Winning, in the traditional sense of achieving favourable outcomes in trials or scoring desirable clients, can be straightforward for associates in law firms. Not only are such victories celebrated at meetings firm-wide, but they make for easy talking points during performance reviews. Additionally, contributing to the profile of your esteemed client, while impressive to your seniors, is also rewarding on a personal professional level [Above the Law].
The same cannot be said for those moving onto roles as in-house counsels. Sure, you can still talk about the disputes you’ve resolved or the deals you’ve managed but the thought public recognition and the satisfaction derived thereof diminish significantly when you didn’t actively argue the motion or write the brief.
Such a perspective though overlooks the multidimensional role an in-house counsel plays in an organisation. The successes will not always mirror those you’re accustomed to in your role as an associate, but they’re victories nonetheless. As an in-house counsel, the nature of your wins can vary broadly, from enabling the company to generate revenue to saving it from incurring unnecessary expenses. Even successful management or aversion of crises, like the pandemic, can count as wins and elevate your profile within the company [Above the Law].
- Money Made
- Money Saved
- Crisis Managed/Averted
- Client Satisfaction
The shift from an associate to an in-house counsel implies a transition from delivering legal solutions to bettering the business, which can often lead to diversification in the types of accomplishments. Representation of success no longer must confine just to how many hours you billed or the clients you worked with, but on how the company was positively impacted with your legal insight and intervention [Above the Law].