About

Elliott Beard worked for Willkie Farr & Gallagher’s corporate practice group for four years in New York and three years in Paris before joining Becton Dickinson’s EMEA law division in 2004. As assistant general counsel for commercial at the medical technology company, Beard supports two business units in Europe as well the group’s country organisations in France, Italy, Spain and Greece. Beard implemented and managed the hiring and training of junior lawyers in Europe, which he describes as ‘a much more cost-efficient approach to managing routine legal support’. Beard is also heavily involved in coaching for negotiations and constructive challenges, teaching two-day advanced classes. Under his existing title he manages global legal matters of the group’s two business units with an annual turnover of over $2bn. He is further enhancing efficiency through the management of routine standard contracts, dealing with confidentiality agreements and consulting agreements. ‘Perhaps the greatest single pressure from the market has been to perform and drive down costs at the same time, requiring a close look at how to most efficiently manage legal support while still providing world-class, business-relevant guidance to our internal clients’. With a good understanding of the intricacies of business and legal boundaries, Beard sits on both leadership teams of the two global business units that he supports and enjoys ‘the diversity of people, places, and matters – there is never a dull moment’.