How do you feel that the pandemic has changed the world of in-house counsel? 

It is crucial for me and for the Legal & Compliance team in Danske Commodities to be close to the business to thoroughly understand our business and products, especially since we’re in a business that develops rapidly. Interacting closely with the business teams is a prerequisite for identifying and controlling our company’s risks. Under normal circumstances that means that we are present on the trading floors, talking directly to leaders and employees in the business teams physically. But with the pandemic – and with Danske Commodities opening more and more offices around the world – we are used to also working and meeting virtually. As a leader, I prefer to have direct daily contact with my team, and I believe that over time it would affect our working culture if we could not meet physically to talk, discuss work matters and celebrate our successes.

What do you think is the main focus for your company over the next 12 months? 

Danske Commodities have just launched a new strategy with focus on paving the way for green energy, strengthening automation across the entire organisation and evolving from being a mainly European company to becoming a truly global company with presence on five continents. The strategy for the Legal & Compliance team has the same focus areas. We will provide relevant support to our green energy activities, we will build up the skills needed to support our business on legal and compliance on new continents, and we are looking into automation of our own processes as well as supporting automation of the business, among other things by further developing the compliance setup for algorithmic trading.

What do you feel are the pros and cons of an in-house legal role as opposed to a private practice one? 

Having previously had a career in private practice, I can compare the two, and in my opinion, there are mostly pros in working as an in-house lawyer: you gain deep insight into the markets, products and business of the company that you are working for. When you have that insight, you become better at identifying relevant risks and at implementing the regulation that may impact the business. You know how and where you can create the most value.