What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

The two most significant successes we have had over the past year have been the design, negotiation and closing of a multi-jurisdiction and multi-million acquisition, and the design and implementation of the legal strategy that enabled the rapid triple growth of our business.

As for the first win, the acquisition was executed in only 3 months, taking into consideration that 5 different jurisdictions were involved. This meant that while we led the sales and purchase agreement negotiations, and led the due diligence process in five countries, we designed the most beneficial and intricate international corporate and tax structure to close the acquisition. In the due diligence process, we coordinate the work of law firms in each jurisdiction and the logistics of a 5-jurisdiction simultaneous closing. After the successful result of the closing, we managed flawlessly the integration process of both companies.

On the other hand, as strategic business partners, we worked closely with different internal dependencies to aggressively grow the business, doubling our geography from 4 to 8 countries, and our products offer from 1 to 3 solid products.

As we enter the next decade, what skills will a corporate legal team need to succeed in the modern in-house industry?

A corporate legal team needs to develop its business savviness. I believe that the success of any team is to be able to speak the same language as the business, and to transform all legalities into positive and simple solutions. The other important action is to rotate or share roles, in a sense that within a team although you have subject matter experts, everyone understands the generalities of the different areas. For example, my team is in different countries, so the goal is for everyone in the team to understand the laws, regulations, and culture of all the countries where we are present. We do that by exposing the team members into regional projects or a different country from where they are based.

How important is choosing to work with external lawyers who align with your company’s values? Are you likely to reconsider what firms you work with based on this?

Extremely important. Every time that I start a new position, I assess all the outside counsels the company works with. I look for a firm that believes in the mission of the company, that understands our culture and most importantly that thinks outside of the box. If I don’t find those three elements, I will look for a different firm. My outside counsels must be my partners, and as such I need to develop a relationship with them based on trust and accountability.