What is the business content of corporate legal affairs?Explaining the role, work, and required skills of the legal department
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With the recent strengthening of corporate compliance and governance, the importance of corporate legal affairs has been reaffirmed.Along with this, the demand for legal personnel is increasing, and the number of people aiming to advance their careers as legal specialists and those aiming to change jobs to legal affairs is also increasing.In this article, we will explain the qualifications and skills that are useful for corporate legal professionals.
Is it difficult to work in corporate law without qualifications?
There are no required qualifications to work in a company's legal department, but legal knowledge and experience are important.You may find it helpful to have qualifications that are relevant to your work as a legal practitioner, or relevant to your particular industry or area of expertise.
By deepening your legal knowledge by acquiring qualifications, you will be able to respond appropriately to legal issues, which will be beneficial for your work in corporate law, and qualifications will be advantageous when changing jobs, hiring, and career advancement. There will be.
Six main qualifications evaluated in corporate legal affairs
Although qualifications are not required for corporate legal affairs, knowledge of the law is required, so if you have a qualification, it will prove that you have knowledge.There is no doubt that having it will have a positive effect, such as being useful in business and being able to use it to advance your career.Here, we introduce representative qualifications that are useful in corporate law.
Attorney at Law
This is the most difficult national qualification that allows you to have authority over all legal affairs.In principle, students who have completed the three-year law school course or passed the preliminary examination, which has a pass rate of about 3%, are eligible to take the bar examination.After passing the exam, one year of legal apprenticeship is required.A lawyer's license is a powerful weapon in corporate legal affairs, and an increasing number of legal apprentices are finding employment at companies rather than at law firms.
Judicial scrivener
A national qualification that allows you to prepare documents to be submitted to courts and legal affairs bureaus, such as real estate and corporate registration.The pass rate for the Judicial Scrivener Examination is extremely low at around 3-5%, making it the second most difficult exam after the Bar Examination.Judicial scriveners offices and general law firms often use their qualifications, and in-house judicial scriveners are not common, but they are useful qualifications in the legal departments of some industries such as the real estate industry.
Patent&Trademark Attorney
Patent attorneys are experts in intellectual property, such as filing and registering patents and utility models.This qualification is highly compatible with corporate legal affairs, and is highly evaluated by companies that handle intellectual property and overseas projects, such as large companies and manufacturers. Demand is expected to increase further in the future.
Administrative scrivener
This is a national qualification that allows you to act as an agent for submitting documents to government offices such as applying for permits, proving facts, and drafting contracts.The pass rate for the exam has been around 10% in recent years, and there are many cases of opening a business after obtaining this qualification. It will be.
Personal information protector
Learn how to properly manage and use personal information.The test, sponsored by the All Japan Information Learning Promotion Association, has a pass rate of about 40%, with questions specific to the Personal Information Protection Act, the My Number Act, and information security.In today's world where personal information must be handled carefully, it can be said that this qualification is highly worth learning even in corporate legal affairs.
Business Practice Legal Examination
The ``Business Practical Law Examination'' is widely known as a certification related to corporate law. You can acquire it in stages from level 3 to level 1, and by acquiring legal knowledge specialized in business and improving practical skills such as contracts, labor relations, and intellectual property, you can reduce legal risks and improve work efficiency. Can be connected.
Business compliance test
This is a test that allows you to acquire knowledge of compliance in business.The pass rate for private qualifications, both beginner and advanced, is approximately 50%.Nowadays, there is no end to the number of companies losing social credibility due to scandals and fraud, so this knowledge is essential for corporate legal affairs.
Three roles in corporate legal affairs
We will explain the three roles in corporate legal affairs: "clinical legal affairs," "preventive legal affairs," and "strategic legal affairs."
Role and main tasks of clinical legal affairs
Clinical legal affairs refers to legal affairs that deal with legal disputes and troubles.It is also called therapeutic law or dispute law.My main work is settlement negotiations and litigation.Companies run the risk of incurring large losses when contract troubles, labor issues, and complaints arise.The longer the response takes, the more effort and expense will be required, so it is important to resolve the issue quickly and minimize the damage.
Role and main tasks of preventive legal affairs
Preventive legal affairs refers to legal affairs that prevent legal disputes and troubles.Also called legal risk law.The main tasks include drafting and reviewing contracts, and handling shareholder meetings.While clinical law deals with dealing with problems after they have already occurred, preventive legal work aims to avoid problems before they occur, and to minimize the damage if they do occur.
Role and main tasks of strategic legal affairs
Strategic legal affairs refers to legal affairs conducted to maximize corporate value and profits.Our main tasks include obtaining permits for new businesses and dealing with M&A (mergers and acquisitions) between companies.It is similar to preventive legal affairs in that it aims to prevent legal disputes and troubles from occurring, but while preventive legal affairs are "defensive" legal affairs, strategic legal affairs can be said to be "offensive" legal affairs. .
[Related article] What is preventive legal affairs?Explaining the difference between clinical legal affairs and strategic legal affairs, and the work content
[Related article] What is strategic legal affairs?Explaining the difference between clinical law and preventive law and the required qualities
Main business content of corporate legal affairs
We will explain the main tasks that corporate legal personnel are involved in.
Work to check contracts etc. with business partners
A large part of the work of the legal department is the preparation and confirmation of documents such as sales contracts, non-disclosure agreements, and outsourcing agreements.In addition to domestic contracts, we also check overseas contracts depending on the company.
Work to respond to troubles
We respond to legal disputes that arise with business partners and customers.If the case develops into a lawsuit, we will consult and collaborate with lawyers at the law firm to collect evidence and prepare for trial.
Compliance-related work
Compliance-related work is also the responsibility of the Legal Department.In order to prevent and deal with fraudulent accounting, quality issues, harassment, etc., we will provide in-house training, establish a consultation desk, and maintain and disseminate internal regulations.
Internal legal consultation service
The role of the Legal Department is to serve as a point of contact for in-house legal advice, such as legal risks in new businesses and the pros and cons of business decisions.This job requires both an understanding of the company's business operations and knowledge of the law.
Business related to company management strategy
When making important decisions for a company, such as M&A, group reorganization, starting a new business, or expanding overseas, legal work involves guiding companies to strategies that are advantageous to their company by comparing them with various laws.
Corporate legal procedures
This service involves consulting with tax accountants and management on legal procedures necessary for corporate management, such as establishing subsidiaries and issuing and splitting stocks.
Preparation and support operations for shareholder meetings, etc.
This is the work of appropriately preparing and operating the activities of internal corporate bodies, such as general meetings of shareholders and the board of directors, in accordance with the law.
Business related to legal investigation
Laws and regulations are frequently revised according to social conditions.We constantly investigate and consider the impact of legal revisions on our company, and notify the company internally to avoid delays in responding and risks.Additionally, when expanding overseas, it is also necessary to research local laws and regulations.
Operations related to debt collection and management
This is the task of managing the company's receivables and collecting any outstanding payments.Uncollected debts directly lead to a decline in a company's profits, so it is necessary to take prompt and appropriate measures, such as sending a notice by certified mail, ultimately requesting payment, legal proceedings such as litigation, and taking collateral.
Work related to labor and labor issues
There are also tasks related to labor and labor, such as attendance management and the creation and implementation of work regulations.In addition to establishing regulations in accordance with laws and regulations such as the Labor Standards Act, we also handle labor-related troubles such as labor disputes such as unpaid overtime pay and harassment.
Typical skills required for corporate legal affairs
We will explain the skills required to work in corporate legal affairs.
legal expertise
Legal expertise is a job that involves managing all aspects of legal work, so legal expertise is essential.Furthermore, having a particularly deep understanding of the laws related to the industry to which the company belongs is an important skill when conducting corporate legal affairs.
Communication skills
It may come as a surprise, but legal work also requires strong communication skills.Since it is a legal consultation desk within the company, it is not possible to give accurate advice unless we can hear the necessary information from the other party, and it is also necessary to negotiate flexibly with the other company when a legal dispute arises.
Research ability
Since there are a large number of laws and regulations related to corporate activities, it is a prerequisite to have the ability to read and understand the laws and knowledge of the underlying laws, but also research to find out the laws and precedents that are appropriate for the issues at the time. You will need strength.
Ambition
Legal knowledge does not end with learning.Jobs must change in response to newly enacted laws and frequent revisions.One of the important qualities is the ambition to keep learning, constantly updating the knowledge you have acquired and brushing up on your work.
How to improve your skills as a corporate lawyer
In this way, legal department personnel are required to have high skills, including the acquisition of qualifications, and a desire to continuously learn and improve."FRONTEO Legal Link Portal" (FLLP) operated by FRONTEO is perfect for legal staff of such companies.
Established in June 2020, "FRONTEO Legal Link Portal" is a Japanese website that connects corporate emergency response personnel, such as corporate legal affairs, intellectual property departments, management departments, and information systems departments, with domestic and international lawyers and experts. The largest platform.You can watch many videos on a variety of topics that are useful in practice, such as litigation response, fraud investigation, scandal response, M&A, crisis management, intellectual property rights, competition law, and personal information protection law.And it's completely free.
Lecturers include lawyers and experts with a wide range of knowledge and a wealth of experience, including those from the top five law firms.It can also be used as a place for in-house legal training, as it can cover a wide range of topics from the basics to recent cases.
In addition to watching the videos posted at your convenience, we also hold many free online seminars, so you can ask questions directly to the instructors.It can also be used as a place to meet new lawyers.
We can also hold custom-made study sessions tailored to your concerns and issues!We also hold free individual study sessions for corporate law and intellectual property personnel who are interested in digital forensics and international litigation.
