Hogan Lovells

For years, we’ve helped Drinkwell strengthen the legal foundations behind a mission that reaches millions. Drinkwell is expanding access to safe, affordable drinking water across South Asia through clean water technology and innovative service-delivery models – work already improving lives across Bangladesh, India, and beyond. This year, CEO and co-founder Minhaj Chowdhury was recognized at Davos with the Schwab Foundation Award for Social Entrepreneurship – a powerful marker of the organization’s growing impact. We recently welcomed Minhaj to our New York office, where he joined our CEO Miguel Zaldivar and partner Emil Arca to mark the recognition and acknowledge our ongoing support of Drinkwell’s mission as it scales across South Asia. Read more about our long-running pro bono partnership in our case study linked in the comments.

Ignite 2026 brought together 21 experienced partners from 10 offices around the world for three unforgettable days of learning, connection, and leadership. Under the guidance of Partner Sponsors Logan Breed and Tanja Eisenblaetter, this cohort developed their leadership skills, built and strengthened relationships, deepened their business acumen, and gained a richer understanding of our firm’s vision and strategy. On Day 1, we set the tone with dynamic networking and leadership exercises, followed by a Clients and Sector spotlight from partners Patrick Ayad and Phoebe A Wilkinson, which was followed by Deen Kaplan who also shared key lessons on what drives performance at our firm. The day ended on a high note with a Q&A with CEO Miguel Zaldivar and Deputy CEO Michael Davison, moderated by partner Allison Holt. Day 2 focused on decision‑making through a fast‑paced business simulation and live leadership challenges, supported by several partners in leadership who brought real-time perspectives to the experience. Day 3 closed out with a look into the future – an AI session from Global Managing Partner for Digitalization Mark Brennan, equipping our next generation of leaders with the mindset and skills needed for this fast-moving landscape. “AI works best when it is strengthening your good judgment, not trying to replace it,” Mark said of the session. “That was the real value of this conversation.” We delved into several sessions on value-based leadership and team culture, as well as a discussion on sustaining high performance led by Michelle Cecchini Nash and Laura Kind from our HL Lead & Learn team. “Ignite was exceptional; but even more than that, it was a warm and welcoming environment allowing open and honest communication, along with lots of laughter and bonding time with my cohort,” said participant Stephen Nicolai. “What stands out most is how quickly this group embraced the opportunity to think differently about leadership – and how that mindset will carry forward into how they collaborate, innovate, and lead across the firm. I am excited to watch how they shape our future,” Logan said. “A week later, I am still reflecting on how valuable it was to spend those days together, connecting across offices and practices, exchanging experiences and perspectives with such openness, and strengthening the relationships that make our partnership so distinctive,” said Tanja. “The conversations, energy, and sense of collegiality made it an exceptionally rewarding experience.” Thank you to all our participants for the openness, energy, and commitment you brought to Ignite 2026. And a special thanks to Tanja Eisenblätter and Logan Breed for their leadership across the three days and to our HL Lead & Learn team – Michelle Nash, Grace Stilger, and Katie Willis – for bringing the program to life. Together, we are building a connected, confident generation of leaders, equipped to drive performance and shape the firm’s long-term success.

𝐁𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 – 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭.   As energy demand rises and electricity supply becomes more volatile, governments and market participants are prioritizing flexibility, resilience, and energy security.   Bidirectional charging (V2X) is emerging as a key part of that solution, enabling electric vehicles to feed electricity back to homes, businesses, and the grid. Momentum is building across leading markets, from the UK and Germany to Japan and California, as large-scale deployment moves closer to reality.   Our team supports clients across the V2X landscape, including:   ■ Advising on legal and regulatory frameworks ■ Structuring complex, multi-stakeholder arrangements ■ Supporting market entry and enabling conditions, from data access to grid and tax considerations   For a deeper dive into what’s ahead, explore our latest Future of Energy perspective by associate Kai Schlesinger: https://lnkd.in/eZF8DVqV   Follow the series for more insights into the technologies reshaping the future of energy – and learn more about our Energy team’s work here: https://lnkd.in/eAw3mg4i

The energy system is transforming fast as millions of small‑scale assets connect to the grid. In our new 𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 podcast episode, senior associate Oliver Travers sits down with AJ Lawrence of Octopus Energy to discuss how decentralized models are driving change and enabling a more resilient, flexible, and sustainable system. As demand rises (from AI, EVs and electrification) and renewables add complexity, balancing security, affordability and sustainability is becoming harder than ever. Listen in for a forward‑looking view on the technologies, behaviors, and policy shifts shaping the next generation of energy networks.

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 – 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭. Digital transformation is no longer a specialist issue. It is reshaping every sector – raising new expectations, new risks, and new pressure on legal teams to respond at pace. In the latest episode of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘴 podcast, Louise Crawford and Vassi Iliadis, co-leads of our Future of Digitalization initiative, join host Leopold von Gerlach to discuss: ■ How legal risk is evolving alongside fast-moving AI and digital change ■ Where litigation and regulatory pressures are starting to overlap ■ Why digital decisions are now business-critical – not just technical ■ What organizations need to get right now to avoid costly missteps The episode explores how organizations can build the confidence to engage with digital challenges, connect expertise across the business, and make informed decisions in an increasingly complex environment. 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞.

Last year, we set out to surface the strongest digital ideas from across the firm — ideas shaped by real client challenges and capable of influencing the future of legal service delivery.   DIGI25 was created to turn those ideas into practical solutions.   Nearly 100 submissions were received, with ideas spanning legal service delivery, business operations, and client solutions. The quality of entries reflected the creativity, collaboration, and ambition driving innovation across our firm.   Following review by our judging panel, the Grand Prize was awarded to the Mexico City–based team behind BreachPilot — an AI-powered tool supporting cybersecurity incident response through automated guidance, document creation, and stakeholder alerts.   Following their win, the team traveled to Amsterdam and is now working with colleagues in ELTEMATE’s innovation studio to prototype the solution for use in live client matters.   Guillermo E. Larrea, from the BreachPilot team, said: “Cyber incidents demand speed, clarity, and confidence. BreachPilot was born from seeing firsthand how challenging that can be for clients. DIGI25 gave us the platform to turn an idea into something tangible with the potential to make real impact. We’re excited to take the next step with ELTEMATE and bring this solution to life.”   Congratulations also to our category winners: • Legal Service Delivery: OCTOPUS — an AI-driven litigation management tool designed to centralize workflows, enhance document comparison, support work-product generation, and improve budget visibility (team led by counsel Benjamin Schulte). • Business Operations: HL Lens — an AI-powered knowledge hub using the firm’s Smart Database to make Learning & Development content easier to search, use, and share, while supporting drafting and knowledge access (team led by junior conflicts analyst Leyla Aptoulach).   Mark Brennan, Global Managing Partner for Digitalization at Hogan Lovells, said: “DIGI25 shows the value of creating space for our people to innovate. Many of the strongest ideas came directly from those closest to our clients and our work. BreachPilot and our category winners reflect exactly why we launched this initiative — to elevate practical ideas and turn them into solutions that strengthen how we deliver legal services.”   Sebastian Lach, partner at Hogan Lovells and Co-CEO of ELTEMATE, said: “DIGI25 demonstrates what’s possible when you give people the opportunity to experiment and build. Our role at ELTEMATE is to help transform the strongest ideas into working solutions with real impact for clients and our teams.”   DIGI25 is part of DIGI, our global digitalization program focused on building digital capability, modernizing legal delivery, and creating new value for clients.   Thank you to everyone who contributed ideas and helped make DIGI25 a success, and thank you to The Lawyer for shining a spotlight on this initiative.

Private capital isn’t just growing – it’s getting more complex.   As strategies diversify and asset classes multiply, carried interest is under sharper scrutiny than ever.   For asset managers, getting carried interest right is no longer a technical afterthought. It’s central to managing risk, preserving tax efficiency, and supporting long‑term value creation.   We’ve listened to our clients and developed a new toolkit to help work through these complex issues in key fund jurisdictions across the globe. Click the link in the comments for strategic insights in:   ■ France ■ Germany ■ Luxembourg ■ The Netherlands ■ Spain ■ The United Kingdom ■ The United States ■ Singapore ■ Hong Kong   If you’d like to dig deeper or discuss what this means for your structure, feel free to reach out to a member of our team: Alexander Fortuin, Juan Ignacio Garicano, Heiko Dr. Gemmel, Xenia Legendre, Gerard Neiens, Elliot Weston, Lauren Clarke, Jessica Millett, Thomas, Jixian Kim, and Michael Wong.

𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲. 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐦. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. These are the qualities our people bring to their work every day. Today, we’re recognizing colleagues across our global offices whose contributions over the past year reflect these values and advance our strategic priorities. Congratulations to our 2025 HighLight Champions and Highly Commended Teams. Celebrating our people is central to how we recognize outstanding contributions and support a culture of positive feedback across our firm. Discover what drives us – learn more in the comments below.