourself with the current projects and operations may be challenging and that is mainly due to the time this might take, but it is always a very satisfactory process. In my career I have managed different areas along the company, from purchasing and logistics, to finance, then to labour and criminal, corporate and sales, workplace safety, marketing, and the list goes on and on, and each time is a challenge, but it is definitely worth it.

What steps have you taken to enhance your professional development and expand your legal skill set?  

 In my experience, it is taking the risk to be uncomfortable, as mentioned before. We love to be comfortable, but being comfortable is not always the best, so I allow myself to be uncomfortable to get out of my comfort zone, take risks and learns something new, have the courage to take over something unknown and make the best effort to become the go-to-person on the subject. It will take investigation and study, sometimes even more hours of work, but in the world of an in-house counsel you need to be ready and prepared for change and take the risk.