How totally obvious:
"Uncertainty about how cryptocurrency regulation will roll out in the future, particularly in the U.S., remains a significant barrier for wider adoption of digital assets such as bitcoin, said panelists at one of the largest bitcoin conferences of the year." - The Wall Street Journal, April 6, 2022.
Journalistic strategies and tactics (including creative non-fiction) to tell your story for publications and brands. Complimentary consultation janegenova374@gmail.com
Starting out to practice law is especially complex. One, the law itself is a dense subject and is continually changing. Two, the profession tends to be highly political. Those very human points of interaction range from one's superiors in a law firm to judges and, yes, clients themselves.
So, of course, as Bloomberg Law emphasizes, it is almost imperative to attract a mentor.
Many recall The Wall Street Journal interview with Paul Weiss Chairperson Brad Karp. He noted how much he had learned from those partners who took the time to deconstruct in-person, in real time the strategies and tactics they were leveraging in managing cases and client interactions.
But, as I explained in the book I co-wrote "The First Critical Years of Your Professional Life," there is a downside to having been mentored.
The most common one is "outgrowing" the mentors. That usually takes the dark form of pulling ahead of them in professional success.
If that is in the organization the situation could invite retaliation. The former mentor can attempt to undo the rising star. Or, there is simply awkwardness. In addition, there can be an ongoing expectation of favors. The message is: You owe me.
If the former mentee moves outside the organization to other opportunities, the mentor could undermine that progress through leaks to the media, throwing poison into the grapevine, and disclosing sensitive information.
Inc. points out other pitfalls in being mentoring. They include:
Failure to form one's own identity and personal style. Instead they become a mini version of the mentor. Over the long haul that might prove to be a bad fit but has hardened into the personal brand. One's branding is difficult to change.
Restricting the molding to input from only one mentor. Frequently the very human trait of possessiveness kicks in. Mentors may implicitly demand total loyalty.
Blurring boundaries. Misconduct can emerge. Inexperienced in the way of professional life, mentees might not know what to do.
Disengagment on one or both sides. Face it, the mentoring process consumes energy. The parties may resent that or not have the time to invest it. Bad feelings can grow and fester.
The solution? The mentor realationship is a relationship. Like all relationships it requires sustained monitoring and course correction. However, there is the addition component of power - the unequal kind. There has to be extreme care in managing the mentor.
Journalistic strategies and tactics (including creative non-fiction) to tell your story for publications and brands. Complimentary consultation janegenova374@gmail.com
"The exit [of general counsel Rachel Gonzalez] comes after the company announced last month that its chairman emeritus Howard Schultz would return as CEO on an interim basis. Starbucks, currently battling a unionization effort by its coffee shop workers, has also come under scrutiny in recent years from investors for providing anti-bias training to employees. - Bloomberg, April 5, 2022.
STARBUCKS' IN-HOUSE LEGAL PULLED INTO THE CHAOS
That information comes from this securities filing. The job of the general counsel is being handled by an interim appointment of long-time employee Zabrina Jenkins.
Starbucks is mum on the reason for the removal.
DIVERSITY AS FLASHPOINT
But diversity initiatives could have factored in. They are becoming increasingly divisive.
At Coca-Cola, for example, it is well-known the head legal guy with a radical proposal for imposing diversity quotas on outside law firms - Bradley Gayton - resigned. That move had been abrupt. For new accounts he mandated that 30% of the billing time be done by lawyers classified as diverse. Recently Coca-Cola scrapped that whole plan.
EMPLOYEE UNREST KEY IN-HOUSE LEGAL ISSUE
As for the employee unrest, research by the Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford found that it is employee activism which is among the top issues on the minds of the chief legal officers. They struggle about how to classify that behavior and then, if it is identified as wrongdoing, what to do about it. Here is my analysis of that development published in O'Dwyer Public Relations.
Meanwhile, there has been unionization at Amazon as well as Conde Nast.
UNPREDICTABLE FORCE FIELD
What started out as a thoughtful assessment of corporate values - that is, ESG (Environmental Social and Governance) - has exploded into an unpredictable force field. There are no absolute right or wrong answers. Corporate leadership is being rocked from all sides. Those include customers/clients, communities, employees, investors, media, and business partners.
THE FIRST SUSTAINABILITY-ESG PRACTICE FOR A LAW FIRM
In spring of 2020, it had been Wall Street law firm Paul Weiss which sized up how ESG would disrupt business as usual. The leadership would need to view their behavior using a very different lens.
Through the Chairperson Brad Karp, Paul Weiss launched the first-ever specialized Sustainability & ESG practice.
Paul Weiss structured its mission to help: " ... companies navigate the legal, business and political ramifications of developing and implementing ESG initiatives. We advise on matters such as stakeholder engagement, corporate governance, crisis management, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, ethics and compliance."
LAW FIRMS ALSO THOWN INTO TURMOIL
Later, in a Bloomberg Law interview Karp indicated the law firms guiding corporations and other kinds of clients with ESG issues would themselves get caught up in the turmoil.
Not long after he made that prediction Mayer Brown had been swept up in ESG matters in its representation of Hong Kong University.
More recently, Paul Weiss itself has been immersed in an ESG controversy because it is representing the NFL in the racial bias lawsuit "Brian Flores v NFL, et al." In response, it conducted a presser.
ANALOGY WITH THE 1960s COUNTERCULCULTURE
Some have made analogies of current ESG times to the upheaval of values during the late 1960s and the early 1970s counterculture. That movement halted when a severe economic downturn overtook the nation. One wonders how a recession, which some are projecting, will impact the ESG movement.
IN-HOUSE LEGAL TARGETED
Meanwhile, in-house chief legal officers likely will continue to be targets during this upheaval.
Journalistic strategies and tactics (including creative non-fiction) to tell your story for publications and brands. Complimentary consultation janegenova374@gmail.com
"The exit [of general counsel Rachel Gonzalez] comes after the company announced last month that its chairman emeritus Howard Schultz would return as CEO on an interim basis. Starbucks, currently battling a unionization effort by its coffee shop workers, has also come under scrutiny in recent years from investors for providing anti-bias training to employees. - Bloomberg, April 5, 2022.
STARBUCKS PULLED INTO THE CHAOS
That information comes from this securities filing. The job of the general counsel is being handled by an interim appointment of long-time employee Zabrina Jenkins.
Starbucks is mum on the reason for the removal.
DIVERSITY AS FLASHPOINT
But diversity initiatives could have factored in. They are becoming increasingly divisive.
At Coca-Cola, for example, it is well-known the head legal guy with a radical proposal for imposing diversity quotas on outside law firms - Bradley Gayton - resigned. That move had been abrupt. For new accounts he mandated that 30% of the billing time be done by lawyers classified as diverse. Recently Coca-Cola scrapped that whole plan.
EMPLOYEE UNREST KEY IN-HOUSE LEGAL ISSUE
As for the employee unrest, research by the Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford found that it is employee activism which is among the top issues on the minds of the chief legal officers. They struggle about how to classify that behavior and then, if it is identified as wrongdoing, what to do about it. Here is my analysis of that development published in O'Dwyer Public Relations.
Meanwhile, there has been unionization at Amazon as well as Conde Nast.
UNPREDICTABLE FORCE FIELD
What started out as a thoughtful assessment of corporate values - that is, ESG (Environmental Social and Governance) - has exploded into an unpredictable force field. There are no absolute right or wrong answers. Corporate leadership is being rocked from all sides. Those include customers/clients, communities, employees, investors, media, and business partners.
THE FIRST SUSTAINABILITY-ESG PRACTICE FOR A LAW FIRM
In spring of 2020, it had been Wall Street law firm Paul Weiss which sized up how ESG would disrupt business as usual. The leadership would need to view their behavior using a very different lens.
Through the Chairperson Brad Karp, Paul Weiss launched the first-ever specialized Sustainability & ESG practice.
Paul Weiss structured its mission to help: " ... companies navigate the legal, business and political ramifications of developing and implementing ESG initiatives. We advise on matters such as stakeholder engagement, corporate governance, crisis management, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, diversity and inclusion, ethics and compliance."
LAW FIRMS ALSO AFFECTED
Later, in a Bloomberg Law interview Karp indicated the law firms guiding corporations and other kinds of clients with ESG issues would themselves get caught up in the turmoil.
Not long after he made that prediction Mayer Brown had been swept up in ESG matters in its representation of Hong Kong University.
More recently, Paul Weiss itself has been immersed in an ESG controversy because it is representing the NFL in the racial bias lawsuit "Brian Flores v NFL, et al." In response, it conducted a presser.
ANALOGY WITH THE 1960s COUNTERCULCULTURE
Some have made analogies of current ESG times to the upheaval of values during the late 1960s and the early 1970s counterculture. That movement halted when a severe economic downturn overtook the nation. One wonders how a recession, which some are projecting, will impact the ESG movement.
IN-HOUSE LEGAL TARGETED
Meanwhile, in-house chief legal officers continue to be targets during this upheaval.
Journalistic strategies and tactics (including creative non-fiction) to tell your story for publications and brands. Complimentary consultation janegenova374@gmail.com
Suicide remains a mystery.
It's tempting - and it does provide some emotional relief - to speculate as what leads human beings to take their own lives. But, that's so reductionistic, especially to a legacy.
All we know, as the ABA Journal reports, is that high-profile Philadelphia, Pennsylvania plaintiff lawyer Slade McLaughlin committed suicide. Like suicide by late Sidley Austin partner Gabe MacCanaill, it was through the use of a gun.
McLaughlin's branding had been created by his work in sex abuse cases. Those ranged from alleged victims of the Roman Catholic Church in Philadelphia Metro to Penn State University.
Some observe that McLaughlin seemed stressed before his death. But, come on, what professional isn't obviously stressed during this volatile time in economic and social history.
Law and More wishes peace to all those who have lost Slade McLaughlin in their lives. Suicide leaves a big hole. Only we don't what created that hole.
Full Disclosure: Several members of my family have committed suicide. I have no answers. I don't even have questions, not any more.