In-house counsel are increasingly being asked to give business advice rather than just be a lawyer. Ahead of his talk at The Lawyer’s In-House Counsel as Business Partner conference, PayPal UK and Ireland legal head Tom Brown, director and head of legal for UK and Ireland at PayPal, has given his thoughts on how to develop business acumen.
“One question which is asked most frequently by new lawyers on deciding to go in-house is how can they develop commercial astuteness,” says Brown in his opinion piece published this week.
Brown says he looks for business acumen and commercial awareness when hiring new lawyers as part of the PayPal UK team.
“In my experience in the last five years at PayPal in the UK, it may take time but even the least commercial in-house lawyers can quickly and effectively develop commercial awareness or business acumen and it can be taught and learned in the following ways,” he adds.
Brown is just one of the speakers at this year’s In-House Counsel as Business Partner conference on 24 and 25 November.
The conference is designed by and for corporate counsel wanting to transition to business partners that are at the forefront of their business whilst still meeting their multiple requirements around legal risk and consultation. To register, click here.
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