Forget the trusted adviser – the sacred cows of the modern GC

As an opinionated and jaded observer of the legal industry, it’s rare I read commentary so on point that it not only strikes a chord but that I wished I’d written it. We bring you one such piece this month from LBC Wise Counsel founder Paul Gilbert, tackling head-on much of what remains culturally unsound in many in-house legal teams.

Paul’s case is that too many in-house counsel, craving individual affirmation from businesses that view them as biddable providers of legal wallpaper, rely far too heavily on personal graft and commitment when they should be thinking about process and infrastructure to manage legal risk. He goes as far as to state: ‘The legal team is a team in name only. It is individual contribution that motivates the majority of lawyers. Self-serving internal networks are set up to validate their individual contribution.’