What would you say are the unique qualities required to be successful as an in-house lawyer?

We have over the years witnessed how the in-house lawyer role has gradually transformed from a traditional support role into a proactive business partner role.

To be successful in the role, it is clear that an in-house lawyer must possess not only sharp legal skills and expertise, but also a commercial mindset. Such mindset enables the lawyer to apply theoretical, complex legal principles to a business context.

It is naturally still an important part of the role to help protect the company against legal risks using a risk-based approach. However, the true value for the business comes when the lawyer’s advice is also well aligned with the strategic and commercial objectives of company. Such legal advice can directly contribute to the business’ success. Consequently, a strategic shift in perspective was needed, from the in-house lawyer being a support and control function, to becoming a true business partner and business enabler.

However, this is no longer sufficient. Technology is now rapidly advancing, especially in the area of artificial intelligence. As a result of this development, the role of the in-house lawyer is evolving again.

Many traditional legal tasks, such as contract reviews and legal investigations can now be automated and handled by various AI systems on the market. Going forward the qualities required for a successful in-house lawyer will include not only a legal and commercial mindset but also adaptability to the new technology and the ability to supervise, question, interpret and assess the AI output to use it in the best and most effective manner.

Tech savvy lawyers who explore and embrace the new opportunities presented by digital tools, can enhance efficiency and streamline many daily routine tasks. This will in turn free up time for the lawyer to focus on more advanced, strategic legal tasks which add more value to the business.

How can you as an in-house lawyer foster a closer collaboration between the legal department and your business counterparts? 

To foster a close collaboration with our business counterparts we, as inhouse lawyers, must proactively connect with our business colleagues and really invest both time and effort to build solid relationships. Only by getting to know each other, we can establish the trust needed for efficient collaboration between different functions.

In order to build trust, in-house lawyers should also focus on explaining complex legal concepts in simple terms. Legal terminology can sometimes be very theoretical and difficult to understand, so an important task for the in-house lawyer is to try to demystify the legal terminology and make it more understandable to non-legal colleagues.

Once mutual trust and respect have been established, the business teams are more likely to proactively turn to the legal department at an early stage to engage in open discussions about their on-going projects, rather than coming to Legal as a last-minute tick-the-box exercise. This way of working is naturally much more efficient and productive and ultimately also leads to much better results for the company.

By partnering up with the business, in-house lawyers can secure a seat at the decision-making table. This way we can ensure that legal aspects are put on the agenda and that any legal risks are properly identified and considered at an early stage in both strategic and everyday commercial decisions.