June/July 2010 / Features
Educating Executives On the Role of In-House Counsel
Most companies don’t provide advance training about the role of in-house counsel in relation to senior management. They should, the author says, because the relationship is often misunderstood, and it is far easier to clear up the misunderstandings in advance than in the course of a lawsuit or investigation. He recommends initial training sessions for senior managers and subsequent training for new hires and promotions.
The basic point to emphasize is that the in-house lawyer represents the employer and not the CEO or any other senior person. If this is clear at the outset, the lawyer won’t need to correct executives who habitually refer to the in-house attorney as “my lawyer.”
Even the question, “Should I get my own lawyer?” is strictly speaking a request for legal advice that cannot be rendered, according to the author.
It’s also important to clarify the host of issues regarding privilege, waiver of privilege and confidentiality. To cut a conversation short, says the author, a little humor can go a long way, as in “I like you so much that I really don’t ever want to have to testify against you.”
Other issues to be clarified include handling of documents, and e-mails – e.g. when to put “privileged and confidential” in the subject line and when doing so could be counter-productive.
