We are delighted to be partnering with Crafty Counsel on a series of three podcasts. Crafty Counsel is a growing network of in-house legal professionals, connecting individuals from across the world. Crafty Counsel organises content, resources, intimate community meetups and larger events to help those working in-house achieve their professional and personal goals.

In the first collaboration episode between Re:link and The Crafty Show, Crafty Counsel's Founder, Benjamin White, sits down with Simon Duffield, Legal Director at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. In this broad conversation, Simon discusses his career to date and his involvement in Gavi's global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to those who needed it most.

Simon began his career at Linklaters before moving to Switzerland and taking on a new role in-house. Simon joined Gavi during the pandemic and was involved in working to ensure that vaccines reached those in need during a time of unprecedented crisis. We hear about the excellent work that Gavi does and its global impact, which has led to the immunisation of over a billion children through various programmes over the years. Simon generously shares learnings from his career journey to date and discusses the importance of finding joy in challenging work and collaborating as a team. The conversation touches on the differences between working as an in-house lawyer versus private practice. There's a lot of great insights to takeaway.

In this episode we also hear from Martin Laing, Head of Re:link. Martin discusses Linklaters’ and Re:link’s support for Gavi and how they’ve worked together over the years. Ben and Martin consider the rise of the contracting and freelance legal market, and how interest in this area has grown. There is a new recognition from clients that lawyers are able to work at home and remotely, and Re:link is now able to place lawyers with a broader range of clients as a result. 

  Listen to the full episode on Crafty Counsel’s website episode link or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Keep your eyes peeled for the second episode in this three-part series – coming soon!

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