Team size: Eight

Which recent political, economic, or regulatory changes have impacted the company and the team the most?

Covid-19 has been the most disruptive event in the last couple of years. Working in the transport industry, almost 90% of our business was lost in 2020. From 2021 we are going back to our pre-pandemic status operating our vessels at 85% of their overall capacity. We expect new legislation to enable the return to 100% utilisation of ferries. The in-house legal team has supported the organisation, providing guidance and solutions to many issues –cancellations of tickets for thousands of passengers, and ship itineraries due to government restrictions, increasing covid related illnesses of both passengers and crew, and disruptions of contracts to name a few. The team had to ensure compliance with and understanding of all therapidly changing legal and regulatory requirements concerning health and safety and employment matters in multiple jurisdictions – Greece, Italy, Spain, and Morocco – all managed remotely.

Other issues that have been significantly impacting the group and the team’s work are the continuing fuel and energy crisis that has severely affected fuel prices and thus our operations. The EU and IMO new legal requirements for green shipping. Data protection issues and compliance with Greek law 4706/2020 also required lots of effort from the legal team.

In what ways do you see the in-house legal role evolving in your region over the next few years?

The in-house legal role has been evolving towards an advisory role. More often than before, internal lawyers must advise on a variety of issues which years ago would have been outside the scope of the strictu sensu (legal advice). Furthermore, the requested guidance is more complicated, touching on many different elements and requiring in-house lawyers not only to have a good knowledge and understanding of other areas of law but also to possess a thorough understanding of the way the company operates, its strategic goals and objectives, and its culture, to be able to provide adequate and tailored advice.

How has the increasing consciousness of climate change and sustainability affected the company and the team’s priorities?

Sustainability has been a priority for Attica for over 15 years. We have adopted a long-term perspective to ensure to satisfy the requests of our customers, employees, the environment and the whole society. We believe in fair entrepreneurship, economic development, sustainability and social cohesion. Attica is committed to integrating sustainable development in its operations and applying environmentally friendlier business practices to reduce its impact. The in-house legal team is entirely in line with this belief, supporting the company’s mission and its efforts to materialise it in every possible way.