尽管存在不确定性，公司律师仍能提供合理的指导

How corporate lawyers can deliver soundguidance as their responsibilities expand For in-house lawyers, the need to move quickly and to deliver sound, on-target guidanceacross a broad expanse of legal ground is nothing new — but the pace of change is Challenge 1: In-house lawyers are generalists whoneed to cover multiple areas of the law/expert The corporate general counsel (GC), meanwhile, is an advisor to theCEO and the C-suite on business issues and to the Board of Directorson corporate governance. In many cases, they are the companysecretary, a role that is evolving from administrator to advisor. Manyalso serve as Chief Governance Officer (CGO), responsible for thedesign, implementation, and maintenance of a governance framework Lawyers for companies large and small may find themselves, in rapidsuccession, advising on an acquisition, assessing an intellectualproperty issue, considering a lease issue, and evaluating the risksinherent in a proposed business expansion — all while jugglingassorted crises, HR and compliance questions, and ad hoc requests The role of the in-house counsel has evolved dramatically in recentyears. It’s no longer enough to be a great lawyer — protecting thecompany and managing risk are now the bare minimum. Due todisruptions in the legal profession and business at large, the in-houselawyer must encompass leadership and diplomacy and serve multiple Challenge 3: Legal departments are undercontinuing pressure to deliver more with less The Thomson Reuters®2021 State of Corporate Law Departments report documents the following trends that are turning up thepressure on in-house counsel:•More with less:In 2020, 58% of corporate law departmentsexperienced increased workload as a result of the COVID-19pandemic — and 30% experienced budget cuts. Challenge 2: In-house lawyers must understandand align with other functions in the organization/ •More ground to cover:In 2020, corporate lawyers shifted focus toensure their companies effectively responded to the legal effects ofthe pandemic, which affected employment, the safety of workers The in-house lawyer has become more involved in the company’s corestrategic initiatives and business activities and so dives deeper into arange of work including audit, compliance, executive management,HR, investor and media relations, and social responsibility. This •More pressure:Legal budgets will likely be stretched furtherin 2021 as ‘business-as-usual’ work ramps back up while theheightened demands of the COVID-19 environment continue to 80% of legal departments report that controllingoutside counsel cost is a high priority of Chief Legal Officers report to the CEO Source: Thomson Reuters 2020 Legal Department Operations Index Source: Association of Corporate Counsel 2020 Mitigating risk pertaining to data protection and privacy are highpriorities for legal departments around the world, particularly thosethat do business in the European Union (EU) or must comply with itsprecedent-setting GDPR regulation. Now that the United Kingdom(UK) has completed its separation from the EU, corporate legal teamsmust also provide sound guidance on the ramifications for many post- Challenge 4: Legal departments face unprecedenteddisruptions with deep legal implications/ With so many areas of law and policy in a state of flux, corporate lawdepartments are responsible for an ever-expanding legal terrain. Yearover year, one of thetop priorities for legal departments has been risk Inevitably, the fallout from COVID-19 will continue to present uncertaintyand challenges to companies. It is likely that 2021 will see more disputes,and perhaps even litigation, over whether the pandemic frustrated acontract or triggered a force majeure or material adverse change clause.Understandably, these issues have prompted businesses to reconsiderhow their supply contracts are drafted, with many customers andsuppliers now insisting on more flexible terms with regard to payment Challenge 5: Legal departments face new challengesarising from political tensions and social unrest/ Most in-house legal departments are already at the center of theirorganizations’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, and thisis unlikely to change any time soon. Companies are facing increasedpressure from governments, regulators, investors, and consumers todevelop and maintain effective CSR policies and mandates, and toembed these measures into their wider business operations. In recentyears, much of the focus has centered around issues emanating from 40% of corporate legal departments have implementednew safeguards aimed at preventing disputes in Of course, there are other changes affecting in-house lawyers thatwill require time and attention above and beyond legal departments’day-to-day operations, including the need to ensure sound dataprotection and proposals to reform corporate governance. Further,with increasing and ever-changing regulation, regulatory divergence, Source: Tho