Bernadette Doyle, General Counsel at Melbourne Water and ACC Australia member shares her perspectives on the recent ACC Australia 2017 National Conference.
Bernadette Doyle, General Counsel at Melbourne Water and ACC Australia member shares her perspectives on the recent ACC Australia 2017 National Conference.
I recently had the opportunity to attend the ACC Australia 2017 National Conference, held in Alice Springs. It’s great to get away from the office and take time out without disruptions (or with a lot fewer disruptions) to listen to current thinking regarding the in-house legal function. There is also a great sense of comradery with other in-house lawyers as there is this shared sense of understanding the nature of our work. The ACC Australia team do a fantastic job of welcoming us, providing plenty of networking opportunities and looking after us by making sure that we are kept up to date with developments regarding managing the in-house legal function.
The initial opening function at the Alice Spring Telegraph Station was a real highlight and a great place to kick off the event. Enjoying the BBQ and meeting other in-house lawyers in the unique bush atmosphere was fantastic. The incredible thunderstorm that rolled in rather quickly towards the end of the event really added a sense of drama and urgency as the three buses pulled up and quickly ushered us back to the safety of our hotels. This was a far cry from being a lawyer, spending most of my time at my desk in Melbourne. All of the conference sessions were very interesting and engaging. The talk by Shane Phillips of Tribal Warriors was particularly inspiring and his message about the importance of collaboration and community is relevant for all of us. However, I have to say that I found the most value in the CLO roundtable discussions. It was really helpful to hear different viewpoints and approaches to common issues faced by CLO’s in a smaller environment that encouraged more two-way discussion.
Other sessions that I found valuable included:
- The Role of the GC in Corporate Misconduct’ - a very frank and open discussion about a serious matter that an in-house lawyer may have the misfortune of facing one day.
- ‘Legal Innovation – Turning Stakeholders’ Frustration into Innovation and Leadership and resilience’ – provided with great takeaways that can easily be implemented by the legal team.
- ‘Health & Wellbeing for In-House Lawyers’ – Great session, as lawyers we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to be perfectionists. It’s such a relief to now know that we are all insecure perfectionists!
My key takeaways
- Make time to innovate by going with simpler systems, having documents at hand and automating as much as possible.
- Do not be ashamed of communicating. In fact, we should market the value that we add to the business, otherwise, our good work gets buried and the business doesn’t know what we do and recognise the value we add.
- Breathe – when under stress, remember to take four deep breaths so as to engage that part of your brain that helps you to think. Sounds easy, but since attending the Health & Wellbeing session, I have frequently found myself not breathing when being approached by an LPC (and if you attended this session, you’ll know what I’m talking about) but then I remember to breathe and it is powerful and importantly, a lot less stressful.
- The ACC Australia National Conference is an event that every in-house lawyer should attend. There is tremendous variety to the sessions, so you will find something that is of interest to you. Also, it is a great opportunity to escape the office and think about the role of the in-house lawyer, management of the team and different ways to add value to the business.
