This website uses cookies

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience. By using our website, you agree to our Privacy Policy

International In-house Counsel Journal logoInternational In-house Counsel Journal logo
Back to library search

How can lawyers and clients best work together?

January 2025
ManagementGeneral

Abstract

We often hear about clients and lawyers frustrated with each other. Certainly, both sides would have wished to avoid the disappointment. However, do we know how to forge a healthy lawyer-client relationship that promotes work efficiency and maximizes the chances of the client’s success? Below, I respond to this question with a series of tips drawn from my 20-year experience working on the lawyers’ side of the table, 16 years in large law firms and as a solo practitioner for the last four. To have the full view on the subject, I have invited five chief in-house lawyers to share their views from the client’s seat. Let’s get started.

Authors

Portrait image of Eduardo  Bereterbide
Eduardo Bereterbide
International Arbitration and Litigation Lawyer, Bereterbide Conseils, France

Eduardo Bérèterbide is a dual-qualified attorney (New York and Argentina) specialized in international disputes. Eduardo is based in Paris, the World’s international arbitration hub. He has more than 20 years of experience in international arbitration and litigation, working in leading firms in New York, Buenos Aires and Paris, including 12 years with Shearman & Sterling LLP. Eduardo has worked in more than 40 large international arbitration and litigation disputes in the oil & gas, renewables, corporate, tax, construction, aviation, and nuclear fields. He has extensive experience in intra-family commercial disputes involving UHNW individuals. Eduardo has also worked in several fraud and corruption investigations in Mexico and US including the representation of clients before the DoJ and Latam prosecution authorities.

Portrait image of Rafael Melgarejo Davila
Rafael Melgarejo Davila
Legal Principal, Anglo American, Peru

linkedin.com/in/rafael-melgarejo-dávila-aa29381a

Portrait image of Anil Abraham
Anil Abraham
General Counsel, SD Guthrie, Malaysia

linkedin.com/in/anil-abraham-1a67b540

Portrait image of Davor Domitrovic
Davor Domitrovic
Head of Legal, Quiñenco S.A , Chile

https://www.quinenco.cl/en/quinenco-integra-nuevos-profesionales-a-su-plana-ejecutiva/

Companies

Bereterbide Conseils logo

Bereterbide Conseils

Bereterbide Conseils is a firm based in Paris but operating internationally. www.bereterbide.com

Anglo American

https://www.angloamerican.com/

Abdul Latif Jameel

alj.com

Shell Oil Company

https://www.shell.com/

SD Guthrie

https://www.sdguthrie.com/

Quiñenco S.A

https://www.quinenco.cl/en/

Related Papers

Corporate culture and in-house legal department performance: an unbreakable bond Strong culture, strong lawyers
Corporate culture is a fundamental element that permeates every aspect of an organization, including a company's legal department. It defines the values, norms, expectations and behaviours that guide employees in...Read more
Portrait image of Alfonso Levote
Alfonso Levote
General Consel & Investor Relations, Rosetti Marino S.p.A., Italy
Changing Perceptions: How to stop your colleagues from assuming you’re the ‘Department of No’
An in-house colleague of mine once disclosed that he was known as the ‘Sales Prevention Officer’ in one of the businesses he worked for. And this sort of attitude towards...Read more
Portrait image of Sarah Davis
Sarah Davis
General Counsel, The Legal Director, UK
The Art of Transforming Lawyers into Directors on Receptive Boards
In August, US rental car giant Hertz announced that it is adding two lawyers as board members, a current and a former general counsel of corporations. This is the latest...Read more
Portrait image of Jeffery Tan
Jeffery Tan
Group General Counsel & Chief Sustainability Officer , Jardine Cycle & Carriage Limited, Singapore
Bridging the Divide: The Essential Collaboration Between Legal and Financial Advisors for Effective Business Solutions
The PR is right, promising to deliver what we know GCs and in-house counsel want from their advisors. But does this always happen in reality? In short, not nearly...Read more
Portrait image of Ross Meadows
Ross Meadows
Partner, Oury Clark, UK