Lessons I Learned in Law

Welcome to the latest instalment in our mini-series, Lessons I Learned in Law X Inside the Agency, where we aim to lift the lid on Heriot Brown In-House Legal Recruitment to give you a better idea of what we do. 

We are flipping the script on our usual format and putting our Consultants and team members in the spotlight to share more about the people who make us tick and help us provide fulfilling careers for lawyers. On each episode of Inside the Agency you will get to know more about how recruitment works and we hope we can dispel some of the myths!! 

This week we're chatting to Olivia Sacco a Senior Consultant who's experience is in-house focused specialising across the Technology, Pharmaceuticals, Life Sciences, FMCG, and Restaurant sectors. 

Olivia shares: 

• Her career path into her role at Heriot Brown. 
• The importance of good research.
• The common misconceptions about legal recruiters.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law, Scott Brown speaks to Adam Woodhall, founder and CEO of Lawyers for Net Zero - a non-profit that supports GCs and their teams to utilise their position as a corporate leader to enable effective engagement with climate and ESG issues.

Adam shares the three lessons he has learned in law including:

·      General Counsel are the most influential individuals in the legal sector. They interface with many colleagues in different roles across the organisation, and choose which law firms to work with. 

·      General Counsels have gone way beyond the ‘Department of No’! 

·      This is not theoretical - GCs are working on ESG and advocating for change in their organisations right now! If you, as a GC, are thinking of working in this field then know there are many others similar to you who are already making it happen. 

Adam reveals how many GCs are using ESG initiatives as a way of exercising their leadership. GCs often sit on the board of organisations or advise very senior management and are doing so with regards to issues on sustainability. 

 Adam has worked with over 100 in-house lawyers via Lawyers for Net Zero's ‘Leaders Programme’, including the global GCs from Rolls Royce, WPP, BUPA, Centrica, National Grid and Specsavers. Hear all about the programme which focusses on supporting GCs to generate action via their role through peer-to-peer networking and training. You can find out more about the programme here. 

Fancy a giggle?  Check out Adam’s sustainable stand up on YouTube where he purports to be Head of Sustainability for the Death Star! Watch it here.  

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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Welcome to the third instalment in our mini-series, Lessons I Learned in Law X Inside the Agency, where we aim to lift the lid on Heriot Brown In-House Legal Recruitment to give you a better idea of what we do. 

We are flipping the script on our usual format and putting our Consultants and team members in the spotlight to share more about the people who make us tick and help us provide fulfilling careers for lawyers. On each episode of Inside the Agency you will get to know more about how recruitment works and we hope we can dispel some of the myths!! 

This week we're chatting to Emma Bower who is Head of Community with a proven track record of bringing together in-house counsel and fostering a strong sense of community, both at The Lawyer and now at Heriot Brown. 
Emma shares: 

• Her career path into her role at Heriot Brown. 
• Her techniques for overcoming shyness when networking. 
• The key skillset she thinks a recruiter should have.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law, Scott Brown speaks to Dina White. Dina is General Counsel at Zodia Markets, where she leads the Legal function, including providing guidance and direction on strategic, governance and risk issues. Prior to her current role, Dina spent much of her career at Bank of New York Mellon and U.S. Bancorp, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring, corporate trustee work and complex financial products. 

Dina shares the three lessons she has learned in law including:

·      Lawyers have a privilege and its our duty to give back to society. 

·      Do the work you love, but don’t ignore the boring parts of the job!

·      Communication and connection are key to our work and our wellbeing. 

Dina discusses the powerful impact that lawyers can have on society, supporting people in need and providing access to the law to those who need it most. To this end, she describes how rewarding she found some of the pro-bono work that she’s carried out throughout her career.

Dina writes regularly on LinkedIn about developments in the world of digital assets, and was named one of Financial News’ Twenty Most Influential Women in Crypto. If that’s a subject you’re interested in, definitely give her a follow on LinkedIn.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.  

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Welcome to the second episode in our mini-series, Lessons I Learned in Law X Inside the Agency,  where we aim to lift the lid on Heriot Brown In-House Legal Recruitment to give you a better idea of what we do.

We are flipping the script on our usual format and putting our Consultants and team members in the spotlight to share more about the people who make us tick and help us provide fulfilling careers for lawyers.

On each episode of Inside the Agency you will get to know more about how recruitment works and we hope we can dispel some of the myths!!

This week we're chatting to Zoe Dales who is a Consultant specialising in the recruitment of in-house legal professionals across the Telecommunications, Betting, Gambling and Sport sectors.

Zoe shares:

• Her career path into her role at Heriot Brown
• Her advice for those considering a career change.
• Her passions outside of work.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law, Scott Brown speaks to Lara Oyesanya, Chief legal Officer, Group General Counsel and Company Secretary at Zepz which is a leading provider of cross-border payments and remittance services through its two brands, WorldRemit and Sendwave.

Lara shares the three lessons she has learned in law including:

·      Don’t be intimidated by the status of others or allow yourself to be overwhelmed by anything they try to say to you. Remain calm and fully focussed on your brief.

·      Be curious. You are always learning and your career will provide you with many opportunities to try something new. 

·      Seize all opportunities – you never know where they may lead!

Lara discusses her work on the privatisation of British Rail; a project which saw the privatisation of 93 separate businesses and the formation of Train Operating companies. She explains how her curiosity exposed her to a range of legal concepts and different ways of doing things.  

Lara also reveals how she became an independent non-executive director, and what the role involves. 

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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Inside the Agency: Lucy Taylor

Welcome to the first episode in our mini-series, Lessons I Learned in Law X Inside the Agency,  where we aim to lift the lid on Heriot Brown In-House Legal Recruitment to give you a better idea of what we do. 

We are flipping the script on our usual format and putting our Consultants and team members in the spotlight to share more about the people who make us tick and help us provide fulfilling careers for lawyers.

On each episode of Inside the Agency you will get to know more about how recruitment works and we hope we can dispel some of the myths!!

We begin with Principal Consultant, Lucy Taylor, who specialises in placing lawyers in-house into the Media, E-Commerce and Luxury Goods sectors. 

• Lucy trained as a lawyer and qualified into litigation
• Learn how and why she decided to step away from practice
• How Lucy believes having  a legal background can make you a better legal recruiter

Lucy spills the beans on what has made her such a success at Heriot Brown and why she feels there is an in-house legal career which could suit everyone!

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law, Scott Brown speaks to Xavier Langlois, Chief Legal and Impact Officer at Beamery. Beamery is a HR SaaS tech company that provides a Talent Lifecycle Management platform which allows enterprises to create talent centric, human centric experiences for all talent

Xavier, or X, trained at Field Fisher and since 2013 has worked in-house for tech firms and in venture capital. Xavier has held numerous senior roles across various industries, including legal tech, private equity and tech more broadly. He has led numerous funding rounds, M&A, and advises management/founders on a wide range of legal and business issues and company strategy and growth.  

X shares the three lessons he has learned in law including:

·      There’s no one way to have a legal career. X reveals how his secondments into industry firms opened his eyes to the possibilities of an in-house career; something that he wasn’t aware of when entering into the legal profession. 

·      When you come to work, bring your whole self to work. Be unapologetically you! 

·      Don’t just be the lawyer. Get into a position where you fully understand how the business works and how you can help with strategy and growth. Nurture internal and external relationships and apply your unique perspective to help teams across the business, regardless of what they might be working on. Bring solutions, not problems.
 

X talks about his experiences of sharing his whole self with his colleagues, specifically his sexuality as a gay man. Whilst he says he doesn’t like the term ‘coming out’, he instead tried normalise his experiences through honesty with his team. He also reflects on lockdown and how that often created deeper more meaningful conversations and relationships with colleagues, despite being remote. 

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Helen Lowe, Head of Operations for the General Counsel’s office at easyJet. Helen is an operational change and transformation specialist with experience both as a consultant with KPMG and in industry with Sellafield Ltd and the Co-op.

In this episode Helen reveals what legal ops is, what her role can involve and how legal ops can shape and enhance a business.

Helen also shares some of the lessons she learned in law including:

·      Think harder! You need to be able to explain yourself clearly, think through any proposal and consider that there’s always something new to be learned.

·      The relationships with law firms can be fractious, but they can also be really fun! Learn to know how, and when, to respectfully push boundaries. 

·      Be patient! Legal teams can be very busy so make sure you allow projects sufficient time to develop and progress. 

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Anna Butler, Group General Counsel at Long Harbour Ltd, an investment and asset management firm with £3.6 billion assets under management.

Anna trained at US law firm Mayer Brown and after six years there, moved to city law firm RPC. She moved in house to head up the capital redevelopment program at UCL and since then has had a number of leadership roles in different sectors.

Anna shares some of the lessons she learned in law including:

·      Law is a people business. It is crucial to build relationships both inside and outside your law firm or business. 

·      Be open to opportunities. There is no set career path to General Counsel. 

·      Work in a business that you believe in and are passionate about. The more invested you are, the better you can deliver.

Anna also reveals how tv show LA Law was the inspiration for her career in the legal profession!

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment. 

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