Being valuable is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t. – Margaret Thatcher In-house counsel must be focused on providing value in today’s corporate legal environment. Failure to do so likely will have adverse consequences for your career. So, I offer these 10 “rules” to help you prove… Continue Reading
Category Archives: ACC Value Challenge
Subscribe to ACC Value Challenge RSS FeedThe Value Champions Strike Back
Posted in ACC News, ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm Value, In the House, In-House PracticeSequels are quite underrated, particularly the second one in the series. Think about it. We all remember the first iterations of blockbuster movies, as if they were the gold standards, while most sequels are forgettable. Still, sometimes, the sequel outdoes the original. Lists of good sequels abound, but any such list has to include “The… Continue Reading
Top Ten Takeaways From Our First Value Champions Program
Posted in ACC News, ACC Value Challenge, In-House PracticeBy now, you’ve heard about the new ACC Value Champions and their incredible work in the value space. If not, you’ll find great stuff about the new ACC Value Champions named here (press release) and here (value champions stories). I don’t want to waste your time repeating all of those great stories. (I would encourage… Continue Reading
Choice of Counsel As Risk Management
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeBy Cheryl A. Solomon Cheryl Solomon was the global General Counsel of the Gucci Group, based in London, England, from 2004 to 2011. She relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2011 and is currently acting as General Counsel to Kidlandia Inc., a technology start-up with its own cartoon characters (called Kreechurs) focused… Continue Reading
Why Alternative Fee Arrangements Aren’t the Answer
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeBy Cheryl A. Solomon Cheryl Solomon was the global General Counsel of the Gucci Group, based in London, England, from 2004 to 2011. She relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2011 and is currently acting as General Counsel to Kidlandia Inc., a technology start-up with its own cartoon characters (called Kreechurs) focused… Continue Reading
Opportunity Lost
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeBy Emily Jelich Emily Jelich is Vice President and Associate General Counsel with the Royal Bank of Canada in Toronto, Canada. Ms. Jelich heads both the Global Capital Markets Legal Team and the Global Dispute Management Legal Team, which include team members in Canada, the US, UK and Hong Kong. Ms. Jelich is a member of the… Continue Reading
Revenge of the Value Champions
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeDo you remember the end of the iconic movie, Revenge of the Nerds, when Lewis takes the mic from Gilbert and suggests that more of us are nerds than jocks? The pretty cheerleader exclaims she’s a nerd too; most of the crowd joins Lewis, Gilbert and his nerd fraternity brothers in an effort to end… Continue Reading
It’s No Surprise: It’s All About Value
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeACC’s 2011 Chief Legal Officer Survey was unveiled at this year’s Annual Meeting in Denver. The annual survey and the resulting AM CLO session offered important insights for in-house counsel. I can’t tell you, though, that I was surprised by the results or discussions that followed. They included: CLOs are concerned with regulatory issues… Continue Reading
Uncovered: HP’s In-house Counsel Training Program Part 4
Posted in ACC Value ChallengePart IV. Follow along in this four-part blog series featuring a timely and provocative look inside Hewlett-Packard Company’s innovative new legal talent development program. This blog takes a look at the training program from the perspective of a participant, HP new hire, Gail Su. Gail is a graduate of Harvard Law School and is currently… Continue Reading
Uncovered: HP’s In-house Counsel Training Program Part 3
Posted in ACC Value ChallengePart III. Follow along in this four-part blog series featuring a timely and provocative look inside Hewlett-Packard Company’s innovative new legal talent development program. This blog takes a look at the training program from the perspective of a participant: recent graduate and HP new hire, Dargie Bowersock. Dargie is a 2010 graduate from the Northwestern… Continue Reading
Uncovered: HP’s In-house Counsel Training Program Part 2
Posted in ACC Value ChallengePart II. Follow along in this four-part blog series featuring a timely and provocative look inside Hewlett-Packard Company’s innovative new legal talent development program. This blog takes a look at the training program from the perspective of an HP staff member, Susan Goodhue. Susan is Vice President and Associate General Counsel, IP Transactions in HP’s… Continue Reading
Uncovered: HP’s In-house Counsel Training Program Part I
Posted in ACC Value ChallengeThe latest addition to our “value practice” blog series features a timely and provocative four-part discussion on training legal talent, all focusing on different aspects of Hewlett-Packard Company’s innovative new legal talent development project. This series will provide an in-depth look into HP’s post-law school training for new lawyers, with entries on how HP… Continue Reading
Canadian Law Firms Still Not Getting the Message about True Nature of Client Needs
Posted in ACC Value Challengeby Martine Turcotte, CLO of BCE, and Zygmunt Jablonski, CLO of Domtar Click here to download the French Translation (pdf) of this post. As general counsel for two different kinds of clients, there are many things that distinguish our respective roles. One of us has a large department, one has a smaller department. One… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-Firm Relationship: Part VIII
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 8 Having Our Final Say on Alternative Fee Arrangements Week 8. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. This blog pairing explores how to improve the value returned using a different approach to managing litigation work. As General Counsel of Kayak,… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-Firm Relationship: Part VII
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 7 Making Time for Value Week 7. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. This blog pairing explores how to improve the value returned using a different approach to managing litigation work. As General Counsel of Kayak, Karen Klein provides legal counsel… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-Firm Relationship: Part IV
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 4 Adaptable Fees to go along with the Legal Work Flow Week 4. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. This blog pairing explores how to improve the value returned using a different approach to managing litigation work. As General Counsel of… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-Firm Relationship: Part III
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 3 When the Fees Align Week 3. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. This blog pairing explores how to improve the value returned using a different approach to managing litigation work. As General Counsel of Kayak, Karen Klein provides legal counsel… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-Firm Relationship: Part II
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 2 Alternative Fee Arrangements, Time Well Spent Week 2. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. This blog pairing explores how to improve the value returned using a different approach to managing litigation work. As General Counsel of Kayak, Karen Klein provides… Continue Reading
Client-Firm Value Series – Kayak Software Corporation and Valorem Law Group LLC Discuss Their Unique Approach to Litigation Work: Part I
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValueWelcome back to our “value practice” blog series featuring real-time and real-life value conversations between an in-house counsel and their trusted law firm. For those of you new to this series, ACC hosted our first client-firm blog pair last year with Ken Grady from Wolverine Worldwide and Lisa Damon from Seyfarth Shaw, which focused on… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-firm Relationship: Part XVI
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 16 Our Successes, Lessons Learned and Parting Thoughts Week 16. Each week via the In-House ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. ACC Value Challenge steering committee member Ken Grady, General Counsel and Secretary of Wolverine World Wide, offered to profile his selection and start-up process of… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-firm Relationship: Part XV
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 15 The Current State Week 15. Each week via the In-House ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. ACC Value Challenge steering committee member Ken Grady, General Counsel and Secretary of Wolverine World Wide, offered to profile his selection and start-up process of launching a trademark portfolio… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-firm Relationship: Part XIV
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 14 Making it Work: A Value-Fee Partnership Week 14. Each week via the In-house ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. ACC Value Challenge steering committee member Ken Grady, General Counsel and Secretary of Wolverine World Wide, offered to profile his selection and start-up… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-firm Relationship: Part XIII
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValuePost 13 Compensation, Conversation and Collaboration Week 13. Each week via the In-House ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. ACC Value Challenge steering committee member Ken Grady, General Counsel and Secretary of Wolverine World Wide, offered to profile his selection and start-up process of launching a… Continue Reading
A Value-based Client-firm Relationship: Part XII
Posted in ACC Value Challenge, Client-Firm ValueProcess Mapping Primer Week 12. Each week via the In-House ACCess blog, follow the promise and pitfalls of forming a new value-based client-firm relationship. ACC Value Challenge steering committee member Ken Grady, General Counsel and Secretary of Wolverine World Wide, offered to profile his selection and start-up process of launching a trademark portfolio management engagement… Continue Reading