About

Britt Engdal Hansen is the head of division at the legal department of Københavns Kommune (the City of Copenhagen), which is the largest of the municipalities constituting the conurbation of Copenhagen. The legal team is responsible for all contracts and procurement within the construction area in the municipality of Copenhagen, and working with senior management on a case-by-case basis, the team has seen changes in public procurement rules and the directives impact its work in recent times. In response, the team, which consists of 10 lawyers and one non-lawyer, saw fit to implement new paradigms and contract management systems to deal with their substantial contract workload, which sees them manage approximately 220 contracts each year. This development has resulted in fewer lawsuits, disputes and arbitration lowering transaction costs for the municipality significantly. Legal has also been one of the main contributors to changing the strategic direction of the company by facilitating and drafting long lasting strategic framework agreements with the market. Central to implementing risk management processes and thereby increasing the number of settlements and decreasing arbitration, the team has significantly changed its culture to a more commercial approach.