What I’ve learnt is that you have to be very aware of your audience in order to get your point across. “It’s the practicality of running the business. “Being close to the business means it’s not solely about the law,” says Deborah. In many ways, softer skills are just as important as legal competency – which, at first glance, seems unexpected.
A high level of technical legal skills is a given. Unexpected competenciesĪbsolutely all in-house legal counsel leaders talk more in terms of the ‘soft skills’ than the legal skills they deploy. “I have always loved to travel and living and working offshore is a great way to do that,” she says. Later still, she became a Managing Director with Barclays Bank, India, based in Mumbai.
Itchy feet took her next to Melbourne as General Counsel, Asia, Pacific, Europe and America in ANZ, responsible for 31 countries’ legal operations. Also qualified in accounting, she went to the ANZ as Head of Tax in New Zealand. “In-house you can really bring so much more of yourself to the role.”ĭeborah Marris was a tax partner at Minter Ellison.
well I suspect private practice hasn’t caught up to what I’d want,” she says. “Once you’ve experienced that kind of role and flexibility. While I was there, I started working part-time and flexibly,” she says, noting she was able to have children and keep working. “I got the job in-house at a UK university which I just loved. Lynda started her career in private practice and found her feet in-house on an OE in Great Britain, following up with eight years at Scion upon her return to New Zealand. The two women arrived in these jobs via circuitous paths. It’s very rewarding feeling you’re making a contribution to an organisation that’s doing positive things, making a positive impact.” Lynda Frew “There’s a huge sense of satisfaction that you’re part of the business, and you’re contributing to the success of the business. Lynda Frew, is Legal Counsel/Commercial Lead for the Bay of Plenty Regional Council and leads the Council’s Commercial Team of four, with the task of improving an entire integrated procurement, and supplier contract management system. The other directors have a wealth of knowledge in farming and other industries that they are able to share. “When we have board meetings we walk around the farms when we can. “It’s been fascinating,” she says, adding that a new directorship has also allowed her ‘to get out on the farm’. These are the adjectives that in-house lawyers use to describe their roles.ĭeborah Marris, General Counsel for Synlait and leading a team of five, says: “I really enjoy being part of the business, being on the executive team and being involved in business decisions.” Deborah MarrisĪfter a big career in the banking industry, she has loved her new sector and insights into agriculture and dairy processing that it has brought her. Passionate, invested, absorbed, satisfied. So what does an in-house legal counsel actually do? What does their day look like? Why have they chosen the in-house life? We go direct and ask for insights from those who know best. He or she is there to support business growth. The organisation can ask its chief lawyer to make that commercial decision. It’s not all legal territory that the legal eagle flies over. But he or she tends to soar over broader territory, probing multiple landscapes, oftentimes trailing a team behind.Īn in-house lawyer must advise more widely than the average private practice professional, who tends to specialise.īut wait. An in-house lawyer might be a legal eagle.
0 kommentar(er)
