International law firm Gowling WLG welcomes Mary Mackintosh as its new General Counsel for the UK LLP. Mary joins Gowling WLG from Travis Perkins where she held a national role as their Head of Corporate Legal Services & Data Protection Officer.
David Fennell, chief executive, Gowling WLG (UK) LLP, said: "We were overwhelmed by the quantity and quality of candidates we received for this role. Mary was chosen for the position as she has significant board experience, as well as risk management, compliance and insurance experience with a wealth of information in understanding of the demands of transactional work and what clients are looking for."
"As a highly experienced lawyer and leader with the right mix of technical knowledge and people skills to articulate the challenges and issues facing law firms I look forward to working with Mary and exploring the future opportunities for Gowling WLG."
Mary will be advising on a whole range of legal and commercial issues, covering the implications of the firm-s major decisions, strategies and transactions. This will include advising on all major commercial contracts which support the business, overseeing any significant professional indemnity or major litigation matters and managing the enterprise wide risks for the firm.
Mary has a wealth of experience having previously worked as the Head of Legal Affairs, De Montfort University, UK Head of Capital Markets & SPV Services at TMF Group and law firms Freeth and Gateleys.
As a partner and board member at Freeths, having operated at board level across several divisions of Travis Perkins, Mary is well positioned to provide decisive advice and innovative solutions, as well as leadership, working collaboratively across the firm.
Mary said: "I am looking forward to enhancing the firm's commercial activities, objectives, brand and investment activities and developing innovative legal support needed to meet the challenges of the dynamic legal services sector."
Mary will be replacing Eddie Breen, who announced his retirement at the end of 2015. Eddie joined legacy Wragge & Co 22 years ago and has guided the firm through its mergers with London firm Lawrence Graham & Co and Canadian giant Gowlings. Eddie is stepping down from the role in order to pursue activities outside of private practice, including charity work for Reach for Rwanda.
Mary's appointment follows another high profile appointment for Gowling WLG which has seen the global firm recruit Tony McKenna as its new IT director.