(previously at UnitedHealth Group) What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

The pandemic strongly affected the world and it was no different in Brazil, which, due to its continental dimensions and precarious public health system, overloaded the supplementary system. The legal department played a key role in helping the company to ensure broad access to telemedicine for beneficiaries, as well as expanding the coverage network to support patients’ high demand. Another fundamental participation has been the fight against fraud that devastates the supplementary health system in Brazil, bringing high costs and affecting the quality of the service offered. Preventive and repressive action has brought significant financial results, in addition to bringing greater security and transparency in our relationship with customers.

Did the pandemic lead to a lasting increase in the interaction your legal team has with the strategic plans of the company?

Undoubtedly, the pandemic brought greater proximity between our legal department and other business areas within our company, including a bigger role in the company’s strategy, as assessing risks and creating solutions to offer higher quality services for partners to undergo careful regulatory and legal assessment, given that the supplementary health environment has been changing rapidly, demanding creative and purposeful responses.
If you have worked in other countries, what are the main challenges unique to operating as an in-house counsel in your current location?

I have worked in several countries and had contact with different jurisdictions. I can say that Brazil, because of its high rate of judicialisation, in practically all sectors of the economy, is very unstable in its commercial relations, even if formalized in a contract. In other countries, where contracts are respected and the level of uncertainty is lower, the role of the in-house lawyer is very focused on ensuring the perpetuity of the business. In Brazil, the role of in-house lawyer is essential in interpreting regulations and laws that affect a particular sector, but mainly the business of which it is a part, aiming at profitability and avoiding potential legal risks.

How do you suggest in-house lawyers build strong relationships with business partners?

I believe it is essential to know the business, its internal processes, all the stakeholders related to the company, to be flexible and creative, provide and suggest solutions to business partners, in addition to just legal advice. Also, it is important to understand the pains of each area and, above all, being transparent in the conduct of activities. The modern in-house lawyer is not just an expert who stays away from the business providing recommendations and analyses, more than ever they are required to understand and be part of the corporate strategy.