Corporate Legal Departments


Every large corporation has a legal department, which can become fairly large in size. Smaller businesses may or may not choose to have a lawyer or staff of lawyers on call in case of legal issues. Corporations have far more legal issues than small businesses, however, necessitating a fully staffed and dedicated department.

One might think that as long as a corporation is following all rules and regulations, there is no need for a legal department. That, however, is not the case. Legal departments don’t just deal with problems like lawsuits; they also do a number of other necessary tasks such as drafting waiver forms, writing contracts, filing patents and other legal documents, and ensuring that a company doesn’t accidentally break any laws or guidelines (of which there are many).

In addition to staffing a legal department, corporations often hire qualified lawyers to fill other positions as well, since law school also produces individuals who better understand how society functions and how to lead effectively. For example, Kenneth Mehlman is a lawyer hired by KKR to fill the role of Head of Global Affairs. Gregory Ruben is a lawyer hired by Goldman Sachs. In fact, other than the MBA, the JD is one of the most popular degrees for CEOs and top executives in the business world.

Legal departments are generally staffed with fully trained and educated lawyers, support staff like paralegals, and other law professionals. Their work pertains only to legal matters, and they often function as legal advisors for company CEOs and managers. Legal advice may be given about a variety of topics, such as potential legal issues arising from product releases, hiring practices, and HR policies.

When more serious problems do arise, such as customers complaining, the legal department usually gets involved in order to make sure that the company covers all of its bases legally and keeping it safe from lawsuits. When a lawsuit does come through, the legal department represents the company.

In the largest of corporations—national and global—legal departments can be the size of a law firm because there is so much legal data to handle. When companies are established in a variety of countries, lawyers will often be of different nationalities and backgrounds to ensure that companies have as clear of an understanding of local laws and regulations as possible.

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