How to boost collaboration between in-house teams and external counsel

How can firms enhance work with in-house teams?

1. Guide general counsels (GCs) through new areas

When my client is experiencing something new or unfamiliar, the trust and rapport we’ve built with them through our longstanding advisory work is key.

They know and have confidence that we have the expertise and sector knowledge to help them navigate a new situation.

My specialism is advising law firms on Solictors Regulation Authority (SRA) regulatory matters.

So, let’s say an international law firm client wants to start operating in the UK and will sit within the SRA’s regulatory reach.

They’ll look to our team to advise them on how to comply proactively with our England and Wales regulations.

They also come to us for advice, perhaps when something hasn’t quite gone to plan and they want support in navigating what can be unchartered waters.

Beyond that, to help them work through a new area, we would also be:

• horizon scanning
• designing and delivering training 
• reviewing business policies to ensure compliance and alignment with their values to help build and maintain a good workplace culture

We will be thinking about every eventuality we possibly can ahead of time to make sure they are, and remain, fully prepared.

2. Fill knowledge gaps

At Kingsley Napley, we run a GC Forum that offers a broad mix of thought leadership events for GCs and lawyers in leadership roles within an organisation.

Within the legal services regulatory team, we work closely with colleagues across our firm whose work could, for example, be advising GCs in corporates about their day-to-day role and responsibilities.

Our team has been able to support these clients by offering training with more of an ethical conduct and a regulatory focus on the challenges you might face as in-house counsel.

That includes, for example, how you might deal with being regulated by the SRA or the Bar Standards Board (BSB) on an individual basis as a practising lawyer, when the company you work for isn’t itself regulated.

How do you manage and balance your regulatory professional obligations as an individual lawyer and how does this sit with the work of the wider business?

This can be a challenge when you’re working within an organisation that’s got its own goals, objectives and things it wants to achieve.

An organisation and its leadership will rarely have front of mind a GC’s regulatory obligations and they won’t necessarily fully understand the GC’s challenges.

Our role can be to support GCs in helping their employer better understand this tension.

3. Look beyond the issue at hand

The key is listening to what your client’s conundrums are, quickly assimilating them and working out what needs to be prioritised to meet your client’s needs, while not losing sight of the bigger picture.

With my clients, I’ll do a combination of those things.

I make sure I’m not just focused on the regulatory issue in question – but always thinking about the wider implications.

For example, reputational, commercial and strategic considerations. “Whack-a-mole” comes to mind!

It’s important to understand the wider business picture, the client’s values and culture, and any next steps they might need to take.

Being on top of those issues, and acting as a sounding board to sense-check issues is, I think, what my clients value most.

Understanding what our client is grappling with beyond the issue at hand requires empathy. That’s how you can build the most successful working relationships.

How can in-house teams get the most from external counsel?

What about if you are in-house, instructing an outside legal team?

There are a few factors which can help things get off to a good start, in my experience from that side of the fence.

It’s really important for in-house teams to pick an external firm that has deep expertise in their area of operation.

If you think a particular matter could be serious or particularly complex or nuanced, bring in your external lawyer as soon as you can.

Working together earlier will give another perspective and will provide an opportunity for a sounding board, and an independent and objective perspective at a formative stage in the matter.

But it also enables you to plan – with support – how you are going to approach and handle the matter overall.

The advice component being sought will be just one part of a much bigger picture.

That advice could impact the approach taken in a different aspect of the matter – and vice versa.

That means it’s important that outside counsel understands as much of the bigger picture as the client is able to share.

Being looped in earlier can really help with this.

Be as clear as possible with instructions and timelines and provide as much information as you can, in terms of background and context, ideally limiting a drip-feeding approach.

This enables your lawyer to give you the best possible advice on an informed basis.

Finally, don’t be afraid to share feedback.

We really value this as a firm, especially when it’s constructive, as this is how we continue to learn and grow and develop the working relationship.