In-house legal teams face mounting pressure to deliver more with less. Legal leaders are expected to support complex commercial decisions, manage risk proactively, and contribute to strategic growth, all while keeping budgets in check.
A fit-for-purpose legal team has become essential to meeting the demands of current business requirements. But what does that mean, and how can GCs shape a team structure that meets the needs of the business today?
It starts with abandoning the traditional view of a legal team as a static set of generalists or siloed specialists. Instead, it’s a focus on designing a legal function that mirrors the business, adapts to shifting priorities, and blends internal and external capabilities in an innovative, agile way. This doesn’t mean jumping on the latest trend. It means using tools like panel firms, secondees, ALSPs, and legal tech as strategic levers rather than band-aid solutions.
Start with Business Alignment
Before reshaping any team, GCs need to develop a clear understanding of the business’s priorities. Where is growth coming from? What markets, functions or services will drive the next 12 to 24 months? Where are the pressure points in compliance, regulation, or commercial negotiation?
Legal strategy must follow business strategy. A fit-for-purpose legal function is rooted in this context. For example, if the business is entering new geographies, it needs cross-border legal capability, local insight, and perhaps new regulatory expertise. If it is investing heavily in digital products, legal support should include data, IP, and agile contract support. The right team cannot be built without clarity on the business roadmap.
Build the Right Internal Core
In-house counsel should be reserved for work that demands proximity to the business. These are your trusted advisors who understand the company’s risk appetite, its commercial levers, and the internal culture. But not every role needs to be filled by a permanent hire.
Ask whether each legal skill is required full-time, or whether it could be delivered more flexibly. This may mean rebalancing from a generalist model to a hub-and-spoke design. A central team can manage core legal risk and operational governance, while specialists or temporary resources can plug into business units as needed.
Leadership should also think about capabilities beyond legal expertise. Do you have legal ops support? Who owns legal tech and data? Is there someone driving continuous improvement? These are no longer optional extras. They underpin a high-functioning legal service.
Use External Firms Strategically
Most in-house teams still rely heavily on law firms, but panel arrangements often go stale or lack true value alignment. The key is to treat external firms as strategic partners, not simply vendors.
Panels should be designed around the legal team’s actual needs, not just historic relationships. This might mean segmenting work more deliberately, selecting boutiques over full-service firms, or adopting fixed fees and outcome-based pricing. Firms that genuinely understand the business, move at its pace, and are prepared to innovate should rise to the top.
Where possible, in-house legal teams would ideally limit external spend to higher-risk, non-repeatable work. That means complex litigation, novel transactions, or high-stakes regulatory matters. Routine work belongs elsewhere.
Don’t Overlook Secondees
Secondees are a powerful bridge between internal and external teams. They offer the flexibility of a contractor, but with the added benefit of institutional knowledge and embedded firm support. Secondees are especially useful during peak periods, major projects, or where there is a known gap in capability.
They also offer insight into firm culture and performance, helping GCs test relationships and deepen engagement. A good secondee programme can strengthen the panel and bring external thinking into the team.
Bring ALSPs into the Mix
Alternative legal service providers are still underused by many in-house teams. Utilised well, they provide scale, speed and cost-efficiency without compromising quality.
Workstreams like contract review, repeatable transactions, diligence and regulatory monitoring are prime candidates. ALSPs can also support process-heavy internal functions, from NDAs to template management and playbooked negotiations. Their value lies not just in lower cost but in freeing up internal teams for more strategic work.
The challenge is integration. GCs should treat ALSPs as part of the delivery model, not as bolt-ons. Define the scope clearly, build in accountability, and measure success as you would any other supplier.
Use Technology with Purpose
Legal tech should solve specific problems, not create new ones. Tools that automate low-value work, standardise templates, or track workflow and KPIs can make a significant difference. But the market is crowded, and not every tool will suit every team.
Before investing, GCs should ask: what are we trying to fix? Where is the most friction? Who owns the implementation? And what does success look like?
Start small. A simple intake tool, matter tracker, or reporting dashboard can deliver early wins. Adoption matters more than functionality. A system that is 80% perfect but widely used is more valuable than a perfect system that is not used.
Revisit the Operating Model Regularly
A fit-for-purpose team is not built once, it evolves. Business needs shift, talent moves on, and external support models change. GCs should review their operating model at least annually. What work is in demand? What’s being done in-house vs outsourced? What is falling through the cracks?
This is also the time to look at cost-to-value ratios, performance metrics, and client feedback. Legal should operate with the same continuous improvement mindset as any other function. That means being open to change, even when things seem to be working.
Conclusion
The right legal team is not the biggest, the cheapest, or the most tech-enabled. It is the one that supports the business where it needs it most, adapts as priorities shift, and delivers outcomes with speed and clarity.
GCs who approach team design strategically can deliver legal support that is proactive, scalable and genuinely aligned with the business. The result is not just a better legal function, but a more confident and resilient organisation.
