Introduction
Globalization and digital technology are pervasive forces that present challenges and opportunities for lawyers in the twenty-first century. Digital technology has transformed professional work in ways unimaginable several decades earlier.
It is also a key enabler of the globalization of law firms as they strive to offer legal services to business corporations operating internationally. Relatively new in this scene are the so-called legal process outsourcing (LPO) providers who combine digital technology and global presence to deliver legal support services from low cost locations, onshore and offshore.In this context of an increasingly internationalizing legal services market, what role has the general counsel, or the chief legal officer, played to transform the in-house legal function and its relationships with law firms? This chapter uses management theories to interpret a series of studies I conducted on this question. We begin with findings from General Counsel with Power?, a study of general counsel at major corporations and financial institutions in Britain and the United States. Next, we present evidence from Fortune 500 companies, to glean the reasons behind different sourcing strategies. Focusing on satisfying the legal needs of corporate clients with international presence, we note a tension between large law firms with a global mandate and law firms that are largely nationally based. Last but not least, I draw implications for the future, by highlighting different roles that company lawyers might play in different future scenarios. As I argue below, company lawyers can be a key agent of change in transforming legal practice if they respond proactively to the global wind of creative destruction. In doing so, however, company lawyers remain beholden to a world that is far from being flat.
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