Canadian Lawyer InHouse

Oct/Nov 2008

Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives

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COVERSTORY Corporate counsel roundtable Corporate Social Responsibility Going Beyond Compliance In-house counsel guide companies through legal and legislative framework, but what happens when the only guideline is being a good corporate citizen? By Kirsten McMahon C 12 OC T OBER 2008 C ANADIAN Lawyer INHOUSE orporate legal departments are playing an increasing role in developing corpo- rate social responsibility programs and green initiatives within their companies — providing both valuable legal guid- ance and strategic advice. And they aren't just doing all of this because it's the right thing to do — it's also good for business. Attendees of the Canadian Law- yer InHouse/Association of Corporate Counsel roundtable, composed of a carefully craſt ed guest list with assis- tance from both the ACC and Richard Stock of Catalyst Consulting, reported that their corporations are going be- yond compliance when it comes to CSR and the environment. Participants in this year's roundtable discussion — moderated by former In- House editor Kirsten McMahon — in- cluded: Brian Armstrong, executive vice president and general counsel, Bruce Power; Terry Badour, executive vice president, law and administration, Fair- mont Raffl es Hotels International; Anna Kinastowski, city solicitor, City of To- ronto; Fred Krebs, president, the Asso- ciation of Corporate Counsel; and Todd Melendy, vice president, assistant general counsel and chief compliance offi cer, Ce- lestica Inc. Th e corporate counsel roundtable top- ics ranged from external legal fees, pro bono work, alternative billing arrange- ments, what corporate counsel are look- ing for in a law fi rm, and the diffi culty in keeping on top of both legal and industry development. Th e discussion was engag- ing and interesting. A more in-depth version of the roundtable report is avail- able at www.canadianlawyermag.com/ inhouse.

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