The professional stature and influence of the CLO’s position has grown in light of the prevalence of geopolitical events and heightened regulatory landscape, according to research by the Association of Corporate Counsel. The association looked at the CLO reporting structure - an  important indicator of influence on the company - and the CLO’s role in creating a corporate culture that reinforces ethics and integrity. Among CLOs who report directly to the CEO, 61 per cent work with the CEO, executive team, and board of directors on strategic initiatives — nearly double the percentage among those who do not report to the CEO. Sixty-five per cent of CLOs who report to the CEO stated the executive team “almost always” seeks their input on business decisions and 81 per cent regularly attend board meetings — signifying a greater likelihood that business plans take into account legal and regulatory risks.

Legal and regulatory trends

Worldwide, regulatory or government changes is the most concerning issue keeping chief legal officers (CLO) and general counsel (GC) up at night, and the proportion of CLOs who rank proactively addressing legal and regulatory trends as a top area where they add value has increased 38 percentage points since 2013, the ACC CLO 2018 survey said.

Greater accountability

'With so many geopolitical issues, the challenges facing businesses today are much more complex, and boards are facing greater accountability and pressure to understand their company’s appetite for risk,' said Veta Richardson, president and CEO of ACC. 'Thus, a well-positioned CLO and legal team can solidify a corporate culture that prioritises ethics, compliance, and other legal risk considerations. The survey’s findings further emphasize that 2018 is the age of the CLO.'

Data breaches

Taking the pulse of 1275 CLOs and GCs in 48 countries, the ACC CLO 2018 survey also found that data breaches and the protection of corporate data is the fastest growing area of concern as 36 per cent of CLOs rated it extremely important in the year ahead, compared with 19 percent in 2014. The education, retail, and healthcare sectors reported the highest percentages of data breach activity, while respondents in the United States, Canada, and the Asia Pacific region were more likely to report that a patent troll targeted their company.

Other findings

Other notable findings in the ACC CLO 2018 survey include: 

· Contract management is the top area where CLOs use technology for efficiency. 

· Nearly half of all respondents (47 per cent) anticipate their company will be engaged in a merger or acquisition in the year ahead.

· The majority of CLOs globally (56 per cent) expect an increase to their department’s overall budget, compared with 43 percent last year. Inside spend allocation rose from 53 percent to 56 percent.

· Sixty-three per cent of law departments use a combination of hourly billing rates and alternative fee arrangements, compared with 42 per cent who utilised blended rates in 2016.

·Complex litigation is the most common type of work outsourced to a law firm, followed by patent services and ediscovery.