About

Patrick Plucnar, group general counsel, leads a team of eight at Royal Unibrew, a regional beverage producer with significant market share in large parts of Northern Europe and the second largest provider of beer and soft drinks in Denmark. The company markets and produces beverages with a core focus on branded beer, soft drinks, malt beverages, long drinks and cider. Cited by nominators as a group of ‘committed and highly professional individuals’, the legal department at Royal Unibrew is widely acclaimed for employing versatile and experienced personnel who specialise in a wide range of legal issues such as large-scale contracts, competition laws, IT laws, M&A and intellectual property rights. Having a legal team that can support that diversity of work means that the company can continue with is corporate goals safe in the knowledge that it is supported by experts in their fields. The in-house team has drawn particular praise for its role in supporting the integration of Royal Unibrew’s acquisition of Hartwall Brewery in Finland in 2013. This important transaction was expertly managed by the team, producing favourable results for the company. Additionally the legal department undertook a guiding role in the establishment of an intra-group setup for procurement. In the recent past, the legal team had faced challenges with the steadily rising growth in regulations for distribution and marketing of beverage products within the Nordic region. This however has not dissuaded Royal Unibrew’s legal department, which has been particularly pro-active in increasing cross-country operations whilst successfully reducing costs.