Lawyers Utilizing a Fractional General Counsel Model: Guides, experiences, and growth opportunity

Jennifer Wazenski | Watershed Legal Counsel

Kate Kliebert | Kliebert Law

Cari Sheehan | Kelley School of Business

On-Demand: March 13, 2024

Lawyers Utilizing a Fractional General Counsel Model: Guides, experiences, and growth opportunity

$195.00 2.5 hour CLE

MCLE Credit Information:

Select Your State Below to View CLE Credit Information

Can't Decide Which CLE Program?

Access All
myLawCLE Programs
Only $395^yr

Annual Subscription includes access to:

500+ Live CLE Webinars
National Hot Legal Topics
New Laws and Regulations
State Specific Programs
All Formats: Live, Replay, & On-Demand

Subscribe Today

Program Summary

Session I - A Solo/Small Firm Niche Practitioner as Fractional General Counsel: Challenges and Opportunities – Jennifer Wazenski

Aligning the fractional general counsel role with your small firm practice niche. Discover why and how the lawyer-client experience can be optimized through the FGC service model, regardless of firm size and practice areas. Explore the critical skills and knowledge sets essential for the aspiring FGC in a small firm niche practice. Learn strategies for marketing and branding FGC services to current and potential clients. Join us to unlock the potential that serving as a Fractional General Counsel presents to expand your practice and elevate your standing in the legal profession.

Key topics to be discussed:

Why a Solo or Small Firm Niche Practitioner Might Choose to Serve as a FGC
Defining the Fractional General Counsel Role-Why and How
Critical Skills and Knowledge Sets for Would-Be Solo/Small Firm Niche FGC
Marketing and Branding as a FGC

Session II – A Guide to Serving as Fractional General Counsel – Kate Kliebert

This session will cover what it means as an attorney to work as fractional general counsel to businesses. We’ll discuss possible fee structures, the benefits to the attorney, and the benefits to clients. We’ll also talk about ethical issues that can arise in this arrangement, such as handling potential conflicts and the ethics of alternative fee structures. Finally, we’ll provide practical tips for attorneys interested in offering fractional general counsel or other subscription services to their clients.

Key topics to be discussed:

What is fractional general counsel?
Fee structures/profitability
Potential ethical pitfalls

Session III – In-House Ethics: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly – Cari Sheehan

This session will cover a variety of Rules of Professional Responsibility that affect in-house attorneys. For instance, who is your client? Who do you owe duties of loyalty to within your company as an in-house attorney? In addition, we will delve into how social media and AI can affect you as an in-house counsel, and what you should be aware of in your role. This is a seminar you do not want to miss.

Key topics to be discussed:

Review Rule of Professional Conduct 1.13
Review Rules of Professional Conduct 1.6, 1.7 and more!
Ethics and AI for in-house counsel

Closed-captioning available

Speakers

Jennifer Wazenski | Watershed Legal Counsel

An environmental and natural resources attorney with more than 25 years’ experience representing businesses and State agencies, Jennifer has litigated and advised on many federal and State regulatory programs and led teams of attorneys in the delivery of coordinated, strategic legal services. Jennifer is an alumna of Big Law (before that was even a term) and the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, where she served as Principal Counsel to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Deputy Counsel to the Maryland Department of the Environment. In the course of her work with the Attorney General’s Office, she had the unique opportunity to both apply and influence improvements to regulatory law and policy. She built relationships with other State leaders that enhanced these efforts across multiple political administrations as well as a global pandemic. Jennifer received her law degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, with honors. She graduated from St. Mary’s College of Maryland, with a BS in Biology, summa cum laude. Jennifer is a member of the Maryland bar (active) and the bar of the District of Columbia (inactive). In addition, she is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland (inactive), the US Courts of Appeals for the Fourth and DC Circuits, and the US Supreme Court.

Kate Kliebert | Kliebert Law

Kate Kliebert is a business attorney and the owner of Kliebert Law PLLC in Charlotte, North Carolina. As fractional general counsel for her clients, she collaborates with fast growing businesses to identify their legal priorities and handle their day-to-day legal matters so they are poised for continued growth. She is a graduate of Vanderbilt Law School and in her spare time enjoys scuba diving, hiking with her dog Stella, and reading historical fiction.

Cari Sheehan | Kelley School of Business

Cari Sheehan is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Business Law & Ethics at the IU Kelley School of Business – Indianapolis where she currently teaches Commercial Law and Business Ethics. Additionally, Ms. Sheehan is an Adjunct Professor at the Robert H. McKinney School of Law where she has taught courses in Professional Responsibility, Torts, and Appellate Practice and Procedure. In practice, Ms. Sheehan is a Conflict Attorney with Scopelitis Garvin Light Hanson & Feary advising on conflicts and other ethical issues. Ms. Sheehan is a well-respected seminar and continuing legal education speaker covering a range of ethical issues across various platforms both locally and on a national level.

Agenda

Session I – A Solo/Small Firm Niche Practitioner as Fractional General Counsel: Challenges and Opportunities | 11:00am – 11:45am

Why a Solo or Small Firm Niche Practitioner Might Choose to Serve as a FGC | 11:00am – 11:10am
Defining the Fractional General Counsel Role-Why and How | 11:10am – 11:20am
Critical Skills and Knowledge Sets for Would-Be Solo/Small Firm Niche FGC | 11:20am – 11:35am
Marketing and Branding as a FGC | 11:35am – 11:45am

Session II – A Guide to Serving as Fractional General Counsel | 11:45am – 12:40pm