Emma Levin

One of the questions I get asked most is what an in-house lawyer actually does day-to-day.

So I thought I’d give you an insight into what a quieter day can look like as the Sole Legal Counsel in a start-up or scale-up.

I should caveat by saying that I'm currently on maternity leave, so my real day-to-day is more nappies and nursery rhymes…! However I’ve worked in various companies across the last seven years with my latest role being at Onebright, a mental health services provider.

9:00am: Logging on

I’ve never been a morning person, so I usually start around 9am. One of the perks of working in-house, especially in a smaller team, is that you often have a bit more flexibility over your schedule (as long as nothing urgent is going on).

I’ll read through any new emails and write a draft “to do” list for the day. Being the only lawyer for a company, your to-do list regularly changes as new matters arise. I enjoy the unpredictability and variety in the job, but its not for everyone!

9:30am: First meeting of the day

My first meeting of the day is with our Data Protection Officer, who helps to ensure our company uses people’s data legally, safely, and responsibly. We discuss topics such as:

• training for our employees

• the launch of any new services and how they may affect the processing of customer data

• any new or emerging risks that we need to deal with early

I take away a few legal points to research and consider.

11am: Coffee break and contract negotiations

A key part of most in-house roles is drafting and negotiating contracts. Today, I’m reviewing a contract for a new supplier. I suggest a couple of changes to the limitation of liability clause and payment terms (these are two of the most commonly negotiated points in supplier contracts) and send the draft back to the supplier’s legal team.

A lot of this work is about balancing risk - protecting the company while also understanding what the supplier needs to make the contract work.

12:30pm: Lunch

I work from home most of the time, as does my partner, so we get to have lunch together. I head out for a walk and do a bit of life admin like hanging the washing out. Unglamorous but it frees up time in the evening!

1:30pm: Call with the Commercial Team

My first unexpected job of the day is chatting to a colleague in the Commercial team about their latest Request for Proposal and bid. It comes with some terms and conditions that need to be reviewed urgently before they can bid for a new contract. Understanding the commercial aspects, like volume and pricing, is essential for me to provide practical legal advice. We talk through the risks together and decide we’re comfortable moving forward without changes.

3:00pm: Catch-up and non-legal tasks

After the call, I confirm next steps by email and answer any other emails that have landed in my inbox which require a quick one sentence reply. Those are pretty common in-house!

It’s also increasingly common for in-house lawyers to take on work that isn’t strictly legal. One example of this is ESG (environmental, social and governance) work.

At the moment, we’re completing an Ecovadis assessment, which looks at our sustainability performance and highlights areas for improvement. I work with colleagues in Finance and Commercial to help complete parts of the questionnaire. Teamwork is crucial even in Sole Legal Counsel roles.

5:10pm: Logging off

It has been a quieter day today, although I do try to log off before 6pm most days. I do manage to have a better work-life balance in-house than I did in private practice, although there are still moments where I need to work longer hours.

No two days in-house are ever quite the same, which is one of the things I enjoy most about the role. Some days are packed with back-to-back meetings, others are much more focused, but you’re always learning and problem solving in a job like this.

If you’d like to write a “Day in the Life” or there’s someone you’d like to hear from, please let us know by emailing newsletter@inclusieclub.co.uk.