General Counselling Podcast

Welcome to Series 2, Episode 3 of our Diversity in Leadership podcast. 

In this episode, we welcome Dr Priyanka Bawa, the head of research at Montresor Legal, to discuss her findings on the recently released "Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Legal Sector".

Thank you for listening to the episode, and you can download your copy of the report here: https://bit.ly/DiversityReportPodcast

We'd love to hear from you if you have any requests or suggestions for future episodes! 

DISCLAIMER: We understand that EDI language is fluid, and we've tried our best to use inclusive language. 

Welcome to Series 2, Episode 2 of our Diversity in Leadership podcast. 

In this episode, we talk with Tamara Box, the Managing Partner, EME, and Head of Structured Finance at the international top 20 law firm Reed Smith. She is a member of the six-person Senior Management Team and sits on the firm's global board (Executive Committee). Tamara is a recognised expert in securitisation, having been regularly named a leading practitioner by each of the International Financial Law Review’s World’s Leading Structured Finance and Securitisation Lawyers, Legal 500's Legal Experts and Chambers’ UK Guide. This is only the start of the list of her significant accomplishments. 

In this inspirational chat, she discusses her journey to becoming an industry leader, how to embrace change, what it means to be an effective manager,  and how to inspire the next generation of lawyers. 

Thank you for listening to the episode, and enjoy the full conversation.

If you have any requests or suggestions for future episodes, we would love to hear from you! 

Season 2 of General Counselling is here, and the latest episode is live!

In the first episode of this season, host Tom Balmer talks to Alice Stephenson, founder and CEO at Stephenson Law, and Mark Machray, Director of Growth & Development at Keystone Law. 

It’s a fascinating discussion that covers everything from the major differences between alternative and traditional law firms to remote working in the legal industry. 

Welcome to Series 2 of Diversity in Leadership, General Counselling special. 

We were delighted to have our first guest of the series Miriam González Durántez, Head of Trade and EU regulation at law firm Cohen Gresser and founder of Inspiring Girls International, an organisation working to raise young girls’ aspirations by connecting them with female role models. 

As a passionate advocate for gender equality and the upliftment of girls and women around the world, Miriam discusses the challenges she’s faced throughout her career and dives deeper into the solutions she sees around her. 

Join us for an inspiring and enlightening conversation as we look to highlight the strides that have been made by women in professional spaces, and delve into the remaining challenges that endure for women at all levels of the career ladder. 

Learn more and enjoy the full conversation, this is an episode not to be missed. 

Welcome back to Diversity in Leadership. In this episode, we speak with Peter Wozny, Legal Counsel at BTomorrow Ventures, and Sage Revell, Senior Associate at Brown Rudnick.

Peter has led the way in promoting LGBT+ initiatives. He’s also the Deputy Chair of LIFEbeat, a charity that works with diverse, disadvantaged young people across the UK. 

Sage is recognised by the Legal 500 as a recommended lawyer for venture capital and has recently joined the advisory board at Viktrs, a music startup.

We discuss their diverse backgrounds, mentoring opportunities that propelled their career, instances of positive discrimination, and more. 

Highlights snippets from our latest Diversity In Leadership podcast, our new series in General Counselling podcast!

We all know that diversity is an important topic - it's a conversation that is becoming increasingly prevalent within the industry. And rightly so. We're so fortunate to be joined by LGBT+ champions.

So we virtually sat down with Tuvia Borok, Global Head of Policy & Documentation & Global Markets Division at Goldman Sachs. And Emma Matebalavu, Partner, Co-Head of Global Financial Markets, London at Clifford Chance. We wanted to find out what companies are doing regarding diversity and inclusion in leadership

A must listen - stream here today!

General Counselling live - Crypto & Blockchain: A legal outlook

On June 15th we hosted a webinar about all things cryptocurrency, digital assets and blockchain, where we’ll hear the perspectives of the lawyers at the forefront of this new industry. 

With the growth in blockchain-driven businesses, come new possibilities for lawyers, including potential career opportunities as they continue to infiltrate mainstream financial services. Regulations are also very likely to change, so we'll cover what our experts expect to see as the sector matures.

It's worth a watch if you're interested in learning more about the legal outlook on crypto, but our webinar will particularly benefit founders of Blockchain businesses, as it’ll guide you through some legal issues you need to be aware of as you scale your firm.

We have assembled a combination of regulatory and corporate experts with experience of working in or advising clients on their crypto and blockchain activities. So if you'd like to listen in, expert advice from 3 of the few lawyers with hands-on experience of the sector and its implications for traditional financial institutions.

What you'll get out of the event:
Expert insight from top General Counsel and law firm Partners.
An overall legal outlook for blockchain and crypto
Information on changing regulations and legal risks, and how to manage them

James Sullivan, COO & General Counsel, Ziglu
James currently leads governance and operations functions at the crypto and currency payments and exchange platform, Ziglu. This covers legal, risk, compliance, financial crime, operations, customer support and corporate affairs. Previously he headed up the legal team at Monzo during a period of considerable change and high growth, supporting the Board and Executive team through two funding rounds, changes in executive leadership, product launches and the impact of Covid-19.

Rosali Pretorius, Partner, Simmons & Simmons
Rosali Pretorius is a partner in Simmons & Simmons' financial markets group. She specialises in broker-dealer, asset management, and bank regulation, including advising clients involved in cryptocurrencies.
Up to December 2016, Rosali was a Dentons partner and leader of its London based financial services team. During her 21 years at Dentons, she was seconded to Goldman Sachs Sales & Trading Legal, responsible for commodity and funds derivative transactions and Credit, Lyonnais focussing on futures. As a junior assistant, she was shortlisted as Assistant Solicitor of the year by the Lawyer Magazine to work on UK power market reform.

Charles Kerrigan, Partner & Global Head of Fintech at CMS
Charles is a Partner in the Corporate practice at CMS.  Charles was named one of the UK's leading influencers on Blockchain by The Blockchain Industry Landscape Overview in 2018 and is also the UK's "recommended lawyer" for Blockchain and digital technology in the UK Parliament Hub. Specialising in finance and technology, and with a genuine passion for the sector, Charles is arguably the UK's leading corporate lawyer advising on cryptocurrencies.

To celebrate Pride month, we’re excited to announce the latest Diversity In Leadership podcast, our new series in General Counselling podcast!

We all know that diversity is an important topic - it's a conversation that is becoming increasingly prevalent within the industry. And rightly so. We're so fortunate to be joined by LGBT+ champions.

So we virtually sat down with Tuvia Borok, Global Head of Policy & Documentation & Global Markets Division at Goldman Sachs. And Emma Matebalavu, Partner, Co-Head of Global Financial Markets, London at Clifford Chance. We wanted to find out what companies are doing regarding diversity and inclusion in leadership

A must listen - stream here today!

Remembering our friend and colleague Ashely King

For anyone who may not have known or seen, at the end of 2020 we at Montresor had the terrible news of the loss of our beloved friend and colleague Ashley King. 

We want to thank everyone from Ashley's and our network for reaching out to us, wanting to share such touching anecdotes. 

We felt it only fitting to make this a truly unique episode of General Counselling, dedicated in Ash's memory. We've been joined by colleagues past and present, candidates, and friends alike. Sharing special memories, which paint a picture of the thoroughly lovely guy he was.  

We all miss him dearly and our thoughts are very much with his family still at this difficult time. 

If you'd like to know about other initiatives we are doing in Ash's memory please do get in touch. We hope you enjoy this special episode. 

Welcome back to General Counselling Podcast Ep.10

In this week's episode, we speak with Olga Garcia, General Counsel and Head of Corporate Affairs at Cubico Sustainable Investments, and Sam Newhouse, Partner at Latham & Watkins.

Renewable energy might first initiate thoughts in your mind of the defining challenge of our generation - climate change and how to break our reliance on fossil fuels.

Or perhaps it makes you think of the sheer amount of attention it gets from the government, investors, and the media.

For us at Montresor Legal, renewable energy is a fascinating area because it is SO positive.

Full of human ingenuity and innovation.

Harnessing the best of individuals, business and government, for both us and future generations.

Bringing leaders from private practice together with the cream of in-house, to share insights on business leadership, career stories, and the key issues from across the legal landscape.

Our goal is to help in-house and private practice teams work better together. It’s something Tom and the team at Montresor Legal are hugely passionate about and an area where there is always room for improvement.