Question of the Month

What is the best way for a company to limit its environmental liability in an acquisition?  
Answer: As an ACC member, you have access to a variety of resources that can help you address this concern, including:

• ACC’s Environmental, Health & Safety Committee and Listserv
• Deal or No Deal: Recent Developments Impacting Environmental Due Diligence
in M&A Transactions Webcast or the written transcript
• Environmental Risk Management 101
• Sample Site Access and Confidentiality Agreement Between Prospective Seller and
Prospective Buyer
• Sample Letter of Intent
• Coming at the 2007 Annual Meeting: Negotiating Environmental Provisions in Commercial Transactions

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ACC will host a session on Legal Risk Management on May 3 in Toronto. The program will cover topics such as legal risk vs. business risk, risk assessments, risk management strategies, and training business managers. Speakers included the general counsel of Visa Canada, HP Canada and Dell Canada.  Visit the ACC website for more information and to register.

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The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) has officially launched its Ontario chapter, the first Canadian chapter for the association. The Ontario chapter, based in Toronto, delivers CLE and social events open to the growing number of Ontario ACC members and other in-house counsel. The new Ontario Chapter has more than 200 members who represent 144 corporations such as Royal Bank of Canada, Alcatel Canada, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., Canada Post Corporation, Barrick Gold Corporation, and Hydro One Networks Inc., and will serve Toronto and its surrounding cities.

• See the press release about the announcement
• Visit the ACC Canada page to for upcoming programs and to access resources

If you’re interested in becoming more involved in Ontario Chapter activities, contact Mitchell Wolfe, Chapter President at miwolfe@visa.com.


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As a new feature in the Monthly Member Update, ACC will be asking a one-question survey each issue and reporting back on it the following month.  ACC has heard anecdotally that relationships between in-house lawyers and company auditors have become more strained over the last few years.  Has that happened to you or is it all just status quo?  Take the “Two Cents Survey” to let us know.

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Don McCarty, Vice President, Law–General Counsel and Secretary, Imperial Tobacco Canada shared his insights with ACC on the role CLO can play when dealing with the media.  Here’s a brief excerpt from the article: “In-house lawyers tend to have a natural tendency to shy away from the media during trial or on legal issues generally—to say ‘no comment’ or to comment minimally.  While this adheres to the historical conservative paradigm, not being proactive can give rise to ‘urban myths,’ which then take more time and energy to debunk than addressing the issues in the first place…” 

• Read the full article
• See the CLO ThinkTank report, “CLO’s Role in Government Relations and External Affairs”


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• The Wait Is Over – Facing the Final 409A Regulations
Thursday, April 12, 12:30 PM (ET); 5:30 PM (GMT)
• Infusing Records Policy Into Technology
Wednesday, April 18, 12:00 PM (ET); 5:00 PM (GMT)
• Critical Strategies for Successful Outsourcing
Tuesday, April 24, 12:00 PM (ET); 5:00 PM (GMT)
• Outsourcing to India: A Practical Guide to IP Protections,
Enforcement Mechanisms and Export-Import Issues
Thursday, May 31, 12:00 PM (ET); 5:00 PM (GMT)

Please contact Jacqueline Windley at windley@acc.com with any questions or topic suggestions for ACC's Desktop Learning Webcast. All of ACC's Desktop Learning web casts are recorded and available for replay up to one year after the initial presentation. So if the live broadcast is not convenient, access the replay in our online archive.

• Creating the Legal Function: A Formula for Success
• Ethics and Privilege—“The McNulty Memo: A Reversal in Practice or in Name Only?”
• Find out everything you need to know about “Recent Trends in Internal Investigations”
• “Managing an Internal Corporate Fraud Investigation and Prosecution” provides you with tactics for handling such a scenario.
• “Who, What, and Where: Guidelines for the Statistical Analysis of Disparate Impact in EEO Litigation”


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ACC’s MemberToMember database allows you to search for in-house peers with expertise in more than 100 practice areas, including corporate governance, law department management, and intellectual property. Use the location search to find a member in your area or find one in another region of the world. MemberToMember is a quick and easy way for you to connect with other ACC members and get the answers you need. Visit MemberToMember to connect with you in-house peers.

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ACC’s 2006 Census of In-house Counsel is the definitive source for insights into the make-up of today’s in-house counsel community. The Census covers a broad range of areas related to the in-house practice of law, including: professional demographics (years in-house, compensation), organizational information (industry, location), and legal department data (department structure, department budgets).  Check out the free executive summary.  ACC members also get a discount on the full census results —follow the log-in instructions to get the discount.

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Top Ten Areas of Focus for a Corporate-wide Employment Law Audit  is co-authored by William Harn or Southern California Edison Company, and Jackson Lewis, and examines what you should consider when dealing with a corporate-wide employment law audit. Previously released ACC Top Ten lists include:

• Top Ten New to In-house Pointers
• Top Ten Ways for Keeping Up Without Burning Out
• Top Ten Things Corporate Counsel Should Know About Blogs
• Top Ten Ways to Avoid Becoming the Sales Prevention Department


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The New York State Bar Association House of Delegates proposed important amendments to the rules of professional conduct in New York, and specifically proposed a new Rule 5.5, which was formerly the state's Unauthorized Practice of Law rule, but would be amended to include new multijurisdictional practice (MJP) reforms. New York's proposed Rule 5.5 would permit a lawyer who is not admitted in New York the ability to provide legal services “on a temporary basis” if their services “arise out of or are reasonably related to the lawyer’s practice” in a lawyer’s home jurisdiction.  Find out more about this important development.

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Learn first-hand from in-house experts on issues like intellectual property, working globally, the role of corporate secretary, and non-compete agreements. The 2007 Annual Meeting (October 29-31, Hyatt Regency Chicago) has something for every in-house practitioner and offers a variety of opportunities to meet, interact with, and learn from fellow in-house counsel from around the world. Visit Annual Meeting website to get a first look at the newly released program schedule to register today. Questions? The education team can help. Contact: education@acc.com or 202.293.4103, x.451.

 
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Are you looking for the next big step in your in-house career or are you looking for the best talent for your in-house department? Either way, ACC’s In-house Jobline, the premier career website exclusively for the in-house community, should be your first stop. With more than 1,100 current open positions that you can sort by practice area, location, job title and more, you will find what you need. Receive discounted rates on job postings, access the online career center, and post your resume for free. ACC’s In-house Jobline provides you with all of this and many more options to make your search easier.

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A joint project of West and the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), each chapter is written by a team of in-house and outside counsel, including contributions of general counsel from some 80 Fortune 500 world business leaders. It focuses on performance enhancement, performance quality, outcomes enrichment, and cost-effectiveness from the viewpoints of both counsel settings. Topics include selection of outside counsel, planning and budgeting, fee arrangements and billing, law department management, benchmarking, technology, conflicts, compliance, dispute resolution and avoidance. ACC members are entitled to a 30 percent discount.  Purchase this from West.

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