Interviews and Profiles
‘Our focus is increasingly on resilience, scalability and readiness for future firm failures’: FSCS chief counsel James Darbyshire
James Darbyshire discusses his role at the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, the evolution of the consumer protection landscape and the key challenges impacting financial services lawyers
‘The days of throw the latest and newest at every problem are over’: Legal AI’s shift to consumption-based pricing
A predicted rollout of pay-per-use pricing for legal AI will likely increase tech costs for law firms and company legal departments, experts warn
‘We’re hiring people that historically would only have been hired in the software space’
Six law firm innovation chiefs on how they are seeking to change the way lawyers work and how legal services are delivered
‘That investigative instinct still drives a lot of what I do today’: Alibaba’s Matthew Bassiur
Luxury Law Awards winner talks about his investigative instinct, technology literacy, the importance of mastering the fundamentals and building a broad toolkit
‘It is taking opportunities which keep life exciting and every day different’: Luxury Law Awards lifetime achievement award-winner Kate Anthony Wilkinson
Mulberry Group's former group general counsel, Kate Anthony Wilkinson, reflects on her career and what success means as a lawyer
‘We’re the first female-founded UK bank, so diversity and inclusion are core to our values’: Starling’s group GC Monica Risam
Monica Risam discusses how her team is set up at Starling Bank, the shifting expectations on in-house lawyers and the group's first panel review
‘My aim has been to build a culture where people feel accountable for doing business the right way’: Nestlé UK and Ireland GC Mark Maurice-Jones
Mark Maurice-Jones discusses his role as Nestlé’s UK and Ireland general counsel and compliance officer, the culture he has built and the legal issues impacting the market
‘If you choose an industry which you are passionate about, it doesn’t feel like work’: Maybourne’s Jennifer Guilfoyle
The recipient of the General Counsel of the Year award at the 2026 Luxury Law Awards discusses her career path, pressing industry issues, advice for young lawyers and her favourite Maybourne hotel
‘This award represents the possibility of turning a passion into a career’: Vivienne Westwood’s Victoria Simon
The recipient of the Fashion Counsel of the Year award at the 2026 Luxury Law Awards discusses becoming a solicitor, her work in fashion, industry advice and a favourite corset
‘Information is becoming commoditised; judgement isn’t’: dealmakers debate impact of AI on cross-border M&A
Sullivan & Cromwell partners Frank Aquila and Jeremy Kutner explore how AI, regulation and geopolitics are reshaping global M&A with experts from 29 countries
‘In aviation, everything happens all at once’: IAG GC Sarah Clements
Sarah Clements, who left the pharma sector for the fast-paced world of aviation, discusses her role managing the legal teams that oversee British Airways, Iberia and other airline brands
‘I’ve been very lucky to work with iconic brands in my career and JLR is a continuation of that’: Jaguar Land Rover’s David Berry
The recipient of the Global General Counsel of the Year award at the 2026 Luxury Law Awards discusses career moves, advice for young lawyers and his favourite car
‘Don’t be afraid to entertain’: what makes law firm video stand out
Byfield’s Alex Novarese and communications consultant William Brewster on how law firms can make the best use of video
We want the team to find more creative uses of AI: Practice Plus GC Lee Gage
Former fashion GC turned healthcare legal chief Lee Gage discusses his role at Practice Plus Group and the impact of AI on legal teams
‘The forces that drive M&A, strategic growth and transformation are stronger than ever’: delegates at IBA’s global M&A conference share their views
M&A specialists from across the world gathered in New York earlier this month for the IBA’s 23rd annual Global Mergers and Acquisitions Conference