Businesses recruit lawyers to work inside the company by selling themselves as providing different opportunities and experiences than law firms. Lawyers are attracted to in-house jobs for several reasons, including: (1) work on highly interesting legal matters and be embedded in and part of the business; (2) no timesheets to track every six, or ten, minute increments of the lawyer’s time the way that law firms do; and (3) the work-life balance is different/better than compared to law firms.
It is important for those transitioning from the pursuit of
partner at a law firm (or indeed partnership itself) to an in-house role to
understand that there is more of a change than just the benefits of these three
major differences. An element of providing quality legal advice timely is becoming
a partner to the business.
Lawyers often lateral into the company from a law firm and
keep doing what they have been doing.
Law firm lawyers are hired guns.
They are retained for a specific matter, contract, issue, or
litigation. They parachute in, try to
learn a little about the business as it relates to that specific matter,
contract, issue, or litigation, and provide counsel. And then they move on to the next matter.
If the law firm model of a lawyer were what the business
needed, it could just keep using a law firm.
An in-house law department is not a law firm inside the company. It comprises the company’s lawyers. If they have invested the thought into bringing
a lawyer in-house, it should expect more from that lawyer. These lawyers must immersed in the
business. They must become partners to
the business. Provide legal advice
within the constraints of what the business can do. They must be solution seekers and problems
solvers. They must be adept at
prioritizing risks; not all risks are equal.
Although hard for some lawyers, they must be willing to take on or to
accept some risks. In short, there are
major differences. Reframing that
mindset is an important part of being a best-in-class legal department.
The trick, however, is for lawyers making the transition
from a law firm to an in-house role to understand that the jobs are
different. The lawyer who is interested
in the business and willing to leave the combine their legal training with the
more freewheeling and riskier elements of business will make the most
contributions and add the most value.
Remember that you are moving from the partner track or the partner life
at a firm to a role that demands that you become an integral partner to the
business.
And, if you are a law firm that seeks to be a strategic
partner, almost all these observations apply to you as well.
Need help thinking about reframing your partnership with
the business or culture of your law department?
Let’s talk.