What I now know: Keith Ruddock, recently retired general counsel, The Weir Group

Moving in-house

When I left private practice in 1992 there was a misconception that moving in-house was somehow a second division role, or an area where people could go for a change of lifestyle.  An interesting thing I found was that I was working every bit as hard as when I was in private practice, but actually I resented it less because I could clearly see the purpose and was not being driven by billable hours targets or client retention. Continue reading “What I now know: Keith Ruddock, recently retired general counsel, The Weir Group”

The legal pathway to the story of the century

GC: Obviously the Snowden story was a huge scoop for The Guardian. How did you first hear about it, and what were your initial thoughts?

Gill Phillips (GP): I was actually in Australia as we were in the process of opening our office there. I got a cryptic phone call from Alan Rusbridger [then unieditor-in-chief] one night saying, ‘I can’t really talk about this as using the phone might be unreliable. Could you put me in touch with a US national security lawyer?’ I began to think, ‘Ok, something is going on,’ but I gave him a few names.

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Cybersecurity: keeping out of the breach

A cyber attacker could be anyone. A disgruntled employee with access to data, a ‘hacktivist’ with a social or political axe to grind, an organised criminal seeking profit, or a nation state with a cyber army primed for sophisticated cyberespionage missions. They could be anywhere, silently gathering data before slipping out undetected, or hiding in a gap in the supply chain, waiting to shut down the organisation’s service. Terminology such as ‘phishing’, ‘social engineering’ and ‘advanced persistent threat’ has invaded the lexicon of the modern corporation.

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GC Powerlist: Switzerland

Switzerland’s longstanding neutrality and geographical position in central Europe have given it the political stability and platform to become one of the world’s wealthiest (and most high-cost) countries. It has reaped the benefits of its rich combination of exports and inflow of skilled workers from neighbouring countries. Andreas Bohrer, group general counsel at biotech company Lonza, advises GCs considering a move to the country to understand its uniqueness: ‘Get to understand the people that are working here in the Swiss market and also the consumers. It’s important to understand that Switzerland, even though it is in the middle of Europe, has some aspects and features that are fundamentally different.’

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Moving from counsel to general counsel

There are many talented assistant, associate and deputy general counsel. With limited general counsel or CLO roles, what is the secret to advancing to the top? While the answer is partly ‘it depends’ (we are lawyers, after all), there are common attributes of successful GCs. By deconstructing these qualities, we discern a framework that aspiring C-suite lawyers can leverage to position themselves more strategically to obtain the top role, and excel once there. Tomorrow’s general counsel are proactively preparing themselves for success today. Continue reading “Moving from counsel to general counsel”

The inside counsel redefined

Tom Sager began his career with DuPont as an attorney in the labour, benefits and corporate security group and spent more than a decade as chief litigation counsel, before being named senior vice president and general counsel in 2008. During his tenure, he oversaw significant litigation involving governmental investigations, product liability, environmental, toxic tort, labour and employment, securities, antitrust, and tax. Continue reading “The inside counsel redefined”