What is a company lawyer?
A company lawyer is a member of a company’s or organization’s in-house legal staff. Company lawyers work for a single client (their employer), and their duties extend well beyond typical legal work. They advise their employers in regards to a broad range of issues including many that have nothing to do with the legal system. Thus, company lawyers require substantial business knowledge in order to give good advice. Even lawyers specializing in areas such as tax law or intellectual property law still need a firm grasp of more general issues such as negotiating contracts.
Company lawyers differ from corporate lawyers and other business lawyers who advise many clients on a part-time basis. A company lawyer’s singular focus gives him or her an inside perspective into their client’s operations , goals and overall needs. This insight enables them to proactively identify issues and develop strategies to avoid legal problems before they arise. To say that many in-house lawyers enjoy their work more than their colleagues who practice outside the corporation may be a stereotype, but it is not an unfounded one. The corporate environment gives company lawyers the opportunity to wield power and influence over their employer’s long-term strategy and future growth — things that outside counsel is only privy to through supplemental engagement.
Company lawyer job duties
The responsibilities and duties of a company lawyer can vary from one organization to the next but there are some basic responsibilities that you should expect. When considering the role and duties of a company lawyer, keep in mind that you will likely be extended and trusted more than someone not a lawyer.
One of the primary responsibilities of a company lawyer is contract review and negotiation. In many busy legal departments this task has been outsourced to a contract administrator, but the in-house lawyer should review and negotiate the most important contracts, such as:
Contract review and negotiation is a vital task that can save your company money and minimize risk of damage. After reviewing the law and considering other factors, the company lawyer can make an informed business judgment and decision.
An ancillary role to contract negotiation and review is policy review and creation. Modern businesses are complex and often require policies to help govern the business. Examples of policies that a lawyer may help draft include:
Policies are important to help a business run smoothly. Hopefully, a company lawyer can help save the business money with draft policies that not only comply with the law, but also are efficient and cost-effective.
A significant portion of a company lawyer’s job is compliance management. A company lawyer can help ensure that your company complies with industry standards, workplace safety laws, environmental regulations, data security laws, and privacy laws. Although compliance reviews and audits may not be a favored task, it is an important task to help keep your company in the black and functioning efficiently.
Corporate governance is another task for a company lawyer. Corporate governance includes all activities concerned with organizing and administering a business for efficiency and to maximize forecasts profits. The company lawyer should help navigate the corporate structure and assist the board of directors and officers.
Additionally, a company lawyer may help ensure that the company complies with federal, state, and local laws, as well as industry specific guidelines. The company lawyer also ensures taxation governance and records.
Finally, a company lawyer often researches and analyzes the law to ensure compliance, and help advise decision makers. A company lawyer can also help claim and protect intellectual property and help the business with risk reduction. Again, the company lawyer will help navigate a wide range of issues for your company.
Skills company lawyers need
Essential skills for successful company lawyers are the efficient and effective processing of information and documentation, deal structuring, communication with people at all levels, project management, and legal administration. For all practical purposes managing the external relationship with clients and acting as a liaison to key stakeholders, typically senior management directly who set overall direction and policy for an entity, are critical components to the job. Lawyers are educated to identify legal issues and mitigate risk, however it is the legal and commercial wisdom, together with interpersonal skills, of the company lawyer that drives the role. On balance it is estimated 70% of time of a successful company lawyer is spent advising and negotiating with both internal and external stakeholders. To deliver the best result, what you negotiate contractually must align with the intended actions of the parties involved in implementing that agreement. Such alignment is the real world skill of an experienced company lawyer.
A company lawyer’s education and experience
The educational path to becoming a company lawyer almost universally goes through law school. Entrance to this program requires formal studies at the undergraduate level. There are no particular requirements for this study, though many successful applicants hold degrees in business or related fields, while some have worked for a year or two after earning their undergraduate degree and before commencing law school. The decision on which law school to attend is critical, as the most demanding programs place an emphasis on persuasive writing, a skill that will be frequently applied throughout the practice of commercial law . Once in school, too, taking courses on commercial and business law is extremely important in order to develop the appropriate experience and skills for this career. The process does not end with graduation, as for practicing company lawyers, as with all attorneys, bar admission is also necessary. In Illinois, for example, the applicant must pass both the bar exam itself as well as the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination, along with other criteria before being licensed.
Company lawyer career path and advancement
A typical career progression for a company lawyer is as follows:
Junior associate
Senior associate
Counsel/lead counsel/senior counsel/legal counsel
Outside-counsel
Partner
Chief Legal Officer/Chief Compliance Officer/General Counsel
Junior associate – are typically standard/entry level positions for an individual that has recently graduated from law school and would work under the guidance of senior associates at a law firm. However, at large companies, a junior associate may transition to becoming a corporate attorney once their shift away from a law firm is finalized.
Senior associate – are individuals with several years of legal experience and would usually work under senior attorneys or partners within the firm. Senior associates are often given more responsibility than junior associates therefore the senior associate would be more involved in complex matters like taking depositions or running an entire case. Senior associates are usually promoted to managers or partners if they continue on with the law firm.
Counsel – is an individual who is 8-12 years out of law school and have approximately 5-7 years of strong law firm experience may be brought in at this level. Counsel are considered seasoned attorneys and can be utilized as managers or partners in some cases.
Partner – are the leaders of the firm and would have the highest level of authority within the law firm. A firm partner is responsible for determining how the firm’s resources are allocated, what should be written down, and what should be promoted into the legal marketing system. In large companies or corporate law firms a partner is considered a business owner.
Chief Legal Officer – is one who manages the legal department of an organization and would oversee all aspects of the company’s legal affairs who reported directly to an officer within the company and whose position is equivalent to the company’s Chief Financial Officer.
Chief Compliance Officer – is an individual or a department that is responsible for ensuring that a company adheres to legal and regulatory requirements and may also manage all company-wide compliance policies.
General Counsel – an individual whose primary responsibility is the administration of the legal and internal matters of the corporation and often serves on the company’s board of directors.
Challenges faced by company lawyers
The Company Lawyer role is not without its challenges. The diverse range of activities, which will be done by both internal and external lawyers, varies from drafting documents and opinions to managing the legal risk of a transaction. Most company lawyers would have by now had experience setting up SPVs and dealing with the complexities of complicated corporate structures. They would more than likely also have had experience advising on securities law issues and responding to the myriad of rules and processes involved with both ASX and ASIC . Reputable Company Lawyers are increasingly remunerated at an Executive Level (with the massive increase in CEO packages over the past 10 years) and hence there are significant expectations of performance.
For those who approach the position with a conviction, there are a number of rewards that will come along with the hard grind. Understanding the company’s business both in terms of legal and commercial transactions is not something that all lawyers have the chance to do. Working across so many different divisions within the company provides company lawyers with key business insight. Further, having the opportunity to advise the Board not only makes one indispensable, but it also provides a unique level of exposure within the company.