We've brought in more
focus at the head office
to assist our lawyers
working across
the regions o we eau
be the one-stop shop
for the business9
STAKEHOLDER VALUE R1 LEGAl
Floris Carlier (1968)
There's a saying in business: 'it's not what you know; it's who you
know'. Like many sayings, there's an element of truth to it but
the harsh reality is that today you need both. You need good,
trusted contacts; and you need good, trusted knowledge. Recent
structural changes within the legal team are designed to provide
Rabobank International (Rl) with both: an easy, trustworthy, single
point of contact for legal queries; and, within the legal team itself,
a very effective pooling of knowledge between the regions.
The changes were ushered in officially on 1 April this year and
follow similar lines to the restructuring that has taken place
within Rl. They are a direct response to the growth in size and
complexity of Rl and its products in recent years. Understandably,
the changes put more focus on the bank's Rural Retail activities,
as well as its Wholesale activities and global business lines. So now
there is a dedicated Head of Legal Rural Retail, Willibrord van
Nierop. And there is a dedicated Head of Legal Wholesale Banking
Finance, Floris Carlier. Both men are the legal point of contact
in their respective fields for RI's global network of branches
and subsidiaries. Together with Dries Lagerberg, Head of Legal
Financial Markets, they report directly to Head of RN Legal,
Jan Schuchard.
You have only to look at the number and complexity of Rl offices
to see that the change makes good operational sense. The legal
team is involved in transactional processes, as well as corporate
and HR matters. In smaller branches, compact teams of lawyers
manage a broad range of legal risks. In larger branches, where
there is more legal activity, there are bigger teams of lawyers and
more specialists. Sometimes, too, external lawyers are engaged
for specifïc assignments. The trick is to ensure that, wherever they
are based in the world, each lawyer is able to act consistently in
the best legal interests of Rl in as timely and effective a manner
as possible.
But their role isn't just about supporting the
business in its transactions and corporate legal
matters, as van Nierop explains. "On the one hand
we are a support function; but on the other we
see ourselves as legal risk managers. We look at
the whole legal position and the legal risk to the
organisation as a whole. It's part of a larger concept
called 'In Control' and we play our role in that
by helping the organisation manage legal risks.
Since we cannot be involved in every aspect of
the bank's day-to-day business, together with
business and other stakeholders we try to set up
policies and procedures to address specifïc legal
risks as one way of mitigating those risks."
That is why, for instance, a global legal sign-off
policy within Rl has been introduced. For high-
risk transactions, the business must obtain legal approval from
an internal legal department.
It's also the reason behind the role the legal department plays in
the selection and management of external legal counsel. Result:
high-quality advice at a fair price.
The legal team's ability to perform these roles has been enhanced
by the changes made last April. The structure of the lawyers in the
branches has not changed, not least because, as van Nierop says,
they are already doing a great job. What has changed, though,
is the management time and support that they receive from the
head office in Utrecht.
Carlier explains: "It's really that we needed more time, more
attention and more points of contact at the head office. We've
streamlined our internal structure at head office to better assist
our lawyers working across the regions so we can be the one-
stop shop for the business. It's more structured and focussed
ISSUE 29 OCTOBER
Rl WORLD
