4th - 6th October 2026 | Sopwell House, St. Albans
Bringing you together with peers who are also stepping-up in responsibility
Taking place in the luxurious 5-star surroundings of Sopwell House, The Retreat is our more intimate and immersive learning experience. Across two days and nights, you and a carefully curated cohort of peers, will learn how to navigate your recent step-up in responsibility, guided by our experts.
As a first-time General Counsel or senior in-house lawyer, this is a unique opportunity to pause, step away from day-to-day work and focus on your development. It offers time to reflect, build trust with peers stepping into equivalent roles and work through what comes next with intention.
You can be part of this experience for just £1,850 +VAT.
Hear Directly From Past Attendees
Why Should You Join Us in 2026?
What distinguishes this experience?
Cohort Intimacy
A small, carefully curated group of peers navigating a similar inflection point in comfort.
Get a better level of self-awareness by the end of the Retreat. Learn about your strengths, weaknesses, working styles and behavioural preferences.
Structured Candour
Less formal programming, with a greater focus on facilitated small-group discussions designed to build trust quickly and meaningfully.
You will learn how to apply all your self-awareness and learnings to situations with the Board or senior management teams, and your reporting line upwards.
And maybe enjoy some ‘you’ time at the spa too.
True stories, no posturing
Guest Chief Legal Officers share candid, formative experiences rather than polished panel narratives.
In 2025, we welcomed Chief Legal Officers from Remote, Cambridge University Press, and Perk as guest contributors. We look forward to introducing this year’s speakers soon.
The minds shaping your experience at Sopwell House
Our Expert Trainers & Facilitators
This year at the Crafty Retreat, we’re joined by expert trainers and facilitators:
Neeta Halai
Neeta is the founder of New Heights Training, helping businesses and legal professionals build IQ- and EQ-smart communication and leadership skills. She coaches individuals and teams using emotional intelligence and the psychology of human behaviour, and also supports lawyers and aspiring solicitors preparing for the SQE. Neeta is the first published author on the SQE, with her book, Skilfully Passing the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), 2nd edition (Bloomsbury), recommended by universities, law firms, and in-house teams worldwide. She’s a regular legal conference speaker and moderator, and also an exhibited artist represented by OCA Gallery in St Albans.
Toby Hornett
After training and qualifying at Clifford Chance, Toby’s background is mainly as an in-house lawyer with Canon Europe. Then in 2017, he made an internal move into Learning & Development which included coaching. Prior to joining Crafty Counsel in March 2023, Toby supported part-time as a Community Ambassador. He also volunteers as a peer supporter for LawCare.
Catie Sheret
Catie is General Counsel at Cambridge University Press & Assessment, part of the University of Cambridge, and has spent most of her career working as an in-house lawyer in education and publishing. She leads the legal, business integrity, compliance and AI governance functions and serves on the Executive Board. Alongside managing a global team, she focuses on developing people, modernising ways of working and ensuring that legal and compliance functions deliver practical value to the organisation.
James Sullivan
James is Chief Risk & Legal Officer at BCB Group, a regulated payment and cryptoasset institution, where he oversees Legal, Risk, Compliance, and Operations. He is also a Non-Executive Director of NCM Fund Services Ltd, an FCA-regulated AIFM. A solicitor with 25 years in financial services and fintech, James has moved deliberately beyond the traditional GC role — holding COO, CRO, MD and General Manager mandates at Bitstamp (by Robinhood), Ziglu, and Monzo, among others. He holds an Executive MBA from Bayes Business School.
Key Themes
Led by Neeta Halai, founder of New Heights Training and expert in emotional intelligence and communication coaching
Self-awareness and leadership relationships
At the retreat, we’ll be exploring self-awareness and leadership relationships, focusing on the foundations that shape how you lead and connect with others. Together, we’ll examine your values, behaviours, and mindset, as well as the types of leadership that inspire you and how you show up in practice. Through a blend of small group discussions, pair work, and interactive exercises, you’ll reflect on leaders you admire, clarify your own values, and identify your behavioural strengths and impact. We’ll also create space to explore patterns of over-extension and develop a more intentional leadership practice grounded in self-awareness. We’ll conclude with a candid fireside chat and Q&A with a General Counsel.
Facilitated by Toby Hornett, Head of Community, with guest contributors
The GC in the wider market
At the retreat, we’ll be exploring the GC in the wider market, with a focus on strengthening your leadership approach and broadening your strategic impact. Including an interactive workshop on shaping your legal department strategy, alongside discussions on legal leadership and your personal brand and career positioning.
You’ll gain practical insights from a General Counsel and take part in a coaching-focused exercise to map your team’s “will” and “skill,” helping you identify more effective ways of working together. The experience will conclude with time for personal reflection before departing.
With thanks to our Crafty Retreat Partner
Become a partner at the Crafty Retreat
The Retreat represents a unique opportunity to build relationships with new General Counsel and other senior in-house lawyers moving into leadership positions for the first time. This is the very moment when our delegates are creating new relationships that will last for their professional lives. They are assessing existing external relationships, building new ones and looking at everything afresh.
Get in the room with these people to meet potential customers, drive conversation and build long-term relationships. Talk to us now to discuss our Crafty Retreat 2026 partnership opportunities.
Is the Crafty Retreat for you?
If you’re a relatively new General Counsel or senior in-house lawyer navigating a pivotal moment in your career, this is your chance to pause, reflect, and build trust with a small group of peers stepping into equivalent roles at a beautiful location. The Retreat costs £1,850 + VAT which we think is terrific value for an experience of this kind.
The cohort for the Retreat will consist of in-house lawyers who:
- Have recently taken on a senior role such as General Counsel, Regional or Country General Counsel, Business Unit General Counsel, or Head of Legal
- Have people management responsibilities
- Either promoted into a senior role or joined from outside the business and want to establish themselves as a legal leader
- Report or have a dotted line to someone other than a member of the Legal team for the first time
You will also be joined by some team members from our partners and the Crafty Counsel team wo will offer their unique perspectives and insight.
Register your interest in attending and we’ll be in touch to discuss if The Retreat is right for you.
