The legal department enabling the business

Staying on the right side of the law is imperative for business success. This effectively places the legal department in the position of the guardian and the conscience of an organisation. The unspoken rule is that the general counsel must have an aerial view of all the risks that their company can potentially be exposed to.

Simply put, the legal team has a pivotal role in risk mitigation to ensure that their business is protected. In an increasingly regulatory, complex environment, managing risks can be a challenge.

To overcome this challenge, the general counsel and the team will seek to accurately identify, evaluate, monitor, manage and mitigate risks across the business. Essentially, this means, having to get involved in every aspect of the business that involves a legal obligation.

Whether it is Sales trying to make a deal or HR drafting an employment contract, the legal department will find itself in the middle of every business activity, to be able to protect the business from any mishandling. For the legal department that is trying to steer away from the idea of hindering business growth, it might be best not to get their finger in every pie.

So the golden question is, how can the legal department strike the right balance between protecting the business and its assets and enabling business endeavours?

In the whitepaper "The legal department enabling the business", we look at 4 ways legal departments can empower the business to make well-informed decisions and enable growth while proactively mitigating risks.