Pernod Ricard has appointed a new legal chief following the departure of long-serving group general counsel Ian FitzSimons.

Amanda Hamilton-Stanley will return to Pernod Ricard as GC on 1 September this year, having previously acted as senior group counsel for the drinks giant. Her return follows a seven-year stint as GC and director at subsidiary company and Scotch-maker, Chivas Brothers.

Pernod Ricard produces alcohol brands such as Absolut Vodka, Beefeater London Gin and Havana Club rum.

As well as taking up the group-wide GC role, she has also been appointed to the company's executive committee and executive bureau.

Hamilton-Stanley's hire follows the departure of FitzSimons, who had led Pernod's legal function since 2002.  

Hamilton-Stanley, a former associate in magic circle firm Allen & Overy's banking reconstruction and insolvency group, first joined Pernod in 2006.

In 2010, she moved to Chivas – which owns several notable Scotch brands, including Chivas Regal, Ballantine's, Royal Salute and The Glenlivet – becoming a member of the executive committee and overseeing a number of group-wide matters, such as the 2016 review of parent company Pernod's legal panel, which saw DWF, Macfarlanes, Osborne Clarke and RPC appointed.

In 2010, Macfarlanes advised Pernod on its £5.5bn acquisition of Vin & Spirit, in a deal led by Tim Lewis, now a partner at Clifford Chance.

The addition of Hamilton-Stanley follows the loss of senior legal adviser and compliance officer Ingrid Cope, who left last year to join the Coca-Cola Company.