Looking for advice on handling a bully. I am relatively junior in the ranks, but have climbed significantly over my tenure and am now responsible for several areas of law for the co. One of the VPs of a department I support isn’t fond of me. It generally doesn’t bother me, but shes developed a habit recently that I need to address: on large group calls when asking for legal advice, she asks me “to reach out to outside counsel” rather than asking me for advice directly. How do I respond?

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Ignore her, give the advice and say you're not wasting budget on outside counsel for something that can be handled in-house. It's your decision as the lawyer to know when to engage outside counsel, not hers. If she is willing to pay outside counsel out of her own budget, make sure the bill is so huge (gotta make sure the first year looks into every corner of the universe of case law that doesn't exist and analyse every last, minute issue) she'll think twice.

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Passive aggressive advice. No. Just tell her you have the answer nearby then be quiet.

"I don't believe that's necessary, we can get this figured out internally".

And if she insists, then: "sure, if that makes you more comfortable. We can connect separately to discuss your budget for outside counsel".

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Yeah I think that's the right approach! Good luck

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Yup, just ignore her.

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Give your thoughts but quote how much outside counsel spend will be.

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Don’t you work for her?

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Do you have a close relationship with the GC? If so, it wouldn't hurt to have a confidential conversation where you ask him or her for advice on how they've dealt with corporate partners who try to undermine their authority. I'm lucky in that I have this type of relationship. Even if you can't do anything directly right away, knowing that they have your back really helps (especially when you do decide to push back).

Tell her to go F*** herself. Most VP’s just kiss ass to keep their positions.

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I use two approaches in these situations: (1) provide advice referencing the last time you addressed the same or a similar issue making it clear that you have experience so outside counsel is not necessary or (2) ask directly in front of the group why she thinks we need to engage outside counsel for something we routinely address in house. I like the other approaches around addressing budget also. I don’t have a budget so I can’t use that option.

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In terms of “how do I respond”, if you actually have an opinion you think is worth sharing, share it, and hope you don’t wind up hearing something different from outside counsel. If you can’t give an answer on the spot and you think it is helpful, volunteer to look into it.

And that’s fine and all, but you do have to understand that when someone chooses this bowl to ask for advice they likely don’t intend to be asking you. So when you don’t know what you are talking about, you might need to practice some self control and recognize that your voice doesn’t have to be involved in every conversation.

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