Cleveland & Co is pleased to announce the appointment of Caroline Donald as Deputy General Counsel, Head of Public Markets.

Caroline brings over 25 years of legal, regulatory, and leadership experience in financial services and investment management, having held senior legal and chief of staff roles at Goldman Sachs, First Sentier and Slaughter and May. Caroline is a trusted advisor to executive leadership, NEDs, and Boards, with particular expertise in contentious regulatory and sensitive HR issues.

Caroline is qualified in England & Wales and has advised clients across multiple jurisdictions including Spain, Italy, Ireland, Australia, North America, and Asia Pacific. Her expertise spans all things public funds, hedge funds, derivatives, broker and custodian agreements, fund distribution, remuneration structures, and UK financial services regulation (including FCA Handbook, MiFID II, EMIR, UCITS, SMCR, SYSC, and UK GDPR).

In her new role, Caroline will lead Cleveland & Co’s public markets legal team, advising clients on UCITS, ETFs, Separately Managed Accounts, fund distribution and custody, transactions, regulatory strategy and more. She will also contribute to firm-wide legal leadership and play a key role in shaping Cleveland & Co’s global legal vision.

Commenting on her appointment, Caroline said:

“I’m excited to join Cleveland & Co at a time when the investment management industry is undergoing profound change. As firms increasingly seek agile, high-calibre, strategic and functional legal support without the rigidity of traditional models, the demand for more flexible, high-impact solutions, through fractional legal solutions is only growing. Cleveland & Co pioneered the outsourced in-house model and remains the most innovative platform for lawyers who want to work at the cutting edge of legal advisory services. This is the future of legal services, and I’m extremely proud to be part of a team that is shaping it.”

Rowena Hill, Managing Director and General Counsel EMEA of Cleveland & Co, said:

“Caroline’s depth of experience and strategic insight make her an exceptional addition to our team. Her arrival strengthens our capabilities in public markets and supports our mission to be the most trusted legal partner of choice to the world’s leading investment firms.”

We’re excited to welcome Caroline to the firm and look forward to the insight, experience, and impact she will bring to our clients and colleagues.