Consigliere, Juggler and Business Partner - Today's In House Lawyer

Faiz Chapra, Manager Legal, Engro Corporation, Pakistan

“…I don't want a Lawyer to tell me what I cannot do; I hire him to tell me how to do what I want to do.” J.P. Morgan’s thoughts perhaps echo the 21st century business leaders’ expectations of their in-house legal functions . Of course this is not to say that ethical, legal and regulatory concerns need to be overlooked or otherwise side stepped to enable the J.P. Morgan’s of today to crystallize their vision for the businesses they run, but rather for in house lawyers led by competent General Counsel’s to be seen as partners to business, ‘enablers’ rather than the traditional role of ‘naysayers’ or obstacles to business plans and visions.

I am a UK Qualified Solicitor and have practiced in the UK, Dubai and now Pakistan. I have previously worked in various city of London law firms before moving in- house to work for a large international bank in the Middle East, headed the legal function

Engro Corporation Limited (a publicly listed company) is one of Pakistan’s largest conglomerates with businesses ranging from fertilizers to power generation. Currently Engro Corporation’s portfolio consists of diversified businesses (each operated throu