Friday, 29 May 2020 12:00

SIGs in the Spotlight: FINLEGSIG

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FINLEGSIG

In this new blog series, we will highlight the different Special Interest Groups (SIGs) SENSE has to offer. SIG meetings are open to all members, and guests are welcome to attend one or two meetings before deciding whether they would like to join SENSE. For upcoming SIG meetings, check the SENSE Events calendar. Contact the SIG convener for more information or to suggest a meeting topic. If you would like to start a new SIG, contact our SIG and Social Events Coordinator. In this edition, we talk to FINLEGSIG co-conveners John Alexander and John Hynd.

Can you tell me a little about yourselves?
JH: I’ll start. Imagine you’re Heather’s mother. You’ve just flown over from Durham because Heather is in trouble. In the clink actually. She went over for a hen party that got out of hand. The police say that she mistook a police officer for a male stripper and tried to shove a five pound note down his trousers. Heather’s mother (and Heather too) badly need a good translator to help straighten things out. What could be more reassuring for them to know that one of my topics in theology in Rome was the relationship between Augustine’s abandonment of his mother to take ship to Italy and the Church’s subsequent treatment of Mariology?

JA: Actually, yes, that is reassuring. The law regulates all human conduct – well, except for religion and philosophy, but that’s not conduct. Which means the ability to translate (yes, translate!) universal, abstract rules to rules that apply to policemen, male strippers and drinking too much. So an abstract education – mine starts with a History degree – helps. And that applies to finance as well: mezzanine financing, Double Dutch sandwich, all examples of abstract ideas applied to real-life situations.

What is FINLEGSIG and who is it for?
JH: Editors and translators working on financial and legal texts. So go the topics.

How did FINLEGSIG get started?
JA: About ten years ago, Stephen Machon decided it was time for a grouping like that. It was very popular and we’d meet in the splendid offices of a leading law firm on Amsterdam’s Zuidas.

How often does FINLEGSIG meet up?
JH: Three times a year or so.

How many people generally attend FINLEGSIG meetings?
JA: We meet in my place which is easy to get to, so there’s a limit on the numbers: 12, including the speaker. We did, however, increase the numbers to 18 for our latest meeting when Tony Parr was using slides. But then you don’t sit around a table, which is more gezellig. And we’ve found that nibbles and a glass of wine do a lot to make a success of the meeting.

When and where will the next FINLEGSIG meeting be?
JH: We’d normally be planning to meet again in June, but depending on how the social distancing rules evolve, that’s looking very ambitious. Early autumn, maybe. At the usual address on Minervalaan. We don’t like the idea of a video meeting.

Interested in joining the next FINLEGSIG meeting? Keep an eye on the SENSE Events page!

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