About

The general counsel area of Generali Italia is responsible, as a whole, for legal and corporate supervision for all “Country Italia companies”, which are Generali Group companies that have registered offices in Italy, except both the holding company Assicurazioni Generali and the Group companies belonging to the asset management and investment area. This activity is conducted in line with the legal framework and in compliance with the strategic guidelines of the Group head office and the guidelines of the country manager for Italy and CEO of Generali Italia. The general counsel area is currently divided into six main departments with other smaller divisions within it. The main departments consist of the anti-financial crime department and the compliance department under the responsibility of Julia Merson; the legal consultancy department, under the responsibility of Giancarlo Fusco; the legal protection department under the responsibility of Michele Ceccarelli; the functional governance department under the responsibility of Chiara Toniolo; and the regulatory supervision and extraordinary transactions department under the responsibility of Laura Pizzorni, ad interim. The general counsel area has undergone and is currently undergoing an extensive process of functional reorganisation and revision, including a cultural revision of its position and mission within the company. This process has led to the structure being more defined, ‘in particular by completing the distinction between consultancy and operational management of litigation; identifying and expanding, in the field of consultancy, a unit dedicated to the aspects most closely relating to the insurance business, a unit specifically dedicated to legal support for non-insurance activities and bringing back within the field of litigation, also for preventive purposes, the management of certain “pre-litigation” activities’, as general counsel Cristina Rustignoli explains. The team is dedicated to working alongside all the companies departments with the synergic and coordinated contribution of all the specific professional skills included in the area. It actively participates in all business activities, contributing through knowledge, analysis and interpretation of the regulations to develop solutions to achieve the company’s objectives, playing an active role in bringing about change, in-line with Generali Italia’s strategy. ‘The general counsel function is seen as a “business partner”: changing the attitude from “we cannot” to “how can we?”’, says Rustignoli.