Welcome

Meet our panel of experts

General counsel and Chambers research leaders joined a legal affairs journalist to discuss key developments across the globe.

Welcome

Vian Chowdhury, Head of Global International
Capabilities, Chambers and Partners

Vian Chowdhury is co-head of the Chambers Global Guide and oversees the guide’s multi-jurisdictional practice areas and General Counsel research. He joined Chambers and Partners in 2013, starting as a researcher on the UK team before becoming a Research Manager on the USA team. He graduated from the University of Birmingham with a BSc in Economics and MSc in Development Economics.

Ollie Dimsdale, Head of Africa, Middle East, Caribbean and Offshore, Chambers and Partners

Ollie has been with Chambers and Partners for a number of years, initially joining as a researcher on Chambers Asia-Pacific before working his way up to his current role. Before joining Chambers he worked as a journalist and in the UK Civil Service. He graduated from the University of Warwick with a BA in English & Theatre Studies and an MA in English Literature. A few years later he also gained an MLitt in Creative Writing from the University of St Andrews, graduating with distinction.

In-house counsel contributor

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James Hanratty, General Counsel at Trainline

James leads Trainline’s Legal and Regulatory functions and sees these functions as business enablers, encouraging his team to be integrated into the heart of the business. It is this approach that saw his team awarded Legal Department of the Year by the British Legal Awards 2018 and the Legal 500 UK Awards 2019.

Prior to joining Trainline in 2009, James spent four years in private practice at the leading UK law firm, Travers Smith LLP, where he trained and qualified into the Commercial, IP, and IT team acting for a variety of private and listed clients in relation to commercial and regulatory matters. James is an English Law qualified solicitor.

In-house counsel contributor

Renato Leite Monteiro, VP Legal for Privacy, Data Protection, AI and IP at e&

Renato Leite Monteiro is e&’s VP Legal for Privacy, Data Protection, AI, and IP. Previously, he served as Global Head of Privacy and Global Data Protection Officer at X / Twitter, leading complex privacy and AI challenges worldwide. Renato is a Fellow at the Oxford Internet Institute, focusing on AI transparency and accountability, and a member of the Global Coalition for Digital Safety of the World Economic Forum. He holds a PhD in AI regulation and master's degrees from NYU and NUS. He has contributed to global policy discussions on privacy and technology for over 15 years.

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Panel chair

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Catherine Baksi, Journalist

Catherine Baksi is a former barrister turned award-winning specialist legal affairs journalist. Since 2016 she has been a regular contributor to The Times law pages and its weekly legal bulletin, The Brief. She also writes for a number of other publications, including the Law Society Gazette, and has done broadcast work as well, commentating on news stories for the BBC, Sky News and Times Radio.