How can a Fractional General Counsel assist your business needs?

General Counsels are pivotal within businesses, both to de-risk the business and to help steer strategy within a legally compliant framework. Full-time in-house counsel can offer businesses a competitive advantage; however, this can also come at a cost. Fractional General Counsels are an extremely cost-effective, nimble option for businesses who may not need or be able to afford a full-time in-house General Counsel, or whose legal needs fluctuate over time.

What is a Fractional General Counsel?

The term ‘Fractional General Counsel’ refers to a highly experienced senior lawyer who is comfortable with taking a hands-on senior leadership role within a business, but without being an employee of that business. The ‘Fractional’ element is extremely flexible and can be split into:

1. time (for example, a specified number of hours per month which can increase or decrease depending on the business’ needs – providing ongoing legal support and proactive strategic guidance);
2. project (for example, taking an internal lead in a large portfolio sale or acquisition); and
3. responsibility (for example, taking on legal risk but not operational risk).

Businesses which do not have the time or money to prioritise legal risks through the more costly and traditional means can work with a Fractional General Counsel to tackle strategy and legal challenges. This can help your business grow whilst avoiding legal risks that would otherwise damage your bottom line.

By outsourcing legal matters to a Fractional General Counsel, businesses can focus their internal resources on their core operations and strategic initiatives instead of dealing with ongoing legal issues or failing to recognise legal risk. A Fractional General Counsel helps identify potential legal risks and compliance issues early, allowing businesses to address them proactively before they escalate into larger, costly problems.

Key benefits to you and your business

Fractional General Counsels offer bespoke solutions to support your business which has no in-house legal support (whether it is because a full-time employee is not needed or cannot be afforded), and also support stretched legal teams (where no additional headcount is needed but additional legal support is required to keep pace with the business). Specifically:

1. Peace of mind: you have senior, cost-effective legal support in place with monthly subscriptions that can flex up or down (or cancel) at any time, so you are only paying for legal support that you need.
2. Speed: due to their seniority and experience, Fractional General Counsels should be responsive and efficient, turn things around quickly and can quickly embed themselves in a business.
3. No distractions: Fractional General Counsels focus on collaborating with your teams, working alongside stakeholders and third parties, and are not distracted by any extra-curricular activities, thoughts of ‘promotion’, administration or meetings which a full-time employee would be required to participate in.
4. Less stress: as Fractional General Counsels should quickly form a deep understanding of your business, your priorities and your challenges, they should be able to take ‘work and admin’ off your plate, giving your business more time to focus on strategy and allowing you to better manage your work-life balance.

Positively affect your business’ EBITDA

Fractional General Counsels should be considered a member of the business’ team, without the overheads of hiring a full-time general counsel and without having to outsource all legal work to outside counsel.

By opting for a Fractional General Counsel instead of a full-time in-house lawyer, a company can reduce its overhead costs (such as salaries, benefits, office space and legal expenses) which can lead to improved earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA).

As a Fractional General Counsel can help identify and navigate legal risks, this potentially avoids expensive disputes or regulatory issues (such as regulatory fines and penalties) which could negatively affect earnings.

If you would like to find out more about how a Fractional General Counsel can assist your business, please contact Nadia Milligan and Nick Owers.

Find out more about Keystone’s In-House Counsel services here.