58 LEXPERT MAGAZINE
|
MARCH/APRIL 2018
| IN-HOUSE ADVISOR: SOLO IN-HOUSE COUNSEL |
house lawyer and we still don't," Sidhu
says. "I still remember that first day. e
[former] CFO handed me the keys to my
office, gave me a corporate credit card and
literally said, 'Good luck starting the new
legal department.'
"My first week, I was lost," she recalls.
"I was trying to understand the dynamics
of what was, for me, a new and unknown
business, while initiating the legal compo-
nents. Most of the business people were not
accustomed to 'running things by legal,' so,
for starters, I had to get people to notice
me and let them know that I was serious
and here to stay. Now, not an hour goes by
when I don't have someone outside my of-
fice asking me to check documents before
they sign."
Robert Soccio is solo General Counsel,
Corporate Secretary, Compliance Of-
ficer and HR Director for the Canadian
subsidiary of Chicago-based diesel truck
manufacturer Navistar. Hired away from
the securities group at a major national law
firm, Soccio says the transition to in-house
work, especially a solo role, should not be
underestimated. "It's a major change, and
it's a really personal decision," he says. He's
emphatic that it's not a way to simplify
one's life or escape the all-hours grind of
Big Law. As opposed to working at a law
firm, there's no such thing as relying on a
single area of specialization. "When you're
the only lawyer and people are looking to
you for answers, you have to have a broad
understanding of the law — and depth in
some areas. e GC role is all-encompass-
ing. You're the go-to guy and your time is in
demand. You really have to be accessible."
Megan Vesely was recruited from an as-
sociate's role in the San Francisco securities
group of DLA Piper to become solo Gen-
eral Counsel for Sigma Analysis & Man-
agement Ltd., a Toronto-based specialist
in risk analytics for institutional investors.
"My first day, we had a securities issue to
deal with — nothing specifically to do with
Sigma — but I really had to hit the ground
running," she recalls. "It was a fast and fu-
rious experience and there was no time to
worry about fitting in." She was Sigma's
first in-house lawyer, but she says the aca-
demic and collegial culture of the company
meant that "I certainly wasn't viewed as a
three-eyed monster."
Outside, looking in
Chris Burr practised at Blake, Cassels and
Graydon LLP in Toronto before leaving
briefly to become general counsel for a start-
up venture capital company. Now back at
Blakes, he's a partner in restructuring and
insolvency, whose role also includes advis-
ing client companies when they decide it's
time to develop internal legal capabilities.
Burr says that, for a growing company,
the rising cost of outside legal services is
almost invariably a motivator in the de-
cision to hire an in-house lawyer. As the
HARPREET SIDHU
PETHEALTH INC.
When I first started at
Pethealth, we had no other
in-house lawyer and we still
don't. … My first week,
I was lost. I was trying
to understand the dynamics
of what was, for me, a new
and unknown business,
while initiating the legal
components.
ILLUSTRATION
BY
DAVID
SENIOR