About

Siemens’ general counsel and secretary of the board, Fernando Ortega López de Santa María takes pride in the development of a legal department that is fully involved and connected with the business. During his time in this role he has built a 14 person legal team that is at the forefront of business decision making. ‘I don’t differentiate between business and legal; I think we are all part of business, even though each department plays a different role. The whole organisation must be focused on business, clients, strategy and goals. The role of the lawyers is critical as they take care of the legal aspects ensuring the legality of transactions or deals’. In accordance to this approach Ortega López de Santa María implemented the ‘business partner’ concept. ‘The role of trusted business partners means that each team member shares entrepreneurial responsibility and, at the same time, assumes accountability for their decisions and actions’. The financial crisis in Spain had a big impact on Siemens, as it led many clients to internationalisation. ‘Our legal department has had to adapt to this situation, providing legal support to businesses and projects in several countries and jurisdictions, and in many cases, according to international standards rules (e.g. FIDIC). The high quality legal background of our team has been the key to our ability to provide the required legal support’. Ortega López de Santa María is also associate teacher at Instituto de Empresa and he is regularly invited to speak at conferences and seminars.