Corporate Counsel’s editors also named the legal departments of Exelon Corporation and IBM as finalists.
The in-house legal department at The Hartford was selected for its work and success in negotiating, structuring and closing a critical deal with global insurance giant Allianz SE in record time. In the midst of the financial service industry’s meltdown last September, the agreement brought The Hartford a crucial $2.5 billion capital infusion that played a key role in saving the company from insolvency.
The legal team later repeated its stellar performance, enabling The Hartford to acquire a troubled bank under a tight deadline, and allowing the company to qualify for participation in the Treasury Department’s TARP program.
The magazine’s editors cited Exelon Corporation’s legal department for its efforts in expanding pro bono work and improving lawyer diversity. The 580 lawyers in IBM’s global legal team were recognized for their groundbreaking work and innovation across a variety of areas.
Winners were selected from responses submitted to a detailed questionnaire developed by the editors and reporters of Corporate Counsel and distributed to the general counsel of all Fortune 500 corporations.
Founded in 1810, Hartford Connecticut’s Hartford Financial Services Group, aka The Hartford, is a Fortune 100 company, and one of America’s largest investment and insurance companies.