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Swata Gandhi
By Special to The Daily Record
//May 14, 2018
Swata Gandhi
Vice President, General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer
DAP Products Inc.
As an attorney, Swata Gandhi has carved out an impressive career as a general counsel and in-house lawyer, a role she has filled for the past four years with DAP Products, the Baltimore-based chemical manufacturing firm.
The transition from traditional legal practitioner, which she was early in her career, to in-house lawyer was not easy, Gandhi said. Her new role required taking into account not only legal issues in any decision but the business ramifications as well.
By all accounts, she has succeeded in her role at DAP. Last year, the national trade magazine US Business Executive featured Gandhi in an article under the headline, “Modernizing legal at a storied American company.”
The magazine reported: “With a wide scope of influence and deep interest in all aspects of the business, Gandhi represents a newer, more modern model of the general counsel’s role.”
Gandhi has carved out an equally impressive career in community involvement, a pursuit she considers equally important as her legal work.
“I think that those who know me would say that giving back is one of my core principles,” she said.
Gandhi sits on the boards of three nonprofits: Higher Achievement National, Higher Achievement Baltimore (Higher Achievement is a nationally honored organization that promotes academic success for students during out-of-school time), and the Center for Urban Families.
This year, the Girl Scouts of America of Central Maryland honored Gandhi for her professional and community work over the years with a “Distinguished Woman” award.
Ranak Jasani, an attorney with Miles & Stockbridge who has known Gandhi for years, said Gandhi’s long list of community contributions is less impressive than the depth of her engagement.
“Having had a birds-eye view of typical board involvement of lawyers in our field, I can personally attest to Swata’s dedication to the organizations she supports,” he said. “The pride she takes in the well-being and success of the beneficiaries of the boards she serves is genuine, impactful and sets a high standard of leadership that our industry peers should emulate.”
