General Counsel, In-House Counsel

What It’s Like To Be A Solo In-House Lawyer (Part 2)

What are the best and worst things about being the one and only lawyer at a company?

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In my last Moonlighting post, we checked with a group of solo in-house lawyers to find out about how they got their jobs, what they spend time on, their toughest challenges, and what some of the best things are about being the one and only lawyer at a company. Well, guess what? After that article published, I got an email from yet another cool solo in the retail industry who offered to share his story for the second half of this topic. So this part two is even more fabulous and delightful than part one! (I know that’s hard to imagine, but I swear it’s true.) So here we go:

What were some surprises about working as a solo in-house counsel?

Every lawyer pointed to their workload as the main surprise. Contrary to what many people assume about the in-house lawyer’s easy lifestyle, a solo in-house lawyer’s workload is often best described as “intense.” Solos juggle numerous matters without supervision or help and with very few resources. They spend lots of effort addressing issues internally in order to avoid outside expense. And if you think that adding staff will help, don’t expect it to cut your workload in half. You often take on more responsibilities as your resources increase.

That said, solos were also surprised at how much they were able to push themselves to actually handle all of those responsibilities. According to one solo, “the best surprise was realizing that I could do the job and do it well. I’m often taken aback when people say ‘Wow, how’d you do that as your first position?’”

Solos also enjoy the amount of authority they have. As the only legal counsel, you’re responsible for establishing rules, guidelines and policies for yourself as well as for others in the company to follow. You are also tasked with building your empire the legal department in the company in however manner you deem best (subject to annoyances like budget restrictions).

On the other hand, powerful people butt heads with other powerful people: “The politics within a company can be difficult to navigate and when you’re on your own in-house, you don’t necessarily have anyone to assist you with that. I found that I wasn’t always the most supported by the C-level and I had to learn how to advocate for myself.”

Where do solos turn when they need legal advice or information (other than to pricey outside counsel and other lawyer friends)?

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As you may guess, the first place they usually turn is the internet. According several solo lawyers, Google is key – “they have everything.” Also useful are government and agency sites, sites like FindLaw and Nolo, and bar association websites, which have forms and other information. (I referred to some of these in a previous article about whether companies should hire straight from law school.) And don’t forget Google Translate if you do international work. Kind of makes you wonder what solo lawyers did in the stone ages before the internet.

CLEs, such as those offered by Practicing Law Institute, are also helpful. And some organizations publish articles and reports on specific topics and even provide training. For example, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts provides sessions on entertainment law.

Finally, what advice do they have for someone considering a solo in-house counsel role? (I decided to leave this verbatim here, in part because they’re gems and in part because I just couldn’t figure out how to summarize this stuff.)

“Just do it. It’s fun and exciting to be in-house and to be the general counsel. You get to be part of the business. You’ll never be ready, but you have to just dig in and do it. When you don’t know, look it up and talk to outside counsel. Just try to negotiate an employment package – if possible, a signing bonus and severance in the event of change of control or termination without cause (especially due to high turnover of general counsels).”

“Be confident that you are making the right decisions and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Definitely understand the business and the financial considerations of the business and owners of the company.”

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“It is helpful to keep a positive attitude because you can easily be overwhelmed with the amount of work. It’s important to work smart to save oneself from being overburdened.”

“It’s demanding. You’ll be reporting to the top of the company and will need to give sound legal advice that’s palatable from a business standpoint. It can be difficult to avoid being seen as an impediment to business goals, so try to find solutions or workarounds that could be helpful. Learn everything you can about the business to get a better understanding of goals and business objectives. This will help you formulate responses to inquiries from sales, C-levels, etc., without sounding negative or out of touch. Continue to grow your network. As a solo in-house, you’ll want to have contacts at other companies in the same industry. Go to industry conferences. Grow your network generally and keep in touch with people. You never know when you’ll need a quick answer that will save you from going to outside counsel.”

“You’ll be busy. After 20 years at one company, you’ll still be busy. You’ll have to keep studying various areas of law because you’ll have to be the Mr. or Ms. ‘know-it-all’ to maintain your professional integrity in the company. Start at an industry that you really like because you will soon to be the business expert on that industry and may stay within the industry for the rest of your career.”

“Be ready to do everything and anything. This will be baptism by fire.”

Earlier: What It’s Like To Be A Solo In-House Lawyer (Part 1)

Susan Moon is an in-house attorney at a travel and hospitality company. Her opinions are her own and not those of her company or anyone she works with. Susan may share both her own and others’ experiences (especially the experiences of those who have expressly indicated to her that they must not under any circumstances be shared on ATL). You can reach her at SusanMoonATL@gmail.com and follow her on Twitter at @SusanMoon.

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