James Blendis was appointed General Counsel of EE, the merged company of Orange and T-Mobile, in 2010 having previously been General Counsel of T-Mobile UK for six years. He is responsible for Legal, Regulatory and Government Liason with a total staff of around 100 people. He is also Company Secretary to the Board and the Chair of the Risk & Compliance Board. He led the company through the merger and subsequent integration of EE. He then found himself in the middle of the UK phone hacking scandal when he was called as a witness to explain and represent the business on the various aspects of mobile phone hacking and phone security.
What are the greatest risk factors for telecoms companies?
Our network is our key asset. Any risks there are of primary importance to ensure we have appropriate mitigation and contingencies in place. We have a number of high financial risks to manage, from our funding, to our major suppliers and service providers. Customer data protection is also very important for us, so we have to put in significant security safeguards to ensure those risks are managed appropriately.
What have been your greatest challenges?
The merger of Orange and T-Mobile was a challenge - putting together two teams and dealing with all the implications of the merged business - various pieces of litigation came out of that. We rebranded which is very challenging. We had to try to secure all the elements of the branding for the business. We were also quite closely involved in the phone hacking investigation last year. I was called to give evidence to the Leveson Inquiry on behalf of the company on aspects of mobile phone security, how the hacking happened and how victims of hacking are dealt with.
What is your legal budget and do you envisage this increasing, staying the same or decreasing?
We have a ‘business as usual’ budget and an ‘extraordinary events’ spend, which is more flexible. We have a five-year plan on the ‘business as usual’ side which culminates next year in which the plan is to cut costs by around 40 per cent. We are on track for that - through efficiency gains, panel reviews and contract reviews.
What is your view on law firm fees?
You have to pay to get expert advice. That’s obviously expensive. But I believe firms can be more efficient with costs. Increasingly, firms will have to be more aware of that, looking at overheads and seeing if there are cheaper ways they can operate. The Bar offers a more efficient alternative for some kinds of advice. We certainly leverage that.
Do you think law firms are offering better deals?
Law firms are starting to be more pragmatic and to offer more fixed price arrangements and to quote and price, rather than simply relying on hourly fees. The demand for that is going to increase.
How often do you rotate your law firm advisors?
We appointed our panel about two years ago. We will probably review the panel next year.
Do you use other methods of procuring legal services such as legal process outsourcing?
We don’t use outsourcing - simply because we don’t have the volume in any discrete area to utilise that. And we also have quite a big inhouse team.
Have you any further thoughts on the telecoms market?
It’s very competitive and tough. The impact from regulation is underestimated. It can affect the investment we make back into the industry. Jobs are very tight. The more regulation there is, the harder it is for us to invest and expand.It’s also very exciting. We are seeing a lot of innovation, and the future services the mobile industry can offer are very exciting. I think we will see other types of partners in the future. We’re also moving to faster services through the new spectrum and 4G network that’s being rolled out, which is going to have a big impact on the services which we can offer customers.
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