What key trends should in-house counsel be monitoring over the coming months?

Top of the list and on everyone’s lips at the moment has to be AI and its use in both the legal sphere and in industry as a whole. The challenge is balancing its use with appropriate controls; it can be seen far too easily how AI can interpret key legal issues incorrectly, and that poses both a liability and a credibility risk to any in-house team and/or business. Given the boom in use of AI, this necessitates a critical overview by in-house teams of governance policies and frameworks, specifically when it comes to data protection in light of the rise of cyber threats. The introduction of ECTA has been a key theme for me, with increasing obligations placed on businesses against a backdrop of increased enforcement activity by regulatory bodies, in-house teams need to ensure the business is both compliant but that individuals across the business both understand and are well equipped to deal with the changes.

What are the most important attributes of the modern in-house counsel and what advice would you give to those aspiring to be an in-house lawyer?

I am still relatively new to the in-house world, but a key factor for me is understanding the business and why they have come to me for advice. They don’t want a two-page report citing relevant case law or legislation; they want a straightforward concise answer as to what they can do and what impact, if any, it will have on the business. Time management is seemingly more critical in the in-house world. Legal are not often involved at the start of any project but are copied in just before the contract is due to be signed, when a response becomes urgent and with a need to rapidly assess, often with limited information, and deliver a commercial but practical outcome. Perhaps the most important attribute and advice is to engage and spend time building a trusted network of relationships across the organisation, both with key stakeholders and with the wider internal business. In a faceless world of emails, sometimes meeting face to face is a far simpler way to explain the complexities of business, saves time in the long run, fosters engagement and trust and allows for cross functional collaboration.