There are fundamental differences between being a lawyer in private practice and being an in-house lawyer, said Eleanor P. Cabrere of Navistar Inc. She was one of seven in-house general counsels at major corporations on the panel, “How Outside Counsel Can Get Corporate Legal Work, Do It Well, and Be Hired as In-House Counsel,” held on Aug. 2 at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago.
Here are some of the tips they shared for breaking into the field:
Talk to those who have lived it. Cabrere said there are certain skills you need, and she cautioned against thinking it’s “an easy job.”
Prepare to work just as hard. “You’re not going to be working fewer hours,” warned Gayle E. Littleton of Exelon Corp., but you will be working “differently because you have a single client.”
Think about transitioning after four to five years of experience in law firm or government. Angela K. Steele of McDonald’s Corp., went in-house after eight years, which she called “a little too long,” making it harder to shift the mindset regarding risk and other factors.
Hope for serendipity. It’s hard to have the knowledge and strategic thinking and be the “trusted adviser” sought by a company after five years of experience, said Robert S. Rivkin of United Airlines, although he added that it helps if you’re in a “hot area” like artificial intelligence, privacy or intellectual property.
Know it will be harder to move up than in a firm. Littleton called in-house legal departments “flat,” and said you often have to wait for someone to leave in order to move up.
Shine in your current role. You may not know what industry you’ll land in, said Laura Stein of Mondelez International, but you’ll need to be generally commercial and financial literate, so get yourself up to speed on those before you make the move.
Start networking. Do it at all levels, not just the GC level, said Stein, because the lower-level in-house lawyers hear about openings.
Be nimble. “We need utility players right now,” Cabrere said, so you’ll need more than one area of expertise. “I need people who can shift on a dime … and still give sound, practical legal advice,” and those people are hard to find, she said. She recommended building up that skill set while you’re still at your firm or government job.
Learn the cultural dynamics. In-house culture is very different from firms, and you need to speak the company’s language, said Regina Bynote Jones of Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. In addition, “I need people other people like” and who have “presence,” she said, adding that soft skills are fundamentally more important than technical skills, which she called “the price of admission.”
Be comfortable with risk-taking and ambiguity. “You are never going to have perfect information in making a decision,” said Cabrere, “so you need to get comfortable with that.” In most situations, she said, you aren’t going to be able to get all the information you need and in most instances don’t need to, so you have to make decisions based on incomplete information.
Speak the company’s language. And realize they won’t be speaking legalese. Further, you’ll no longer be a revenue-driver but a cost center. “Corporate culture is not built to accommodate the in-house lawyers,” said Rick J. Kulevich of CDW Corp. “We’re almost like guests in a broader organization.”
Communicate clearly and simply. Kulevich quoted the aphorism, “Bad lawyers make simple things complicated and good lawyers make complicated things simple.” You will need to speak simply to people at all levels of the company.
Come across as strategic and a problem solver. When interviewing a candidate, Stein looks for a thoughtful person who can build a rapport with her, has an “ownership mindset” and is forward-looking.