In-house independence: updated governance materials
In June 2022 Ciarán Fenton and I published a template letter in-house lawyers could use alongside their employment contracts to clarify their legal duties and set expectations with their employer-clients. Alongside that we published a board briefing paper and sample talking points, to help strengthen governance through in-house independence - the need for which has come ever more to the fore since 2022. It is great to know a number of lawyers who have taken strong steps with the help of these materials.
We have added a paragraph to the template letter to capture further best practice, being (1) access to insurance and costs coverage for in-house lawyers exposed to detriment in the proper fulfilment of their duties, and (2) to be fired as a GC requires a vote of the board, i.e. not a single reporting line executive.
Updated materials are at the link below, with the edits in blue text. Feedback and info on use welcome.