Texas Lawyer: What did you look for when hiring a general counsel? What characteristics were most important?

Michael Barrington, CEO, AmeriCredit Corp: The technical/legal skill set and willingness to work hard is obviously important. In 1993, when Chris Choate was promoted to general counsel, we were a small, essentially startup, company looking for somebody that would roll up their sleeves and work closely with our business areas in developing policies, processes, credit programs and documentation that would be compliant with the regulatory environments in which we operate. We also needed someone who could work on basic corporate functions, such as helping with Securities and Exchange Commission filings, human resources issues and litigation management. Chris had a broad legal skill set that allowed him to perform the job. But technical legal skills aren’t enough to be an effective general counsel. A general counsel also needs to have strong leadership attributes, such as displaying confidence and an ability to influence others, including colleagues and those to whom he reports such as the chief executive officer or the chief financial officer. Strong communication skills are a must, insofar as they permit the GC to foster important dialogue around important issues. A GC must be able to deal with conflict in a diplomatic way and maintain a strong network of organizational relationships. Finally, a GC should be adaptable and flexible, responding to new demands and priorities as needed but also willing to make and defend tough decisions when required to do so.

This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.

To view this content, please continue to their sites.

Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Why am I seeing this?

LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.

For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]