Question:  I am the general counsel for a company that is expanding its operations to a number of new countries, and the CEO has indicated that we need to develop an international law department.  I have been asked to lead our development/expansion of the law department, but since this is my first experience with expanding a law department, I was wondering if ACC has any resources to help me with certain aspects such as forming a department vision, team management and career development, and the use of technology that could help me manage my growing department?

Answer:  Yes, ACC has extensive resources on growing a global law department.  To get you started, try the following resources:

• Organizational Effectiveness: The New Imperative for Developing a World-Class Legal Department
• Technology Primer
• Global Law Department
• Designing a Forward-Looking Legal Department
• Top Ten Tips for Running an Efficient International Legal Department
• In-House 3.0 – Technology Challenges and Opportunities

For more legal resources, go to www.acc.com/legalresources.
Back to top

Featured ACC Polls on Career and Social Media

• What Aspect of Being In-house Counsel Do You Value Most?
• How has the use of technology impacted your weekly work hours?
• Does your organization have a formal social media policy in place?

The ACC Alliance brings you exclusive discounts on legal services from a select set of providers. Here are two featured partners for this month:

• Robert Half Legal is ACC’s exclusive staffing partner offering important industry information useful in managing their business and career. As an ACC member, you can receive exclusive discounts when hiring attorneys, paralegals and project teams.
• Applied Discovery brings an exclusive e-discovery offer to ACC members. As part of the Applied Discovery® Leverage™ suite of services, Applied Discovery developed an optional module called Review Analytics, which provides an automated dashboard to monitor reviewer accuracy rates and review progress. It is free to ACC members for the first use.

Find out more at www.acc.com/alliance.
Back to top

ACC’s Member-to-Member connects you with your peers and allows you to get ACC updates, search resources contributed by members, and join eGroups discussions to benchmark your operations and connect with other members. To make the most of this peer-to-peer network, you can customize your profile, preferences, and subscription settings, post a message in eGroup forums, and find and connect with another eGroup member. For more information, visit www.acc.com/m2m.
Back to top

• Explaining Law to Your Grandmother:  What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Meeting the Needs of an Aging Population – Toronto, September 20
• Networking Event: Wine Tasting and Cocktail Dinner – Montréal, September 20
• ACC Ontario Autumn Social – Toronto, September 22
• Tax Law Tips for All In-house Lawyers – Montréal, September 30
• Special Program on Project Management for In-house Counsel – Montréal October 4
• Bribery and Foreign Corruption – Doing Business With Governments Officials in Foreign Jurisdictions – Toronto, October 6
• The Rights of Unpaid Suppliers – Toronto, October 19

For more information and a complete list of educational programs, please visit www.acc.com/education.
Back to top

Secure your seat at two business management programs this fall — Risk Management & In-house Counsel (September 14–16), featuring expert speakers such as a former Massachusetts Attorney General; and Leading Innovation & Change (September 26–28).  Co-sponsored by ACC and the Boston University School of Management, these two programs are designed to help you become versed in controlling risk and creating cultures of innovation in your organization. Learn more at www.acc.com/businessedu.
Back to top

• Chair’s Choice Announced: “Corporate Counsel Under Scrutiny: Liability for Corporate Misconduct”  Join us on Monday, October 24 at ACC’s Annual Meeting for the Chair’s Choice session moderated by ACC Board Chair and former Executive Vice President & General Counsel, HCP, Inc.J. Alberto Gonzalez-Pita.The panel will address the proactive strategies corporate counsel should consider when their company is under scrutiny. Participants include: Sven Erik Holmes, Vice Chair, Legal and Compliance for KPMG LLP; John K. Villa, Partner at Williams and Connelly LLP; Anne K. Small, Deputy General Counsel for the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Anastasia Kelly, partner, DLA Piper and former General Counsel at AIG, Inc. and MCI/WorldCom. Book your hotel before September 12 to take advantage of the special discounts. Register for the meeting before September 14 to save $100 on registration and for a chance to win a complimentary room upgrade. Register now at am.acc.com.

• NEW Session: Exploring an Innovative Legal Engagement Tool: Global Pro Bono. Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO) ACC’s partner project with the Pro Bono Institute, will host this interactive session which will explore the intersection of global corporate citizenship and engagement within a legal department, paying particular attention to how global pro bono can be used as a tool to stimulate and engage experienced and knowledgeable legal staff. To register for the annual meeting go to am.acc.com. For more about global pro bono opportunities for in-house legal departments, contact Eve Runyon, director of CPBO.

Mark your calendar for two upcoming Legal Service Management Workshops (February 2012, Dallas; May 2–3, 2012, Minneapolis). This interactive and practical workshop provides you with a great opportunity to learn value-based fee structures and the management skills and tools to support them. For more information, visit www.acc.com/legalservicemanagement, or contact Catherine J. Moynihan at moynihan@acc.com or +1 202.293.4103 x398.
Back to top

Members of ACC recently participated in a productive roundtable organized by the government regarding FCPA compliance and enforcement issues.  ACC Advocacy is currently weighing various options to address the growing concerns surrounding anti-corruption regulation around the world and would appreciate your insights as to the unique challenges faced by in-house counsel when they try to comply with the FCPA, so that we can share it with Congress and the Administration.  Please contact Amar Sarwal at sarwal@acc.com or JD White at white@acc.com with your feedback.
Back to top

• A Second Act for New ACC President Veta Richardson (Corporate Counsel)
• Understanding the Need for In-house Counsel Associations (Canadian Lawyer)
• Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers (Canadian Lawyer)
• ACC Appoints New General Counsel (Compliance Week)
• Top In-House Counsel Receive Pinnacle Award from National Bar Association (Corporate Counsel)
• New Era at ACC (Metropolitan Corporate Counsel)

Learn more about media coverage of ACC when you visit ACC in the News.

If you have any questions, or wish to receive additional information about items included in this month's newsletter, please contact the Legal Resources Department at legalresources@acc.com or the Membership Department at membership@acc.com.
Back to top