Team size:  36

Key team members:  Rebecca Cole, head of legal, disputes and contentious risk; Criag Diamond, head of legal, commercial and technology; Alex Schofield, head of legal, funds and regulatory.

What significant projects or deals has the legal team worked on in the past year?  Can you provide examples of successful outcomes or major accomplishments?  

Hargreaves Lansdown has been undergoing a transformation over the past 12 months, with the appointment of a new CEO and Chair who have been refining and refocusing its corporate strategy: transforming clients’ investing experience; leveraging economies of scale to drive client value; and combining the best of colleague and digital capability. The legal team has changed to best position itself to support delivery of this strategy, with a focus on three key pillars: (i) create a framework for legal and governance risk appetite and tolerance: clear statements and frameworks to allow all to understands how to do the right thing, in the right way, building in legal compliance by design, making what we do simple for all; (ii) be clear on what the team does, and what we are accountable for: matters reserved to Legal and Co Sec as more specialist or outside of the standard risk tolerances; (iii) who does what if outside of scope: alliances and relationships defined ahead of time, so we can work better together and can access the support we need. 

In changing the team, we have positioned it for maximum effectiveness, focusing on partnering with the business and bringing a commercial, practical focus as well as subject matter expertise: being  small, specialist team working in a highly-regulated and changing business, we have to be able to respond nimbly to what the business needs us to do, and make the best use of our people and skills. We do that using the principles set out above.  

Firstly, aligning with HL’s strategic delivery and outcomes: building the team up to its current size (from a base of around six lawyers previously, to twenty at present), and expanding the in-house skills to cover areas such as regulated funds, dispute resolution and corporate. We are then able to be clear as to what we are responsible and accountable for, and how we will deliver our advice and support to the business. 

Secondly, creating a suite of legal frameworks, with the associated templates, guides and FAQs. This has two benefits: it maximises efficiency, allowing us to work effectively but also (where appropriate) to let people in the business “self-serve” on more straightforward matters such as NDAs, and to focus our time and energy where it can make the biggest impact; it also creates a vital control framework, enabling us to measure and manage legal risk in the business. We are also reviewing the governance and delegation framework across the group, to make it clearer how decisions are made for the business.  

Finally, we have created a panel of legal advisers to support us in specialist areas where we need assistance from time to time, whether that is because of a need to access very specialist advice, or to allow for overflow cover at times of high workload. We have a small number of advisers with whom we have built deeper relationships, as in our experience this allows for the most tailored, focussed and efficient advice and support.  

This three-pronged approach has been developed to align with the delivery of HL’s strategy, as it seeks to balance the need for efficiency and scalability with the ability to provide high-quality, informed and commercial advice.  

Are there any team members with expertise in niche areas that are critical to the company’s operations?  

The legal team has also supported the delivery of HL’s renewed funds and product strategy. This has been a key priority for HL over the past 12 months, as it looks to align its funds offering with the right client needs and outcomes. The legal team has taken on a wide role here – having a deep knowledge of the UK funds regime, but also an understanding of all the different elements that make for the launch of a successful fund or making changes to the existing range. The team don’t just cover the legal and regulatory requirements of a fund launch, but also directly liaise with the depositary and the regulator and consider the investment, operational, risk management, governance, trading and settlement considerations when assisting the business to design the appropriate legal structure for a fund.  

The team have also built out robust legal processes and procedures as they have managed the strategic workload, making HL’s fund business stronger for the future. This work includes advising on the new Assessment of Value process, a new Investment Management Agreement (IMA) process and a new Prospectus review process.  A key area has been making sure the funds provide the right client outcomes, aligned with our consumer duty requirements, and that the funds are clear and readily understandable. All this has allowed us to support the business across the full lifecycle of the funds, including nine fund launches, five material fund restructures, and with the move to more segregated mandates being used in the funds, multiple IMA’s and new/revised segregated mandates negotiated for the funds. 

How does the legal team collaborate with other departments within the company?  

The legal team works closely with other departments across HL and takes an active role as core members of project teams and decision-maker as part of the business team rather than just acting as advisors to the business.  Shaping the strategy of teams across HL including the end-to-end procurement strategy and processes, introducing templates, guidance and training to improve speed to contract while remaining with the legal risk appetite. The legal team objectives are set by reference not only to “what” is achieved, but also “how”, with a focus on achieving results in a collaborative proactive and engaged way across HL.   

There is also a strong focus on driving the values and culture of HL and collaborating positively to contribute across HL, including DE&I initiatives such as introducing an in-house legal shadowing program for 6 internal candidates, participating in the Strive internship program and hosting interns from panel law firms as part of the 10,000 Black Interns initiative.  The legal team has a wide impact across the organisation beyond legal matters, for example members of the legal team are chair of the HL charity (HL Foundation), chair of the HL gender diversity network and the team organise group wide events such as the HL Charity tennis tournament.