Focus on: in-house counsel today

Regulation in the world has become more complex. Every year new legal specialties seem to emerge, requiring greater intervention of lawyers in business, generating a strong trend worldwide in companies to strengthen in-house legal advisors, recognising a change in role not only from the point of view legal but also from business development.

Reactive external legal advisors or spot intervention are no longer enough. Remote management no longer works, the work of internal lawyers allows us to anticipate and contribute to the strategic vision and reputation of the company. Having external professionals controlling what happens inside the house, in addition to being extraordinarily expensive, makes everything messier and more inefficient. Companies are generally organised by departments and there is not always the necessary fluidity between them. We already know that the age of hyperconnectivity brings this enormous paradox. So, this is where there is a huge space for in-house lawyers. I have almost twenty years of professional experience and half of it has been as a legal counsel, and it hasn’t been boring! Well, perhaps at the beginning it was more passive, when the role played by a lawyer within a company was farther from the front line, limited to drafting contracts, legal opinions and controlling the legality of operations. Today, a more active participation is necessary, with a preponderant role, but without seeking to be the protagonist.

In fact, the in-house counsel has a very advantageous position, both for the development of his career and for what he can contribute to a company. The knowledge of business and the interaction with different areas of the company allow for a global vision and the possibility of bringing regulatory issues closer to those who make decisions also at the middle level, in a simple language, allowing him or her to be heard on time and, consequently, increasing the company’s value. It is necessary to be close to the commercial units, open and flexible, which does not mean agreeing with them or allowing them almost everything. The necessary autonomy that the business units require must be counterbalanced by clear policies, few but well known by everyone within the company, in addition to a live compliance programme, with permanent training (semestral talks, at least), to contribute to the desired sustainability for both shareholders and stakeholders.