If, 100 years from now, a historian were to study the period from 2008 to 2013, some key phrases would probably emerge: market crash, political scrutiny, regulatory change, damage to reputations. Few have been better placed to view these forces play out in real time as those who work within the banks’ in-house legal teams.

All the hallmarks of the past five years have touched on those working as internal counsel. The demise of European securitisation, the increase in insolvency and restructuring, the slew of regulatory initiatives, the self-inflicted reputational damage and the growth in new markets - such as the European high yield - have all altered the way in which in-house counsels operate.