About

‘One of my ambitions as a young lawyer was to show that law and business functions are able to be experienced together’, an ambition that Edouard Picant has achieved by combining his legal experience with the ‘good tips’ received during his Executive MBA at the University of Pittsburgh. Picant began his career long dedication to the chemical and pharmaceutical industry in 1998 with French multinational Sanofi in Hong Kong, where he was admired for his renegotiation of Pan-Asian contracts and focus on customer operations. Picant has since built his profile even further in the industry and is regarded as a leading entrepreneurial lawyer with an extensive understanding of the sector. Having spent time as a lawyer at firms between 1998 and 2002, Picant moved back in-house in 2003 joining French special chemicals manufacturer Rhodia (now a Solvay subsidiary). In this role Picant has been acknowledged for his assistance and robust legal contending abilities when faced with shareholder disputes covered under the scrutinising eye of the media. Moreover, Picant provided the legal assistance needed during the refinancing of Rhodia. He advised the group on contracts relating to Credit Emission Rights as well as various investments, mergers and acquisitions and business divestitures. Entrusted as a legal asset, Picant was deployed to Brazil in 2006 to support Rhodia’s business units in Latin America. Back in France in 2010, Picant continued his role heading Rhodia’s polyamide activities. Managing a small team of lawyers, Picant is applauded for his legal guidance during a major international litigation (including among others, three ICC arbitration proceedings), which successfully reached a settlement that included one of the largest implementations of eDiscovery of intellectual property in Europe. Impressing time and again Picant has also been known for his work on joint-venture agreements leading to successful collaborations for Solvay. In 2015, Picant joined the newly formed global business unit, Special Chem, which has annual sales of over €900m and up to 3,000 employees, in order to set up the necessary legal framework and assistance for ensuring sustainable growth. In his in-house role, Picant displays a deep understanding of legal and business allowing him to be innovative, successfully overcoming market challenges.