Catherine Baflast (left with Cindy Arces) wants to make PwC Legal an innovative firm, develop the concept of the "lawyer-entrepreneur" and be at the forefront of digitalisation. (Photo: Romain Gamba/Maison Moderne)

Catherine Baflast (left with Cindy Arces) wants to make PwC Legal an innovative firm, develop the concept of the "lawyer-entrepreneur" and be at the forefront of digitalisation. (Photo: Romain Gamba/Maison Moderne)

At the end of her mandate at the head of PwC Legal, Cindy Arces is handing over to Catherine Baflast, who becomes managing partner as of 1 October.

Cindy Arces was appointed managing partner at PwC Legal in 2018 for a four-year term. At the end of her term, she felt it was time to hand over the reins. "A change of management is not an unusual thing in the life of a firm,” Arces explains. “I have always felt that it is healthy for a firm to have a new leader who regularly brings energy and enthusiasm to bear on a new vision. I am proud of the work we have done during my tenure, including the firm's entry into the PwC network. And now it's Catherine's turn to take the firm into 2025.”

Looking back on her experience, Arces believes that her time at the head of the firm has allowed her to develop managerial skills that were not her initial skills. And while the job was an important step in her career, she says she is now happy to "give priority to serving my clients.”

The new managing partner, Catherine Baflast, started as a lawyer at the company--which was still called MNKS--in 2002 . She was co-opted as a partner in 2015 and has been leading the firm's corporate practice since 2018. This practice accounts for more than half of the firm's activity. She was also one of the partners who spearheaded the project to join the PwC network, which was completed in December 2018. "She has extensive knowledge and experience of the Luxembourg market. She was a prime candidate for the position," says Arces. Baflast specialises in all aspects of corporate law including M&A and private equity. She is also also head of the risk management department.

Implementing the PwC Legal 2025 strategy

Baflast will be responsible for rolling out the "PwC Legal 2025" strategy developed in recent months.  "In a business environment that is increasingly complex in the face of ever-increasing regulation, our raison d'être is to imagine, plan and deliver innovative solutions to help our clients navigate this complexity. As legal experts, we need to implement solutions that have multiple dimensions and include financial, tax, social and regulatory aspects," the firm says.

This approach is largely inspired by the global strategy of the PwC network. "The interaction we can have with the offices and disciplines within the PwC network is really an invaluable added value that has been offered to our clients. This approach really allows us to look at clients' issues and situations through a much broader prism and anticipate any opportunities for growth and control the associated risks."

Three projects

Baflast's says her day-to-day work will involve three main tasks: firstly, focusing the service offering on areas that contribute positively to clients' success and maximise the strengths of the PwC platform. Mainly, this will be in the areas of corporate, finance, investment funds, intellectual property and new technologies.

The second area of focus for the new managing partner will be developing the skills of the firm's staff and enhancing their careers by promoting the idea of the lawyer-entrepreneur, a legal professional and business advisor who is fully involved and aware of their clients' growth projects. "To serve our clients, our staff must not only be legal specialists, but must also have a business-oriented culture, product management skills and interpersonal and listening skills that will make them first-rate contacts for the business leaders who are our clients.”

The last project is the digitalisation of the firm "to serve its clients more efficiently and through collaborative exchanges.”

in further news, Audrey Rustichelli has been appointed deputy managing partner. With a solid experience of the Luxembourg market in particular "and a genuine talent for development", she will assist Baflast specifically on issues of business development, branding and marketing.

This article was originally written in French for and has been translated and edited by Delano.