What is House counsel like?

Asked by: Theodora Rau  |  Last update: August 18, 2022
Score: 4.6/5 (45 votes)

Experience counts... IN-HOUSE counsel are hired by a corporation's law department to handle a range of legal issues affecting the company, among them employment, policy, tax and regulatory matters. More prevalently, they play a managerial role, overseeing work that's been outsourced to attorneys at independent firms.

Is in house counsel stressful?

Overall, an in house legal job can be less stressful than working in a firm. Just because you are in house, doesn't mean there is no stress. There are still deadlines to meet, pushy people to please, and demanding work to get done. But what it means is that you're working in a different environment than the law firm.

What does it mean to be in house counsel?

Legal Definition of house counsel

: a lawyer employed by a business to work in-house on its legal matters.

How can I be good in house counsel?

Attorneys applying for an in-house role and preparing for the interview.
  1. Build Relationships. ...
  2. Ensure Clarity of Expectations. ...
  3. Understand Your Role. ...
  4. Learn the Business and Its Culture. ...
  5. Reset Your Perfectionist Tendencies. ...
  6. Be Practical, Creative and Clear. ...
  7. You Are Now Part of a Larger Team.

How do I prepare for house counsel?

4 Tips To Prepare for In-house Legal Interviews
  1. Research the company thoroughly. Research and familiarize yourself with the company with whom you're interviewing. ...
  2. Find out whether the company utilizes “behavioral” interview questions. ...
  3. Familiarize Yourself with the Interviewers.
  4. Come up with questions of your own.

What Do In-House Counsel Jobs Look Like (vs. Lawyers' Perceptions)?

33 related questions found

What do you wear to an in house counsel interview?

Corporate In House Interviews: Wear a Suit

Regardless of gender, wearing a nice business suit is absolutely the way to go if you're interviewing for an in house attorney position at a corporate employer.

How many interview rounds does in house counsel have?

Unlike law firm interviews, a candidate will often be meeting with non-lawyers, including senior management. If a candidate is interviewing with a company with a large legal team, the structure may mirror that of an in-house process: generally two rounds of thirty minute interviews with 6-8 attorneys.

What do inhouse lawyers do?

In-House Counsel – also known as Legal Counsel, In-House Legal Counsel and In-House Lawyers – are the type that carry out legal work directly for their employer, as opposed to law firm or private practice Lawyers who earn money for their firm by working on behalf of multiple clients.

Why is in-house counsel important?

One of the advantages of in-house counsel is that you add a legal dimension to key decisions, which should improve the company's risk management profile. But what if the general counsel proves to be a slow decision-maker, or, to put it less politely, a bottleneck? That's a serious problem.

What is the difference between in-house counsel and general counsel?

In-house counsel is a generic term for lawyers who practice, well, in-house. General Counsel is typically the title given to the highest ranking in-house lawyer within a legal department, and that person is usually a c-suite executive like the COO or CFO of an organization.

What is the difference between lawyer and counsel?

Counsel can refer to one lawyer or attorney or a group of lawyers or attorneys who represent a single client. Like advocate, counsel is often used in the U.S. as a synonym for lawyer or attorney, but it can also refer to a group of people.

What does a General Counsel lawyer do?

What Do General Counsels Do? General counselors work in the business world as the main legal advisers for their respective companies.

How do you qualify for house counsel in California?

Registered In-House Counsel must satisfy in the first 12 months after approval of his or her application the 25 hours of legal education that members of the State Bar of California must complete in a 36-month period.

What kind of lawyers are happiest?

The happiest attorneys, therefore, are those who experience a cultural fit. This means they work for firms where they are free to act independently, do work that matters to them and collaborate on teams with people who complement their personality and communication style.

What is the least stressful field of law?

However, there are many sectors of law which are less stressful:
  • Real estate law.
  • Intellectual property law.
  • High Street family law.
  • Government lawyers.
  • Working In-House.

Which field of law has the best work life balance?

Real Estate Lawyers

The work demands knowledge of the law relating to property, as well as real estate law. Closing contracts and filling forms with customers' data amounts to a good proportion of the work. It offers a fair balance between work and life as it is not very time-consuming per day.

Why do companies have in-house lawyers?

Benefits of In-House Counsel

Having a dedicated lawyer in-house means they're part of the team, hands-on, and proactive to provide a more urgent response than outside counsel would. As your trusted advisor, in-house counsel has interests that better align with your company's objectives.

Why is working at home better?

One of the benefits of in-house legal work is that you will often be exposed to the entire life cycle of business strategy. After all, rather than handling discrete, one-off projects, you will be asked to help shape concepts, policies, and procedures that best position the company for future success.

Why do attorneys work so much?

Associates, partners and others inside of the largest law firms that service the richest clients learn a system of work where they question every detail in transactions and litigation and create the best work product possible. This always takes more hours, and the attorneys are expected to put them in.

Is in-house better than private practice?

“The two things, working in-house and in practice, both have their good points. It's never a case of which is better, but of which is right for you at that time in your life.” Whether you end up in-house or going into private practice, get your career off to a great start with our law degrees.

How many in-house lawyers are there?

Regulation and In-house Lawyers

In-house practice is the fastest growing sector in the legal profession. According to the Law Society's Annual Statistics Report 2019, there are an estimated 31,000 registered in-house solicitors – a figure that has almost tripled over the last 20 years.

Why do you want to become an in-house lawyer?

Unlike private practices where lawyers are billed by the hour, working in-house means that you'll have fixed working hours and a monthly salary. Most lawyers who make the move from private practice to in-house often site better work-life balance as the main incentive.

What are common behavioral interview questions?

What's a Behavioral Interview Question?
  • Give us an example of a goal you failed to meet, and how you handled the situation.
  • Tell us about a time when you solved a problem at your job that wasn't part of your job description.
  • Tell us of a time when you took a risky decision and it didn't pay off.

How do you stand out in a law firm interview?

Six Ways to Stand Out at Your Law Firm Interview
  1. Do your research. Lawyers are known for being good researchers. ...
  2. Be presentable and dress your best. ...
  3. Come prepared to ask questions. ...
  4. Be personable and show enthusiasm. ...
  5. Be genuine. ...
  6. Promptly send a thank-you note.

How do I prepare for general counsel interview?

  1. Prepare to Establish Credability in your General Counsel Interview. ...
  2. Prepare to Present a Clear Vision in your General Counsel Interview. ...
  3. Prepare to Draw in the Interviewers. ...
  4. Dissecting a Real Job Description to prepare answers. ...
  5. Get Professionally Personal. ...
  6. Sample General Counsel interview questions.