Law Times

Law Times • February 9, 2015 Page 11 www.lawtimesnews.com Significant Canadian presence on international in-house group Geoffrey Creighton becomes president of global organization for corporate counsel By Julius Melnitzer For Law Times he Canadian Corporate Coun- sel Association continues its process of globalization with the formal creation of In-house Counsel Worldwide, a global community of in-house counsel associations work- ing to promote the value of legal depart- ments, sharing of knowledge and best practices across borders, and fostering international connections. Canada has been an important player in In-house Counsel Worldwide since its inception as an informal organization. In 2008, 2010, and 2012, the group hosted a 1-1/2-day world summit tacked onto the CCCA's annual spring meeting. In June 2014, at In-house Counsel Worldwide's first standalone conference in Singapore, Geoff Creighton, a former CCCA chairman, became its first presi- dent and Toronto became its current headquarters. The group also ratified a constitution and elected an executive board from among the past leaders and chief executive officers of its constituen- cy organizations, which include groups from Australia, Britain, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong, France, Bel- gium, Malaysia, and Singapore. "At the core, ICW is a mutual support group for in-house associations, some of whom have pretty mature organizations with a lot of product and resources but who also benefit from the international cross-pollination," says Creighton. Among the more mature organiza- tions is Britain's Commerce & Indus- try Group, which is also a member of In-house Counsel Worldwide. "We represent in-house profession- als whether they are barristers, so- licitors, or paralegals from all over the country and from all types of organi- zations," says Nina Barakzai, a mem- ber of the British organization's board. "ICW connects all of us to col- leagues in other organizations either formally or informally, allowing us to explore common ground, common questions, and common legal issues." So while outreach is the primary benefit for established organizations like the Commerce & Industry Group and the CCCA, associations in the smaller jurisdictions can also ben- efit from access to the resources of the larger members. "The underdeveloped nations in particular are grateful for any help they can get," says Creighton. For example, Creighton foresees a day where other in-house counsel groups could benefit from developing certification programs such as the one the CCCA has partnered on with the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. "Several other associations have al- ready shown interest in that template," says Creighton. In-house Counsel Worldwide will also concern itself with substantive is- sues like recognition for the in-house bar; privilege for legal departments, which is a major issue in continental Europe where lawyers who leave private practice cease to be members of the bar, lose their status as officers of the court, and don't attract privilege; and the status of the profession at large, which is still in f lux in many developing countries. The organization isn't a wide retail product, however. "We're an association of asso- ciations unlike most other in-house global groups who have individual members who collect around various interest groups," says Creighton. "Our intent, of course, is to improve service to individual members but not by reaching out directly to them." Because In-house Counsel World- wide isn't looking to poach members from other organizations and because the associations remain entirely in- dependent of each other, Creighton expects the group will get a warm wel- come. "We're not imperial conquerors coming to consume and absorb, not threatening like the Association of Corporate Counsel," he says. While In-house Counsel World- wide has already secured sponsor- ship from Meritas, a global alliance of independent, full-service law firms, Creighton is cognizant of the fact that the new organization's ability to achieve longer-term goals is largely dependent on individual associations where volunteers play a large role. "Some of our members are better fi- nanced than others, and ultimately we'll be relying on their strength and partici- pation because there are limits to what you can do with volunteers alone," he says. LT FOCUS Information Sessions 0DUFK0DUFK0DUFK 12:30-1:30 pm; U of T Faculty of Law, 84 Queen's Park $SULO$SULO 12:30-1:30 pm; U of T Faculty of Law, 655 Spadina Ave. No registration required. Please feel free to drop in anytime during these hours. For more information and to apply: http://www.law.utoronto.ca/programs/GPLLM.html Now Accepting Applications for Classes Starting in September 2015 Part-time, Executive LLM program for working lawyers and professionals Supported by the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) - Ontario Chapter and in partnership with Carswell, a Thomson Reuters business. UofT_LT_Feb9_15.indd 1 2015-02-03 3:08 PM T 'We're not imperial conquerors coming to consume and absorb, not threatening like the Association of Corporate Counsel,' says Geoffrey Creighton.

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