GENERAL COUNSEL WORKSHOP

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM | GC Workshop - Striking the Right Balance: GCs as Strategic Diplomats

General Counsels are expected to be business enablers while at the same time managing risk, staying within ethical boundaries, and navigating cultural and human dynamics. In order to do so they must build trust and credibility within their organizations. Panelists will explore how GCs sustain ethical influence even when legal advice is uncomfortable, inconvenient, or commercially unpopular. The session will provide real-life examples of how legal leaders move beyond binary “approve or block” decisions to guide organizations toward responsible growth, particularly in times of increased business complexity driven by technology advancement, regulatory flux, cultural breakdowns and challenging human dynamics. Discussion topics include: 

• Delivering difficult legal guidance to executives and boards without losing influence or trust 
• Recognizing early warning signs of cultural and employee-driven risk before they escalate 
• Creating environments where employees raise concerns and leadership meaningfully responds 
• Aligning risk appetite with business ambition in fast-moving, high-uncertainty environments 

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM | GC Workshop - What Would Actual AI Disruption Mean for Law Firms and GCs?

By 2026, the question isn’t “Are you using AI?”—it’s what evidence shows AI is improving outcomes without eroding trust, quality, or defensibility. This session brings together two General Counsels and two Am Law partners to define their objectives for AI-enabled legal work—and the shared OR dissimilar expectations that will shape GC–firm relationships over the next 12–24 months.
Instead of debating the merits of AI tools, panelists will unpack what legal leaders are actually asking for in 2026: faster matter movement (not just faster drafting), repeatable adoption across teams, quality controls that hold up under scrutiny, and transparency around how AI is used inside the work product. The discussion will also explore how firms reinvest efficiency gains into higher-value advisory support—turning AI from a technology story into a client-value story. Discussion topics include:

• The inherent tension of budget expectations: GCs want AI to reduce their outside counsel costs while law firms hope to see revenue increases.
• Metrics: aside from measuring hours, how GCs and firms assess the value of AI
• Quality and defensibility: where AI helps, where it still introduces risk, and what guardrails are table stakes
• Communication: expectations for transparency (disclosure, collaboration workflows, auditability) without creating bureaucracy
• Reinvestment: how firms apply efficiency gains to deliver more strategic counsel, earlier, and how GCs evaluate that value

2:30 PM - 3:30 PM | GC Workshop - Cost Control, Data, and the Hard Choices Facing GCs in 2026

As legal departments face mounting cost pressure amid expanding mandates, General Counsels are being asked to do more with less—while still delivering strategic value. This closing session focuses on the hard realities of legal spend, outside counsel management, and data-driven decision-making in a cost-conscious environment. Featuring a deep dive from a leading voice on legal cost control, followed by data-driven insight and discussion, the session explores how GCs are using legal intelligence—not just metrics—to make defensible tradeoffs, manage rate pressure, and align legal investment with enterprise priorities. Discussion topics include:

• Using cost and matter data to make informed tradeoffs under budget and rate pressure
• Managing outside counsel expectations while maintaining quality and strategic alignment
• Connecting legal spend discipline to broader business, financial, and operational goals