Around 89 per cent of top legal departments reported that their most senior lawyer was involved in business planning, strategic decision making and active input.
The findings came from a Corporate Lawyers Association of New Zealand (CLANZ) and Australian Corporate Lawyers Association (ACLA) report, which surveyed 346 organisations across the two countries.

Time pressure

New Zealand web site Scoop reports that the survey also found that 83 per cent of legal departments cited workload and time pressure as their most significant challenge, while 81 per cent said they would be expanding their teams over the next two years to cope with the increase in work.
‘A key aspect of this research has been to identify and synthesise innovative practices from across the in-house legal profession.’ commented Grant Adam, president of the New Zealand group. ‘While some factors require the organisation to appreciate the value that a great in-house lawyer can deliver, many best practices are open for all in-house lawyers to adopt and for external providers of legal advice to take to heart when thinking about what their clients really want.’