Has WFH inspired any innovation in terms of the way you/your teamwork? Are there any standout products/tech you now use that you never did before?
Working from home definitely increased the need for technological tools to allow for better communication and a more effective strategy to manage tasks. We began by exploring the platforms provided by the company, such us Outlook and Microsoft Teams. At the same time, the global legal team of the company officially implemented Salesforce Apttus, a system created for the management of smart contracts. We also created digital databases with legal documents of the company, instead of traditional paper archives. Now we use an application called “Notion” for tasks management, Apttus for contract management, and continue using Microsoft Teams for video conferences and Outlook for mailing.
What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?
Fresenius Medical Care in Ecuador has grown amazingly fast due to several M&A operations. in 2020, our legal team participated in the acquisition of three different companies. In 2021, the team was involved in the merging of 11 of the companies of the group, as well as significant sales and lease contracts with private clients and public tender processes with the state. The company also opened new clinics, bought real state, and negotiated important payment agreements with clients.
In what ways do you see the in-house legal role evolving in your region over the next few years?
During the past few years, the tendence in Ecuadorean companies has been to have external legal counsel from different law firms. However, I believe that in the last five years, the awareness of the importance of having in house counsels as a business support area has increased significantly. Now, it is very usual to find increasingly transnational companies having in-house legal counsel as part of their organisational structures. Also, local companies are following this model. I believe that, in a few years, most of the larger companies will have their own in-house legal team, and will only contract external law firms for specific and specialised matters that require an expert practitioner in a specific area.
