Evolving Role of General Counsel

Successful in-house attorneys have to be increasingly business savvy and remember their company is their primary charge. Inside Counsel's keynote panel, "General Counsel Panel: Trends, Challenges and Leadership,” at its annual SuperConference talked about how the role of general counsel has changed over time. Panelists included Timothy Donovan, GC of Caesars Entertainment; Matthew Broad, former GC of OfficeMax; and James Rogers, current GC of Orbitz. Bill Ford, a partner at Kansas City-based law firm Lathrop & Gage, moderated.

The panelists mentioned other critical job skills like team building, succession planning, and communication. And these skills don't come to lawyers overnight.

Rogers also gave some insight into being successful outside counsel: you must work well with the company. That's more important than price.

What does this mean to you? If you're planning on moving up in your company or shifting to a corporate legal department, then you need to learn the business and demonstrate — on your resume and other career portfolio documents, in your job interview, and on the job — that you have what it takes to be in-house or outside counsel.

Read more at: "It’s a whole new world for general counsels, according to GC panel."