by Mike Anderson, Vivian Leung, and Chris Sanz.
In-house legal teams use outside counsel to make their jobs easier, not harder. That said, we all have (somehow) received an email or memo from outside counsel that reads more like a treatise than a solution.
This can be a huge drain of time and money.
Our recommendation:
- Find outside counsel that fit your style;
- Give outside counsel facts to assume – shortcut their work, and stop them from going on a tangent about unrelated stuff;
- Clearly communicate your ask (e.g. I want an answer by phone call, or a point form email); and
- Give feedback when you get an unhelpful answer
Each Inter Alia lawyer has worked both in-house and in private practice. We love solving problems for our clients, and this blog gives some insight into how we do this practically and efficiently. If these tips speak to you, or you think we could help you, please contact darlene@interalia-law.com.