The In-House Roundup: February 2019 – GC Switch-Ups and Panel Reviews
In-house moves: The Royal Academy has appointed a new general counsel and Roche's general counsel is waving goodbye after more than three decades.
March 01, 2019 at 12:35 AM
3 minute read
Nicolette Henfrey, InterContinental Hotels Group GC
In-house moves:
The Royal Academy has appointed a new general counsel, after its former GC Susan Gent left the company in October last year. Ben Anstey has now taken up the role, leaving his previous post at mental health charity Samaritans where he had been GC and company secretary since 2016. Previous to that, Anstey worked in senior in-house roles at Amnesty International. He trained in law at K&L Gates between 2007 and 2010. Gent has yet to announce a new post.
Longstanding Roche general counsel Steve Oldham is set to retire after more than three decades at the one of the world's largest biotech companies. Oldham is vice-president of law and ethics compliance, general counsel and secretary of Roche Diagnostics Corp, but is due to retire on April 30 this year. An advert posted this month states that Roche is hiring a new VP, GC and secretary to oversee legal, ethics and compliance functions at Roche Diagnostics.
British global hospitality company InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has appointed Nicolette Henfrey as executive vice-president, general counsel and company secretary, following the promotion of George Turner who is now set to be chief commercial and technology officer at the company. Henfrey, who previously served as IHG's deputy company secretary and head of corporate legal, has been with the company since 2001, first as vice-president and senior group legal adviser and then in 2011 as deputy company secretary. Both Turner and Henfrey will continue to serve on IHG's executive committee and report to IHG CEO Keith Barr.
In-house updates:
The National Local Government Pension Scheme Framework has expanded its legal panel in its latest review, appointing 12 firms to the roster across seven lots. Allen & Overy, Addleshaw Goddard, Burges Salmon, Eversheds Sutherland, Gowling WLG, Osborne Clarke, Pinsent Masons, Squire Patton Boggs, Burness Paull, Trowers & Hamlins, Ward Hadaway, and Brodies have all won spots. The review comes four years after the legal panel launched in 2015.
The UK Government's legal advice panel has been extended for a further two years. The panel was last reviewed in 2017, when it appointed 18 firms to advise on a range of legal matters including public law, competition and EU matters, corporate, employment and environment law. The extended panel will maintain the same 18 law firms until its next review in 2021.
In case you missed it:
- Tesla has appointed Jonathan Chang as its new general counsel, after its previous GC made a swift departure after just two months
- The SFO has appointed its first-ever female general counsel, naming Lisa Osofsky in the role
- CMS disputes partner Gemma Lampert has left the firm to take up a senior role at Scottish energy giant SSE
- The Association of Corporate Counsel has opened its first office in Brussels
- GCs have named their top law firms for diversity
- Morgan McKinley has appointed James Franklin as the new UK head of legal as part of its Brexit drive
- Former Roche GC Funke Abimbola MBE has joined Mishcon de Reya in a new role as director of operations for dispute resolution
- UK GCs have joined the call for greater diversity in law firms, following the US letter signed by GCs in January
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