January 2015 edition
Top 14 articles of 2014
As we head into 2015, it's the perfect opportunity to wrap up just what the past year brought to us. Here you will find the top 14 articles from 2014 – a diverse collection of topics that matter most to corporate counsel, from outside counsel guidelines to working with your IT department to diversity and professional development. Haven't read these top stories yet? Here's your chance!
- Are your outside counsel guidelines working for or against you?
April 2014
Most in-house and outside counsel feel that their outside counsel retention guidelines and RFP processes don't do much to improve their inside/outside counsel relationships ... even though both sides agree that both are very important and they spend large amounts of time on them. Why is this the case? Read more »
- 5 unbreakable rules for successfully managing litigation counsel
July 2014
The role of corporate counsel today is very different from not that long ago when corporate counsel selected outside counsel and then effectively delegated the litigation to them. Now corporate counsel is responsible for the expense and outcome of litigation. As such, corporate counsel must budget and control litigation expense, oversee the litigation, and take steps to ensure the objectives for the litigation are met. Read more »
- Five things your IT department wants you to know about data security
January 2014
The year 2013 was pretty terrifying when it comes to data security. Amid the fears created by the breaches at Adobe and Target, plus the knowledge that Big Brother really has been watching us through the NSA, every corporate counsel ought to be concerned about data security at their organization. However, as the Senior Manager of IT Operations for Serengeti Anne-Marie Scollay explains, there is no "silver bullet that provides an impervious layer of security around data." Read more »
- Inequality everywhere: Can corporate counsel help bridge the gap in billing disparity between male & female outside counsel?
June 2014
Equality and justice are bedrocks of the U.S. legal system, but one doesn't have to look far to find injustices among law practitioners themselves. The new study released by Sky Analytics shows a gap on the most basic level, male versus female, when it comes to a subject near and dear to most law firm attorneys' hearts: billing rates. Dr. Silvia Hodges Silverstein discusses the findings and the role corporate counsel can take in helping work towards equality.
Read more »
- Applying Lean Six Sigma methods to litigation practice
March 2014
A growing number of law departments are exploring Lean Six Sigma and similar methodologies to continuously improve the way they deliver legal services. By tailoring these techniques to litigation processes, legal teams can reduce costs, increase efficiency, and better align their workflows with client priorities. Read more »
- Breaking new ground – meet DRI's soon-to-be first in-house counsel
March 2014
In an organization with more than 20,000 smart, aggressive law firm attorneys, one would imagine it would take a special kind of lawyer to become the very first in-house counsel President in the nearly 55-year history of the Defense Research Institute (DRI). Laura Proctor is just that lawyer. Her passion for the law, dedication to supporting colleagues regardless of career pursuits, and ability to see the importance of collaboration will serve her well as she navigates being the premier in-house counsel to serve in this leadership role. Read more »
- Driving transformation in your legal department
June 2014
Whether you're a new GC in a legal department or simply looking to make a positive difference in your department, the process of change is never simple. The following are some keys steps to engage and communicate with your team in a meaningful way, define your goals and measure your performance, create a framework to identify changes to make, and manage a successful change in your legal department. Read more »
- New GC? Making a successful transition in your first six months
July 2014
The first months in any new role has a tremendous effect on how an employee is perceived and can determine that employee's success. For a leader in a company, this effect is amplified. For a new General Counsel that reports to the board of directors, the pressure can be enormous. Following are some key actions a GC can take in the first few months on the job to ensure success. Read more »
- Top ten ways to become a more efficient (and possibly happier) in-house attorney
June 2014
Going in-house means that your stress levels diminish, your hours working go down, and general bliss settles in, right? Turns out, the workload isn't necessarily lighter if you make the switch to in-house, nor is the stress level necessarily lower. One thing that does change immediately after going in-house: The word "efficiency" takes on an entirely different meaning. Here are 10 ways to pack more of what you need to do into your work time.
Read more »
- "It's the client, stupid" – focusing behavioral change on what clients need, rather than on what lawyers want to sell
February 2014
Susan Hackett gave a highly acclaimed talk at this year's ReInvent Law conference. This article is a companion to that talk, digging into the topic of clients and the in-house behavioral changes necessary to re-engineer the legal function, inside and out. In the article, Susan asks: Why don't in-house clients demand value-driven, efficient, and results-oriented legal services? Read more »
- The intersection of whistleblowing, ethics, and in-house counsel
July 2014
Due to recent changes in the laws and monetary bounties for "whistleblowers," more companies have found themselves confronting employees with whistleblower complaints. But what happens when it's the company's corporate counsel who identifies potential illegal activity by the company and brings a whistleblower allegation to light? Timothy O'Toole of Miller & Chevalier has been working on cases of whistleblowing and discusses the history of whistleblowing and the ethical responsibilities of lawyers. Read more »
- A checklist for becoming an effective contract manager
January 2014
Contract management refers to the processes and procedures that companies may implement in order to manage the negotiation, execution, performance, modification and termination of contracts with various parties. For each proposed contractual arrangement you should get in the habit of going through a checklist of the actions that you might be expected to take; be sure to consider the following steps for effective contract management. Read more »
- A professional recruiter's perspective on laying groundwork to becoming a general counsel
September 2014
Although there is no prescribed or set path to the general counsel (GC) role, there are proactive steps you can take to get to the ultimate seat. You're already off to a good start if you're mindful of your career trajectory and have the intention, curiosity, and motivation to make the GC role a professional reality. Read more »
- An information security alphabet soup
April 2014
We work in an era where employees are tethered virtually to their jobs through technology. Increasing demand for easy-to-use, highly available technologies that can be accessed from anywhere have contributed to an explosion of cloud service adoption. In a world where Software as a Service (SaaS) is becoming just one of many "technology as a service" offerings, businesses are seeking assurance that their data will be secure. Read more »
View the full collection of articles from Corporate Counsel Connect in the new News & Views section of our website.
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