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Achieving flow, a state of focus on a particular activity, can help in-house counsel achieve their goals.

As with many things in our legal world, the answer here is both simple and frustrating: It depends. Many factors come into play. It may depend on the company profile — its size, business area, level of regulation, governance structure and priorities, budget, management practices, and so on. It also depends on the individual professional perspective — duties, skills, professional and educational background, career aspirations, and talent.

Although artificial intelligence has now moved from the research and development stage to commercialization, its wider deployment in business imposes challenges for enterprises and for patent legislation, as it is a completely new concept and a very powerful force for change.

Inclusion allows for superior decision-making by bringing balance and equilibrium to any team or group and to the environment in which the team operates. And a diverse group will develop different strategies, approaches, solutions, and ideas.

We’ve dedicated this issue of ACC Docket to stories that touch on employment issues and emerging trends.

Leslie Thornton, the recently retired senior vice president and merger transition counsel for WGL Holdings and Washington Gas Light Company, has had the same mandates as most high-profile general counsel. She has navigated and managed major litigation, employment and labor law matters, supported the board of directors, and dealt with complex cybersecurity issues and data protection, all while being cognizant of what that means in the energy industry.

Prior to law school, I worked as a server in a restaurant. I’ve often said that my experiences back then were particularly valuable in forming my worldview; their relevance certainly rushed back to the fore when I began in-house practice in a department of one.

The legal profession has experienced several years of upheaval and disruption. General counsel are now optimizing their internal service delivery model in the same way that they have done with their external ones.

I decided to keep a log and write down the most important lessons I have been learning while managing my plant and on my journey outside the legal department. I have to admit, some of these lessons are the result of not so smooth — even at times painful — experiences.

Naturally, patents figure prominently into the business strategy, and Haas’ legal department involves itself more and more in strategic discussions to be able to focus on patents that deliver business solutions.

Despite their possible shortcomings, performance metrics — including profit and loss — are vital to helping businesses track and report results to shareholders. The question is, how can we craft meaningful performance metrics that incentivize desirable behaviors while avoiding potential negative consequences?

This article will provide a history and overview of CFIUS, as well as predictions about how the Committee may operate going forward. Based on recent CFIUS activity and the broad language of FIRRMA, it is highly likely that CFIUS’ role in reviewing foreign investment in the United States will increase. In particular, CFIUS will be getting involved in reviews of more types of transactions involving more types of industries, including industries such as health, finance, and retail, in which personal information or information transfer could occur as a result of the proposed transaction.

According to Spitzer, there are four distinct levels of happiness that both individuals and organizations must understand to assist them in pursuing excellence.

For a legal-minded numbers guy like Alasdair Moodie, Thermo Fisher Scientific’s vice president and general counsel of Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), he knew that the chances of receiving the honour were slim. But for the multiple colleagues and peers who nominated him, it wasn’t a surprise when he did.

Rose Marie Glazer, vice president, deputy general counsel, and corporate secretary of American International Group (AIG), has some advice for in-house counsel who may not always be invited to executive table: invite yourself. And for those who aspire to advanced roles within (or outside of) the legal department, she says to have a plan, but to also embrace the twists and turns that life will undoubtedly throw your way.

We invite you to “listen in” on the future, and decide whether this fictionalized firm is the kind of law firm that you would want to hire for your organization.

==This article will identify some of the key points employers must bear in mind while conducting internal investigations in Mexico.

This article includes some questions that will help you and your employees create a better evaluation process.

If you ask Chan about his legal career, he will tell you that his journey from firm to global in-house counsel was a result of “jumping at the opportunity.”

Raj Barot has studied, worked, and lived all over the world. Currently managing director and general counsel at Agile Counsel, Barot has spent the majority of the last 10 years working and living in Singapore, Bangkok, and Mumbai. However, if you ask him where he's from, the lawyer/entrepreneur will claim the San Francisco Bay Area as home.

A day in the life of Edward T. Paulis III, VP & Assistant General Counsel at Zurich North America in Owings Mills, Maryland.

As in-house lawyers, we often focus on helping our clients put deals together. When negotiating agreements to document these deals, we must think ahead about how to measure success, what might go wrong, and what happens next. A key component of “what happens next” should include a plan for ending the relationship in an orderly manner.

In this article we explore some of the new diversification opportunities available to certain oil producing countries in the Middle East as a result of decreasing oil prices. Opportunities such as diversifying income sources, diversifying energy sources, private-public partnerships, and the promotion of entrepreneurship, all of which foretell the future ingredients of the economies of such countries.

The prudent course would be for companies to get ahead of the curve now, understand what the potential implications may be as a result of the law, and begin long-term planning to ensure company compliance does not fall short when their competitors run ahead of the field.

"People hear the word ‘boards’ and they make many assumptions. Many of them are simply false,” says Aileen Casanave, deputy general counsel at Jiff, Inc.

Someone once described a traditional legal career as a predictable, well-known path that generations of lawyers take. A deviation from it is frowned upon and can be legal career suicide. Thus, many lawyers miss all the scenic routes!

The Court of Justice of the EU recently ruled that the current US-EU Safe Harbor Certification Program is no longer a valid method for ensuring adequate privacy protection of data transfers between the United States and the European Union.

In 2015, Emily Ward, vice president and deputy general counsel at PayPal, was busy. Her itinerary included helping lead aspects of PayPal's separation from eBay, aiding PayPal's transition as its own company, organizing ChIPs' global event in Washington DC, remaining active in her professional and personal communities, and even adopting a child.

Why should lawyers consider joining startups? “Because it’s hair-raising fun! You feel like you’re on the precipice of a cliff and guzzling from the fire hose most of the time,” Suzy Fulton, vice president of operations and general counsel at Appspace, colorfully answers.

Silicon Valley has its own undeniably unique culture, immortalized in the media as innovation-driven and fast-paced.