Senior legal counsel, global contracts | Equinix
Cristóbal Bermeosolo
Senior legal counsel, global contracts | Equinix
What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?
Focused legal counseling has been provided to global business leadership on commercial, contractual and negotiation matters within different countries of Latin América. This considered drafting, leading negotiations, and closing complex agreements for data center colocation and digital services offerings and provide support on challenging business-related legal issues to develop strategies based upon in-depth business and legal risk analysis. Guidance and training on risk profile, local procedural matters and local law has been delivered to colleagues of legal and other units of different countries of the world.
Equinix, as world’s digital infrastructure company, consistently expands to new markets, with current presence in 32 countries. In 2022, Equinix expanded to Chile and Perú by acquiring four Data Centers from Entel. A leader role has been executed during the post-acquisition integration stage, creating and implementing plans and performing different tasks in complex legal and contractual scenarios.
As we live in a fast-paced world today, what skills will a corporate legal team need to succeed in the modern in-house industry?
Corporate legal teams must embrace that they are an essential part of the company’s business and not just a group that supports the business. It is essential that in-house counsel fully understand the needs of the business to develop strategies based on an in-depth analysis of business and legal risks in order to achieve the relevant objectives.
Teamwork and collaboration make a significant difference in the success of a legal team. By viewing the team as one and not working in silos, our legal team can provide a rapid response to complex requests and resolve issues more efficiently. This type of collaboration allows us to exchange ideas and think creatively, which improves the quality of guidance we can provide as well as the speed of the decision-making process. This way of working also serves as a motivator and gives a sense of belonging, creating a wonderful work environment.
I believe that today’s in-house legal teams cannot ignore new technological resources, they must constantly adapt to, and incorporate, different digital tools to provide the best possible service and succeed in the modern industry.
If existent, can you talk about you or your company’s efforts relating to renewability, sustainability or other environmentally friendly activities?
Equinix is committed to preserving our collective future by addressing environmental challenges to ensure the sustainability and resilience of our communities, global society, and business. Equinix has set a 100% renewable energy target, as well as an ambitious carbon emissions reduction target and is a leader in sustainable data centre design and efficiency.