Could you share an example of a time when you came up with an innovation that improved the way your legal team works and did not come at a huge cost?

We began the implementation of tools and technology that have facilitated the analysis and approval of credit in the company. The previous credit process was quite long, so in coordination with our IT department, we have been able to implement a system of legal credit liaison, which has helped us to efficiently coordinate the interaction of both areas to determine the granting of sale of goods on credit with our customers or distributors. As a result of the global crisis, a great challenge as legal manager is to help the company reduce costs. We signed an alliance with external law firms to implement legal innovation in the monitoring of judicial processes and tools for conflict resolution which has helped us to significantly reduce costs in the labour and social field.

What are some of the key developments that have affected your business over the past year?

Currently, a major challenge we are experiencing is the fight against unfair competition in steel products, this is mainly due to the lack of government policies defending the national industry. Currently foreign companies have preferential tariffs in their country of origin and because they have a MERCOSUR certificate of origin they enter Bolivia with low prices, when their raw material comes from countries that are not free of these tariffs. We, on the other hand, have the same suppliers of raw material, but with the corresponding tariff for the country of origin. This is a challenge that we are working on as we try to get the same customs conditions.

How do you think the internal legal role will evolve in the coming years?

I think that the role of the in-house lawyer, especially in our sector, is fundamental to the decision making and organisation of the company. In-house lawyers have complete knowledge of the functioning of the company, they know all the strengths and weaknesses, and accompany management in the safe development of different projects. They provide necessary and indispensable support when partnering with specialised law firms to develop specialised projects for the company. Moreover, I invite companies that do not yet have a manager or in-house legal advisor to consider including them in their staff, as they would be the ideal professional to coordinate different problems and business projects.

Do you use any legal technology products and, if so, for what areas of your work do you find them most useful?

After collaborating with the company’s IT department, we set up an integrated legal information system, in which authorised company personnel, at the national level, have immediate access to legal information in the corporate, asset management, contractual and credit areas of the company in a secure and efficient manner.