Lai notes that legal department leaders must use their privileged visibility into all aspects of the organization to provide advice on all issues affecting the business, beyond just legal advice. 

Many general counsel are taking responsibility for additional business functions, as organizations recognize the value that they bring to the table. Lau’s legal team is also responsible for sustainability matters, for example. In addition, general counsel are increasingly involved in discussions around digital transformation for the business. 

“I think it’s very important for general counsel to really embrace and facilitate innovation and to ensure that new technologies are being deployed responsibly, so within our organization there are ongoing discussions around adopting and leveraging emerging technology, just to maintain our competitive edge,” says Lau. For example, MEC implemented smart waivers on iPads for customers using in-store climbing walls. Waivers are collected and stored electronically, in compliance with privacy and retention policies.

Lau’s team built a contract database and a ticketing system to help prioritize and keep track of work with respect to risk assessment, and they also developed a collaborative framework. This requires selected team members from various departments identifying areas of risk and opportunities to ensure a comprehensive approach to risk management, as well as the integration of privacy leads into each department. 

“As lawyers we have the unique opportunity to serve as advocates for policy changes by fostering innovation and leveraging our expertise to provide very valuable input on proposed legislation, not only to support innovation, but also to drive sustainable economic growth,” says Lau. 

Similarly, Trickett also keeps his team agile through cross-functional collaboration. 

“The legal industry hasn’t fully figured out what it means in a hybrid environment to maintain and foster really close collaboration within a team, and with other teams, and that is critical for managing these risks as the volatility of these risks is changing at a different pace,” says Trickett. “Finding ways of connecting and collaborating within the legal team and outside of the legal team is more important than ever before,” he adds. 

The role of general counsel has evolved from merely being a legal advisor to being a strategic business partner, so legal department leaders are playing an increasingly significant role in corporate strategic planning. 

“Most effective GCs moving forward will play an even more active role in defining and establishing corporate strategy, rather than reviewing it after it has been created,” says Trickett. 

Uncertainty facing organizations can slow corporate decision making and lead to conservatism in the pursuit of business goals, so legal departments have a vital role in helping to define the parameters of acceptable action to enable business growth, Trickett says. 

From his perspective as Vancouver managing partner at Bennett Jones LLP, Kwang Lim comments that lawyers must remain nimble to stay on top of the rapidly shifting legal and regulatory landscape.