Less than a third (28%) of UK general counsel have a seat on their company's board of directors, according to new research, despite the widespread belief among senior in-house lawyers that it should be accepted practice.

However, the study – which polled 180 European in-house lawyers and was conducted by top 10 City law firm Lovells – indicates that corporate counsel in the UK are represented better at boardroom level than across Europe as a whole.

Just 16% of European general counsel have a seat on the board, according to the survey, although almost half of the respondents (46%) said they felt they ought to have access to the boardroom.

Only 8% of Italian general counsel claimed to sit on their company's board, despite nearly two-thirds saying they felt it was an appropriate position for a general counsel to hold.

Commenting on the findings, Lovells international dispute resolution chief Patrick Sherrington (pictured) said the active role played by many general counsel in corporate decision making meant it was logical for them to communicate easily with board members.

He said: "When the general counsel has the confidence of the chief executive or managing director they can ensure the company is better equipped to deal with legal risks in their commercial context. Being on the board is one way for this to happen."

Sherrington said an alternative was for general counsel to attend board meetings even if they did not have the status of full board members.

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