General Counsel in the 21st Century: Challenges and Opportunities, Second Edition

by Christoph H Vaagt (Editor)

Overview

The role of general counsel and in-house lawyers is changing continually. Legal is now considered a vital component of leadership in most enterprises, and it is increasingly common for the GC to be called on for strategic input prior to important business decisions. Added to this is the convergence of social and political trends driving new demand for legal advice and service delivery; an increasing focus on productivity and efficiency; pressure to demonstrate the value of legal to the business in order to gain budget support; and the need to adapt and advance digitally. The competencies required of the general counsel and their increasingly multi-disciplinary team are also growing with responsibilities expanding to encompass reputational risk, government relations, data privacy, ESG and interacting with diverse stakeholders including regulators. Edited by E Leigh Dance and Christoph H Vaagt, both with distinguished careers advising legal departments and teams for more than two decades, the second edition of General Counsel in the 21st Century offers general counsel and all in-house legal professionals a variety of expert perspectives on the evolution of the role of the GC and the corporate legal department. Chapters are written by an international group of well-known general counsel, corporate legal leaders, and other experts, and cover important topics for general counsel today, including: The evolution of the general counsel’s role; Legal operations as a competitive advantage; How adaptive legal functions are embracing technology; Managing change in a legal department; and Doing more with less. This title provides guidance on how legal departments can best support the businesses they serve, identify and address areas where change is necessary, and anticipate developments on the horizon. Readers - whether in-house counsel or private practitioners - will gather best practices and learn new and perhaps surprising lessons to help them succeed in their jobs as leaders at the intersection of law and business.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781787428645
Publisher:	Globe Law and Business
Publication date:	12/22/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	187
File size:	4 MB

Table of Contents

Executive summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix About the authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi Part 1: Strategy and structure Chapter 1: A slow motion riot – the evolving role of the general counsel and the legal department By Susan Hackett, CEO, Legal Executive Leadership, LLC Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 What makes in-house practice special? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 In the beginning… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 How the demographics of corporate legal practice shape this conversation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Striking the right balance between “make” versus “buy” . . . . . . . . . 6 Why aren’t GCs driving changes faster and farther than they are? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 So how does the distinguishing value in-house team lead toward a better future in law? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 The changing marketplace of legal service providers . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 The challenges posed by old systems colliding with new markets, processes, and practices, and GCs who want to promote change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 The rising opportunity of the in-house team and general counsel to drive change in the marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Going forward – how will GCs and in-house teams lead? . . . . . . . . 14 Final thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Chapter 2: The general counsel, corporate governance, and stakeholder capitalism By Bruno Cova, partner, Delfino Willkie Farr&Gallagher, and Leanne Geale, executive vice president and general counsel, corporate governance and compliance, Nestlé S.A. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Factors driving the role of general counsel in corporate governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Ensuring general counsel’s effective corporate governance role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 The Mad Hatter – coping with unique and multiple roles . . . . . . . 28 Corporate governance issues for general counsel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Corporate governance involves personal risks and opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Chapter 3: The general counsel’s role in the digital transformation of legal By William L. Deckelman, Jr, executive vice president and general counsel, DXC Technology Company, and Daniel Reed, CEO, UnitedLex Why should the general counsel and legal team embrace digital transformation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 What is a “digital” legal department? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Why do purpose and people come first in digital transformation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 How does one address the massive topics of technology and data? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 What has worked in measuring value and demonstrating how we deliver it? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Key elements of digital transformation for the general counsel to remember . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Chapter 4: Legal operations as a competitive advantage By Hans Albers, director, legal management consulting, Deloitte Legal, and Áine Lyons, SVP and deputy general counsel, VMware Taming the final frontier of legal department modernization – legal operations hold the key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Starting with technology is not the answer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Where to start? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 The value of data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Strategy trumps all . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Defining the legal department operating strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Roles and responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 VMware: A legal operations case study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 The four faces of the legal operations executive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Part 2: Leadership skills for the GC Chapter 5: Leadership behaviors that distinguish great general counsel By Kenneth J. Fredeen, general counsel emeritus, Deloitte (Canada) Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Self-reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Successfully building and nurturing relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Perfection is impossible but the journey is worth it . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Key behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Chapter 6: Best supporting act – how adaptive legal functions are embracing technology By Isabel Parker, executive director, The Digital Legal Exchange Becoming a digital, adaptive organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 The legal/business disconnect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Legal departments – “eager but not ready” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 The three barriers to progress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Meeting the challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Examples of best practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Final thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Chapter 7: Considerations on doing more with less – leading the lean legal department By Maja Fabula, vice president and deputy general counsel, Tenneco Inc. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Doing more with less – the importance of prioritization . . . . . . . . . 106 Your legal team’s wellbeing is a critical priority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Maximizing resources in a lean environment – removing workfrom the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 Taking your first step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Chapter 8: Crisis prevention and management – how must legal and communications act together? By Christian Lawrence, partner, Brunswick Group Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Reputation and trust as assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 The crisis as a threat – and an opportunity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 Interconnection of the tasks of the legal department and the communications department . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 Risk-minimizing factors in the cooperation between the legal and communications departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Cooperation between the legal and communications departments in the event of a crisis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 What is the most effective way to protect one’s reputation? . . . 131 Chapter 9: Workforce management of the future – virtual teams, hybrid working, and the future workforce By Robert Loef, group general counsel, Best Secret Group AG, and Anne Meckbach, chief compliance officer, ProSiebenSat.1 Group COVID-19 as change agent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 “It’s not personal, it’s strictly business” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 (Preliminary) tenets for future workforce management . . . . . . . . . 134 Teams can work together productively and cohesively without being in the office, day-in, day-out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 Hybrid work poses specific challe nges to the legal department, which can be overcome by the right policies and technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 (Predominantly) remote work has a corrosive effect on loyalty and sense of belonging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Leadership needs to empower, not control, people . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Business unit embedded teams are more important than ever to avoid being siloed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Different jobs/tasks need different workplace models . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Part 3: Adding value and managing change Chapter 10: ESG – how the GC and legal function contribute to sustainability initiatives By E. Leigh Dance, founder and executive director, Global Counsel Leaders Part 1: Why ESG requires your attention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Part 2: Key elements of ESG for general counsel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Part 3: The general counsel’s evolving role in ESG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 Part 4: Setting priorities and structure for ESG in legal . . . . . . . . . . . 157 What next? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Chapter 11: Quantifying value creation in legal departments – showing the income side of legal work By Christoph H. Vaagt, founder and managing partner, Law Firm Change Consultants Old versus new world of legal departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 The new normal for legal departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Direct income-generating activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 Indirect value contributions of the legal department – measure in order to prove value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 Necessary cultural change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 Chapter 12: Managing change in a legal department – introduction of a contract management system By Wolf-Peter Gross, management consultant, Law Firm Change Consultants Change in general . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Change in legal departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Case study: Introduction of a case management system . . . . . . . 176 The change process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 About Globe Law and Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187