Financial Times FT.com

Resources

Novartis logo Novartis

In-House Lawyers 2009

Rankings at a glance
SectorPharmaceuticals
Lawyers worldwide230
InnovationActive approach to learning the lessons of the crisis
Originality6
Business alignment7
Value creation7
Impact6
Total26
DescriptionGeneral counsel Thomas Werlen has modified the contracts of Novartis employees to include a “clawback” provision for bonuses and long-term targets to ensure ethical behaviours

In-House Lawyers 2008

Rankings at a glance
SectorPharmaceuticals
Number of lawyers worldwide220
InnovationA radical re-structure of the global legal group.
Originality of innovation (s)6
Alignment of legal team with the business5
Creating economic value and/or competitive advantage for the business5
Industry leadership or wider impact of legal team's activity4
Total20
DescriptionRe-structuring the legal team along a three-dimensional matrix structure that allows lawyers to develop their talents as both technical and business lawyers in order to deliver the best possible service. Knowledge management is an increasing priority globally.In the US, teams of Novartis lawyers actively create financial value for the company through scouring competitors' patents for weaknesses they can challenge.