Luxembourg 2024
Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel
General counsel and regulatory affairs director, EMEA and APAC | Experian
Head of legal and compliance, co-head of Tristan Luxembourg officer, managing director | Tristan Capital Partners
Deputy director general, general counsel | Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI)
Head of legal department, general secretary | Luxair
Secretary general and general counsel | Banque Internationale à Luxembourg (BIL)
General counsel and vice president, EMEA | Gates Industrial Europe
Group head of legal, chair of the group executive committee | Solutions 30
General counsel and chief sustainability officer | Mizuho Trust & Banking (Luxembourg)
Global executive vice president, group general counsel, chief compliance officer and board member | Docler Holding/Docler Group
Chief legal and compliance officer / director, legal and compliance | Azenta Life Sciences / B Medical Systems
Group general counsel, member of the group executive committee and company director | DRAGONE
Head of legal | BNP Paribas Real Estate Investment Management Luxembourg
Chief legal officer | Quantum Dao Alliance
Focus on… my career With a dynamic career spanning over 15 years in the Luxembourg financial services industry, I am a versatile and seasoned professional renowned for my expertise...
Head of legal affairs | BNP Paribas
Spotlight on… Marjolijne Droogleever Fortuyn graduated in law from the University of Utrecht. She obtained a post graduate degree in law from the University of Cambridge (UK) and more recently...
Associate general counsel digital media, Alexa, devices, books and Kindle content EMEA | Amazon
Group general counsel | FREO Group
Spotlight on… Nils is an experienced general counsel with a profound track record of working in the finance industry and 25+ years of relevant experience; strong professional skills in the...
General counsel, company secretary and corporate affairs director | Allegro.eu
Spotlight on… Allegro.eu is a Luxembourg entity and one of the largest companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Created 25 years ago it is now an e-commerce platform used...
It has been a delight to shine a light on the talented, professional and highly innovative in-house lawyers based in Luxembourg, for the inaugural GC Powerlist: Luxembourg 2024. It was a true pleasure and privilege to be able to interview the brightest in-house legal minds in the country, and delve into what makes a great in-house counsel. This publication serves as a tribute to the remarkable contributions made by these incredible professionals to the business landscape in Luxembourg. It stands as a testament to their unrivalled expertise, outstanding leadership, and unwavering commitment to excellence.
Individuals in this publication were delighted to share their recent work and achievements, and the range of answers and splendour of their work was truly outstanding. Answers ranged from the implementation of artificial intelligence, mergers, and acquisitions, to expansion to different regions. Dr. Cyrille de Crozals, head of legal at Bank Julius Baer Europe stated that his team had successfully handled a ‘series of complex legal cases, demonstrating exceptional expertise and dedication. This included providing strategic legal advice, negotiating settlements, and ensuring optimal outcomes for our clients. The team’s commitment to excellence truly shone through in these recent cases,’ emphasising the importance of effective teamwork. Further, Ashley Reid, general counsel and regulatory affairs director, EMEA and APAC at Experian, claimed that for their team ‘artificial intelligence and credit scoring are pretty much in the spotlight, but there are various other initiatives in various countries across the globe which keep us up at night.’ This further highlights the varying different projects that in-house counsel in this edition face on a daily basis.
Esteemed counsel in this publication were also delighted to share the current trends that they are seeing become more prevalent in the Luxembourg legal markets. There is a massive focus on innovation surrounding technology within the Luxembourg legal market, with multiple individuals stating how they have implemented and rolled out new technologies in their business and stating the supreme benefit of doing such. Chantelle Null, executive director legal at Lions Gate Entertainment stated that ‘Luxembourg’s corporate legal industry is rapidly digitalising, with a notable shift towards employing artificial intelligence for tasks like legal research and document analysis, thereby elevating the efficiency and precision of certain legal services.’ Further, Tulay Sonmez, group general counsel, member of the group executive committee and company director at DRAGONE claimed that ‘The role of artificial intelligence (AI) is growing as a support tool to retrieve and leverage on information which is relevant to prepare legal documentation and legal advice, and to generate first drafts of legal documents.’
In-house lawyers in this edition were kind enough to share a cause, business related or otherwise, that they care about and why. The responses only emphasise why such individuals are the best of the best in the Luxembourg legal sector. Christian Dohmen, general counsel at Luxembourg Stock Exchange stated that ‘we are deeply involved in environmental, social and sustainable projects which we consider a priority. Through the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX), the world’s first sustainable finance platform, we are striving to foster the development of financial instruments that contribute to fight climate change and gender inequality and finance our transition into a more sustainable world.’ Further, Katarzyna Kuszewska, group head of legal and member of the group executive committee at Solutions 30 claimed that ‘I am a big advocate of good corporate governance within a company with a strong emphasis on equality, diversity, variety of competence and a gender-balanced representation among top management positions,’ and went on to highlight the importance of a gender balance in top executive positions.
I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to every single general counsel who participated in this edition of The GC Powerlist: Luxembourg, 2024. Included within these pages are the most impressive in-house lawyers within the country, those who have utilised their legal knowledge strategically to provide business insights and contribute to their company’s success.
Elena Lewis | Senior Research Analyst: GC Powerlist Luxembourg 2024
Loyens & Loeff Luxembourg is honoured to be a sponsor of the GC Powerlist in collaboration with The Legal 500. As a leading law firm in Luxembourg, we are committed to supporting and recognising excellence in the legal profession.
At Loyens & Loeff, we understand the importance of providing exceptional legal services tailored to the unique needs of our clients. Our team of dedicated professionals is renowned for their expertise, innovation, and commitment to client satisfaction.
By sponsoring the GC Powerlist, we reaffirm our dedication to fostering a culture of excellence and innovation within the legal industry. We believe in celebrating the achievements of outstanding legal professionals who drive positive change and make significant contributions to their organisations and the broader legal community.
We extend our congratulations to all the exceptional individuals recognised on the GC Powerlist. Your dedication, expertise, and leadership are truly inspiring, and we are proud to support your continued success.
It was an honour to host the GC Powerlist event in our premises this year and we look forward to continuing our partnership with The Legal 500 as well as supporting initiatives that promote excellence, innovation, and collaboration within the legal industry.
Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the GC Powerlist, and we congratulate all the honorees on their well-deserved recognition.
Legal 500 was proud to host the second edition of the GC Powerlist: East Africa 2025 in Nairobi, honouring the top General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers, Legal Directors, and senior in-house legal professionals across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda. This year’s reception brought together over 100 of the most influential and innovative corporate counsel from the region, and was an unrivalled success, cementing Legal 500’s role as the leading voice in recognising in-house legal excellence across Africa.
The evening was opened by Joe Boswell, lead editor of the GC Powerlist publication at Legal 500, who highlighted the growing prestige of the East Africa edition and the increasing challenge of selecting honourees from such a deep (and rapidly growing) pool of talent.
Guests were then treated to some particularly relevant insights from distinguished speakers. Rachel Musoke, Head of ENS Uganda, delivered a thoughtful welcome that reflected on the importance of collaboration between private practice and in-house teams. This was followed by a powerful keynote from Habil Waswani, Company Secretary & Director Legal Services and Regulatory Compliance at Kenya Airways, who shared reflections on leadership, regulatory stewardship, and the evolving role of corporate counsel in East Africa.
The highlight of the evening was the certificate ceremony, where this year’s honourees were formally recognised. Certificates were presented by senior representatives of ENS, including Désiré Kamanzi (Head of Rwanda), Rachel Musoke, Nigel Shaw (Head of Kenya), Donald Nyakairu (Executive, Uganda), Dieudonne Nzafashwanayo (Executive, Rwanda), Rahema Nakirya Ssemyalo (Executive, Uganda) and Binti Shah (Executive, Kenya) whose participation underlined the depth of the firm’s support for the GC Powerlist initiative.
The GC Powerlist: East Africa 2025 reaffirmed The Legal 500’s commitment to shining a spotlight on the region’s most talented in-house lawyers. With an even stronger field of candidates, this year’s edition stands as a powerful testament to the influence and expertise of East Africa’s legal leaders. Habil Waswani’s excellent speech, which got a raucous reception from those in the room, is reproduced below with his permission:
‘My name is Habil Waswani, and I have been an inhouse legal practitioner for the past 21 years in different sectors (having done law-firm practice for 2 years before that). Tt is indeed a true privilege and honour for me to be here tonight, surrounded by the sharpest legal minds and calmest crisis-handlers the East African corporate world has to offer.
First, let me thank the Legal 500 and ENSAfrica teams, for organising such a fantastic event and for bringing us together in such style. Congratulations to each of tonight’s honourees. You represent the very best of general counsel in this very dynamic corporate space the businesses we support operate in. Strategic, ethical, resilient, and, let’s be honest, often underappreciated leaders of industry.
I am so happy that this evening is not about contracts, or compliance checklists, or board packs. Tonight is about celebrating you, the people behind all of that. The steady hands guiding companies through complexities, uncertainties, and ensuring that the opportunities that lie within those difficult circumstances are lawfully realized.
We all know the role of GCs has evolved. We are no longer tucked away at the end of a corridor marked “Legal” or labelled the proverbial “cost centres”. These days, the GCs sit at the big table – helping drive corporate strategy, shaping desired culture, providing leadership and safeguarding business reputations. We have become indispensable partners to businesses, interpreters, navigators, protectors… and on some (many) days, therapists with law degrees. And yet, we mostly do it all so quietly. No victory laps, no press releases. Often, success for us means the expected disaster didn’t happen.
But tonight, we break that rule. Tonight, we raise a glass to the GCs who’ve blazed the trail courageously, with clarity, conviction, and tremendous resilience that only matches the expectations of the Leadership Guru John Maxwell when he said, “resilient leaders don’t wait for the storm to past — they learn to dance in the rain”. You have managed to balance growth and governance, risk and reward regularly. And, of course, always managed to deal with those 10pm messages: “Hey, just a quick question…Are you able to talk right now…?”
Let this evening serve as a reminder that you are not just experienced legal advisors. You are leaders — spear heads and enablers of execution — and without a doubt critical pillars of business strategy.
To all the honourees, congratulations once again for the well-deserved recognition. This is for the heavy lifting that you do, the standards you uphold, and the impact you make – quietly, consistently, and brilliantly so. You’ve earned this spotlight.
