The Role of the General Counsel

The chief legal officer or general counsel leads an organization's legal function and must be both its top legal officer and a global business and strategic leader. This course examines how GCs carry that dual role. They advise the CEO, executive team and board on strategy, complex business and financial transactions, risk, compliance, ethics and governance. They engage shareholders, customers, employees, business partners, regulators, policymakers and elected officials. And they lead the company and its employees through crisis management and major corporate transformations. The role is changing quickly. Generative and agentic AI are reshaping not just how legal work is done, but who does it and how it is staffed and priced. AI-native firms, alternative legal service providers, new ownership models and escalating talent wars are restructuring the legal market. We will explore how GCs deploy and govern AI, and what outside counsel and alternative service providers must offer to become the business partners GCs want to hire. The course uses case studies and experiential learning drawn from transactions, securities disclosure, litigation, IP, privacy and internal investigations, along with guest speakers who are top global business and legal leaders. Students will learn how to build the critical business, legal and human leadership skills needed to influence without authority, exercise sound legal and business judgment under pressure, communicate effectively with external and internal stakeholders, and build and lead high-performing global teams. We will explore various career paths that lead to the chief legal officer role. Course Objectives 1. Understand the GC's dual mandate as chief legal officer and enterprise leader, and how AI and a shifting legal market are redefining it. 2. Build the human leadership skills the role requires: Judgment, critical thinking, influence, and the ability to lead people through crisis and change. 3. Through hearing from top business and legal leaders and working through real-world simulations, learn how to apply legal and business judgment, and chart various paths toward the GC role or toward becoming the outside legal services providers GCs retain. Elements Used in Grading: Attendance, Class Participation, Written Assignments, Final Paper/Presentation.