How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Leading a legal team of a high growth online platform business, I take a proactive approach to align our legal objectives with the broader business strategy, creating a robust framework that supports growth and mitigates risks. During a crisis or times of instability, I align the legal strategy to our immediate business needs by identifying potential legal exposures, including regulatory compliance, contractual obligations, and any new liabilities that may arise from the crisis itself.

First, I prioritise open communication with stakeholders to understand their concerns and needs, ensuring that the legal team is not seen as a barrier but as a partner in navigating challenges and providing guardrails, so the business can adapt quickly but safely. By collaborating with business leaders, we develop tailored legal strategies that support operational resilience – this includes creating flexible contracts, revising compliance measures, and preparing for regulatory shifts. Moreover, I emphasise agility in our legal processes. This means streamlining legal reviews and approvals to enable quick decision-making while still maintaining compliance.

During periods of uncertainty, I also prioritise the well-being of my team by fostering a supportive environment where they feel heard and empowered. Regular check-ins and feedback loops ensure that we can adapt our strategies as conditions change.

What are the main cases or transactions that you have been involved in recently?

In recent years, together with my team, I have been deeply involved in significant legal and operational transitions. Following Adevinta’s acquisition of the eBay Classifieds Group in 2021, the company itself was acquired by a private equity consortium and taken private in 2024. This major change required extensive involvement in a range of legal workflows, change management initiatives, and workstreams to position the legal team for success in a more localised future setup.

Additionally, my team has been actively managing the implementation of several new regulations, including the Digital Services Act (DSA), the European Accessibility Act (EAA), the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), and the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR). These efforts have entailed ensuring compliance across various jurisdictions while navigating the complexities of adapting to evolving regulatory landscapes.

What do you see as the major legal challenges for businesses in Germany over the next five years, and how are you preparing to address them?

In my view, some of the major legal challenges for online platform businesses in Germany over the next five years include regulatory developments, data protection compliance, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) expectations.

First, regulatory scrutiny will increase as authorities focus on digital platform regulation, particularly around competition, data-sharing, and user protection. The EU Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act introduce strict obligations, impacting platform governance, content moderation, and business operations. I am preparing by closely monitoring legislative changes and engaging with stakeholders to implement new laws requirements and adapt our products accordingly.

Second, data protection will remain a top priority. Stricter interpretations of GDPR and the AI Act could impact data collection, analytics, and AI use cases. To address this, I work closely with our internal privacy experts as well as our data and tech teams, ensuring robust compliance frameworks and privacy-by-design principles in our product development.

Lastly, there is growing pressure for businesses to adopt ESG practices, with new EU sustainability and reporting requirements emerging. This shift impacts everything from corporate governance to supply chain transparency. I am collaborating with cross-functional teams to embed ESG into our business strategy, ensuring we meet compliance and position ourselves competitively.

Throughout, I work closely together with stakeholders from the business and other functional teams and support my team in managing changes. This includes holding regular check-ins to ensure the right level of exchange and communication between stakeholders, proactively managing change and fostering a culture of resilience and agility.