In-House Counsel

Half-time partner, half-time general counsel ? full-time exhaustion

By Rees Morrison

For six months in 1995, Steve Fulton served as the general counsel of Respironics on a half-time basis and as an employment-law partner at Reed Smith. Speaking to a reporter for GC Mid-Atlantic, June 2008 at 8, Fulton remembers the period as ?the hardest six months of my life.?

When a company reaches the size where it needs an in-house lawyer ? Respironics than had about $100 million in revenue, an arrangement such as Fulton?s with Respironics allows both sides to try out the new position. He joined when. The simultaneous partnership at the firm would be tricky, but obviously at least one company found the issues were solvable.

Other split roles of general counsel are described on this blog (See my posts of July 17, 2005: partners at firm while also general counsel of a company; Aug. 8, 2006: part-time general counsel; March 28, 2006: split of the general counsel position between two universities; and Aug. 14, 2006: general counsel splits time as an arbitrator.).

Full post as published by Law Department Management on July 11, 2008 (boomark / email).