“I see collaboration as a powerful driver of progress.”

An interview with Isabel Fernandes, Director/General Counsel – Legal Services Department at Grupo Visabeira S.A. in Portugal.

How would you describe the state of the GC Community in your region? 

The role of the General Counsel has evolved dramatically in the regions where I’ve practiced – ranging from Southern and Central Europe to the United States and Portuguese-speaking Africa. When I joined Grupo Visabeira in 2006, in-house legal departments were often perceived as back-office risk mitigators. Today, they are strategic partners – embedded in governance, innovation, and growth.

Over nearly two decades, I’ve had the privilege of leading this transformation across diverse jurisdictions – from Portugal, France, Germany, the Nordics, the UK, and Ireland to our largest operation by in the United States, where we focus on telecommunications and energy infrastructure. At the same time, I’ve remained actively involved with Angola, Mozambique, and São Tomé e Príncipe, which continue to present both immense opportunity and structural complexity. These regions often require navigating the nuances of legacy civil law systems, evolving regulatory frameworks, and the imperative for modernisation, ESG integration, and cross-border coherence.

How has it changed since you first moved in-house?

The GC community has matured significantly. Today’s GCs must not only manage legal risk but also anticipate opportunity, guide ethical leadership, and influence corporate strategy. This shift became particularly evident following the €200 million investment by Goldman Sachs Asset Management in Constructel Visabeira, our telecoms and energy subsidiary. That milestone catalysed a global expansion, introducing new challenges and opportunities – and requiring a legal function built for speed, foresight, and strategic influence.

As General Counsel, I’ve led this legal transformation – reshaping the team’s identity from reactive advisors to proactive, business-focused leaders. I believe this mirrors a broader shift within our community: a collective move towards a new era of purpose-driven, cross-functional GC leadership.

Why is expanding your network important to you?

Expanding my professional network is both a strategic imperative and a personal priority. It enables knowledge exchange, collective learning, and more resilient responses to global challenges – particularly in times of technological disruption, regulatory reform, and geopolitical uncertainty.

What kinds of connections or discussions would be most valuable to you?

With our US business now at the forefront of our global operations, building strong connections with peers across geographies is essential. I am particularly drawn to discussions around high-impact legal leadership, legal operations excellence, technology adoption, and the structuring of legal teams for agility and growth.

What I value most are purposeful interactions – conversations that are open, pragmatic, and grounded in real-world experience. I’m keen to engage with fellow GCs who are also navigating the complexities of cross-border structures, fast-paced expansion, and the evolving expectations of our role.

What do you want to achieve by collaborating with other GCs and senior in-house lawyers? Are there specific topics, challenges, or experiences you’d like to share or learn more about?

I see collaboration as a powerful driver of progress. Through GC Connected, I hope to contribute to a global dialogue on what it means to be a legal leader today – how we enable transformation, embed legal foresight, and elevate our teams.

Key areas of interest include the harmonisation of compliance frameworks across jurisdictions, navigating increasingly complex cross-border regulatory environments, the role of technology in delivering strategic legal value, and how legal functions can proactively contribute to business growth. Equally important to me is the collective role we play in shaping the next generation of legal professionals – equipping them not only with legal expertise, but with the business acumen, digital literacy, and emotional intelligence needed to lead in a rapidly changing world.