in-house services
What Services does an in-house lawyer provide?
An in-house lawyer offers a range of services which are detailed below though not every business needs every single one of these with some businesses needed more of some types than others.
In general the services below offer a mixture of hard and soft benefits – hard benefits are where an external lawyer would be needed so savings are made by undertaking the work in-house; soft benefits are linked to having a lawyer as part of the decision-making and all their skills and experiences helping inform decisions.
commercial contracts
- Review and update the business’ key precedents and standard terms for compliance with applicable laws and minimising risks
- Review, draft and where applicable negotiate agreements to ensure compliance, minimise and mitigate risks
- Audit and monitor the business’ key contractual business partnerships to ensure high risk provisions such as key dates, indemnities, and warranties
risk and compliance
- Review and where necessary (or assist the relevant responsible business team) set-up systems, policies and processes to ensure the business is compliant with applicable laws and regulations
- Work with C-suite and Finance to ensure there are robust internal approval processes
- Assist the business as part of its corporate governance strategy in identifying, minimising and mitigating key legal risks to the business
- Where necessary implement risk mitigation strategies including obtaining and maintaining relevant insurance
intellectual property
- Audit the business’ IPR including recording creation and registration including use of third-party specialists
- Review and ensure compliance of key IPR licences
- Review and implement any IPR protection and enforcement policy and strategy
dispute management
- Be first point of advice and assistance for any potential disputes with stakeholders
- Ensure business receives best legal support for actual disputes from inception to resolution
training
- Prepare, deliver or arrange training to the business on its legal and regulatory requirements, and where desirable to manage and mitigate legal risks
external advisers
- If necessary, establish, monitor and keep under review any panel of external counsel
- Source, instruct and manage external law firms and barristers
business partner
- Support and deliver the legal requirements of business teams
- Support projects teams through the life cycle of the project providing both a legal and commercial perspective
- Support Company Secretary and C-suite teams on corporate governance and strategy
- Represent the business as its legal function in a professional and ethical manner
Updated August 2024