Founded in 1891, Fenech & Fenech Advocates has evolved to become one of Malta’s leading law firms, offering a comprehensive service across a number of specialised areas including shipping and maritime law, international trade, financial services and TMT law. Ann Fenech, the Managing Partner, developed the Marine Litigation Department practically from scratch and, as Vice President of the Comité Maritime International, she is actively involved in the development of international maritime law.

The journey towards becoming Malta’s go-to expert regarding maritime law was not an intentional one for her. In fact, coming from a family of doctors, her future was initially assumed to lie firmly within the medical profession.

“My decision to pursue law came about very early,” Ann explains. “In those days, we had only the choice between the sciences and the arts and, although my father had assumed that I would become a doctor too, I decided to study languages instead. But since a BA in languages was not possible at the time, I decided on law and I’ve never looked back.”

Her path towards her unique career was further shaped by changes in her personal life, when, following her graduation in 1986, she relocated with her husband, Thomas, to London where he had qualified as a doctor.

“In London, I joined Holman Fenwick Willan, where I tried my hand within the shipping sector for the first time, as a 24-year-old Maltese, female lawyer. Frankly, that set me up for the rest of my professional life, to this very day,” Ann recalls. “I was exposed to a variety of marine litigation disputes there, and opted to read for a Master’s degree in maritime law alongside it.”

Then, when Thomas was offered a fellowship in New Orleans, Ann was seconded there, where further experience within the shipping sector followed. Returning to Malta in 1992, she chose Fenech & Fenech Advocates as the firm in which to set up a Marine Litigation Department, the only one of its kind in any law firm in the country.

As the oldest law firm in Malta, Ann believes that Fenech & Fenech’s longevity has largely been due to its approach of providing tailored legal services and creating niches as demanded by Malta’s changing economy and needs.

“History has dictated that property rights are an ongoing concern, and so the firm’s historic knowledge of property has given us an edge,” she points out. “I chose Fenech & Fenech Advocates as the home for the Marine Litigation Department I wanted to set up, both for its years of experience and its forward-thinking, open-minded, proactive approach to the changing needs of the nation.”

In the 1960s, the tourism industry inspired the firm to create new hospitality-related departments, and others thereafter. “For instance, we were the first law firm locally to hire someone versed in IT law in preparation for the IT revolution,” Ann continues.

“Our forte is our focused, first-class workforce, and that we have never shied away from developing specialised niches.” Ann’s philosophy as Managing Partner at the firm still holds true to these ideals, with a passion for creating a second-to-none working environment for everyone in the organisation’s diverse team of more than 130 people.

“Beyond the multitude of responsibilities involved in moving the organisation forward, I consider one of the top priorities to be ensuring that we provide an excellent working environment for our team, and I am very conscious of the fact that we all spend most of our time at the office!” she smiles.

“People provide good work if they are happy at their place of work. Personally, if I’m not happy, then I am not going to deliver to the best of my ability, so I cannot expect anyone else in that situation to do so either. Providing an atmosphere that enables our team to work comfortably and peacefully offers them the chance to be the best they can be.”

Ann also partly credits her impressive personal career and the success of her role at Fenech & Fenech Advocates to guaranteeing that her own working life has been carefully crafted around her other primary roles of wife and mother. “My passions are my husband and my children, and, yet, I’ve worked throughout my children’s lives. When they were young, I would fit my work commitments around their academic diary, and prioritise taking them to school so that they could tell me about their day in advance.”

She highlights the fact she has not encountered any major challenges as a woman working within the somewhat male-dominated law industry. “While I have no doubt that there are many hugely competent ladies who will have experienced challenges as women in this industry, I haven’t, or, rather, if I have, then my character is such that I would disregard them. Of course, I care about people’s opinions of me, however, I don’t waste my time or energy focusing on such things. I focus on doing my best, and I want to work alongside people who are also doing their best. Gender does not come into the equation.”

Such unwavering focus and determination have afforded Ann the opportunity to achieve numerous impressive feats, such as being awarded Best in Shipping Law at the European Women in Business Law Awards London for three consecutive years, and being elected Vice President of the Comité Maritime International in November 2018.

“These career milestones are down to three words I choose to centre my life around: determination, passion and perseverance, all related to my chosen subject of maritime law. I have always enjoyed the academic side of maritime law, and while these extra roles represent a lot of commitment and hard work, I still find it exciting to be a part of an Executive Council with other highly-accomplished maritime lawyers from around the world, in a collaboration to draft new, important global legislation.”

In recent years, Ann also witnessed the ever-changing maritime sector in Malta, which is now incorporating other rising practice areas such as blockchain and crypto currency. “Malta has registered tremendous successes over the years in the shipping and maritime sector, and it continues to grow,” she highlights.

I believe that Malta has a role to play in encouraging environmentally friendly choices for the shipping industry. That said, as long as Malta remains professional, grounded and continues to develop its knowledge, then the country will have a thriving maritime sector for years to come.”

She is determined that the firm will continue to lead by example by offering an excellent service at the highest standard possible while training and adapting to keep up with emerging markets, Ann concludes. “The firm will go from strength to strength throughout 2020 and beyond, sustained by our team of passionate experts at its core.”

Whoswho.mt is proud to be serialising MaltaCEOs 2020, a high-profile publication consisting of 50 in-depth interviews with leading CEOs in Malta.