Search ACC Docket

Daniel Książek, an attorney working on the IKEA case that could set a precedent for labor rights in Poland, speaks with ACC.

Since joining the company in 2014, Gora has played a pivotal role in supporting the company as it maneuvers through an increasingly fluid digital market.

COVID-19 will not lead to the end of globalization but it has triggered transformative steps that general counsel and compliance officers of globally active legal and risk management functions need to consider to ensure sustainable success in the “next normal.”

Inside Voice is a new column featuring articles authored by the leaders of ACC's legal services. Here, they reveal insight on the pressing trends affecting in-house legal practice and corporate legal departments across the globe.

If you want a seat at the executive decision-making table, you need to think about contracts differently. The lawyer may be the handmaiden of the contract, but the real stakeholders in the contract are the company’s various business departments.

It seems to me I get an awful lot of coworkers in my office who want to either vent about the company, their jobs, or even ask questions about personal legal matters.

It appears that everyone — law firm leaders and general counsels — view the lack of diversity as a serious problem in the legal field. However, the glacial pace of progress suggests the legal needs to find new and imaginative ways to foster diversity. Enter the Rooney Rule.

The 50/50 charitable raffle has long been part of the experience at Canadian sporting events. Now, with the help of technology, as well as cultural shifting, and even changes to the law, the 50/50 raffle has made a splash in American pro sports, and has moved even beyond that, to collegiate sports.

There may be occasions in which compliance with the law is not the highest ethical priority.

For a practitioner in the environmental law field, the lack of clarity in the definition of waters of the United States has caused much debate and uncertainty. Predicting how that debate will play out in the future is difficult because even past court decisions are inconsistent and murky. But if you have any stake in CWA issues, it is imperative to understand the issues and possible outcomes.

Avoid the pitfalls of noncompliance (and hefty fines) with these strategies. #ACCDocket

ACC Greater Philadelphia chapter hosts their third annual Diversity Summit at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History. #ACC #ACCPhiladelphia #DEI

Olympians’ reactions to winning silver or bronze are rooted in their comparing themselves to others. Look around you and assess whether you need to change your perspective to appreciate all you have. #ACCDocket #career #MondayMotivation

Digitalization imposes, and almost automatically requires, the use of electronic signatures. An overview of the North American legal framework illustrates certain technicalities and misconceptions related to e-signatures.

The practice of law is changing rapidly. Lawyers are going in-house faster, in-house legal departments are impacting the business more than ever, and lawyers are constantly adapting to shifts in the way companies conduct business. Here are the five trends we believe are going to disrupt the practice of law, and what we can do to embrace them.

You want to be seen as someone who understands your company’s broader business operational levers. To make this happen, you need to learn to think and present like a chief financial officer (CFO).

Mary Quazzo is a governance guru. She is the vice president, principal counsel, and secretary for Bechtel Group, Inc., and has served in-house at Bechtel for the past 27 years.

Rose Marie Glazer, vice president, deputy general counsel, and corporate secretary of American International Group (AIG), has some advice for in-house counsel who may not always be invited to executive table: invite yourself. And for those who aspire to advanced roles within (or outside of) the legal department, she says to have a plan, but to also embrace the twists and turns that life will undoubtedly throw your way.

As technology evolves and security risks rise, lawyers are confronted with an increasing challenge to satisfy their ethical duties of competence and confidentiality, making the issue of securing data and mitigating breaches increasingly severe. This article will explore data breaches in detail, discussing how counsel can respond to these events, and outlining practical ways to implement a tiered approach to securing a company’s crown jewels.

Chief compliance officers should follow these steps to avoid being blamed for company misconduct.

Employers are facing many questions after the constitutional right to abortion was overturned in the United States. #ACCDocket

As lawyers, mitigating and managing risk is as much a part of our daily routines as getting a cup of tea or coffee in the morning — that is to say, it’s automatic. It’s what the lawyer in the room is expected to do. And of course we take it a step further, not only using our analysis to let our executives and board members know when a business move may give rise to material risks — but also applying our “solutions-focus” lens to help them figure out how to advance business objectives in a way that matches the organization’s risk appetite.

Current GCs who are interested in ascending to the top corporate office will have to show that they can occupy a few critical but less official roles first. Each is closely tied to their immediate responsibilities while moving them ever closer to the strategic center of the business.

Most lawyers regard the general counsel role as the pinnacle of an in-house career. The path to GC varies by individual and company, of course. For Wolf Frenkel, the general counsel of professional and technology management at consulting firm BearingPoint, headquartered in Amsterdam, the journey to the top of the in-house profession hasn’t been a straight climb up the rungs of a professional ladder.

This article explores the benefits and challenges of using the VLFT approach and offers some pointers for in-house counsel to manage a far-flung team more effectively.