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Corporate Lawyer Job Description

Veethi Telang
Seems like you are into legal rights, regulations and obligations. Well, you should know what's a corporate lawyer job description like. This write-up attempts to explain what is a corporate lawyer, and what are his duties. Take a look.
A television show or a movie may portray him as always in court, rubbing elbows with the social elite. Well, just so you know, a corporate lawyer's job is to study law, and draft legal documents. For all one knows, it wouldn't be wrong to call corporate lawyers 'the handmaidens of the deal'.
They facilitate the business process that may require insight into the requirements of a client, and may call for expertise and service mentality.
To ensure the legality of commercial transactions, corporate firms all over the world require corporate lawyers who're well aware of statutory law and regulations passed by governmental organizations, to assist clients in attaining their goals, without exceeding the bounds of the law.
Corporate lawyers research contract law, tax law, securities law, accounting, intellectual property rights, bankruptcy, and all regulations that involve business and finance. To gain more insight on the same, the following words make up for an interesting read.

Job Profile of a Corporate Lawyer

As is universally known, in order to deal with corporate law, 1 needs to have an incisive mind & terrific communication skills, for the simple reason that, throughout the negotiation procedure, a corporate lawyer constantly writes & revises the legal documents that are responsible for binding 2 parties for terms & conditions with respect to the transaction.
Well, for that to happen, a corporate lawyer ensures that the transaction concord's with the local, state, as well as the Federal laws. While trial law is adversarial in nature, corporate law is team-oriented where the corporate counsel for both the sides of a transaction, need not compete with each other but seek a common ground for their clients.
As per the requirement of a client, a corporate lawyer may serve as an adviser to business executives. Furthermore, he or she can act on behalf of a company in court as well. The main duty of a corporate lawyer is to facilitate mergers and deal with human resource matters, after they become judicial.
Usually assigned their own offices or cabins, corporate lawyers have their own personal assistants for research, along with access to a legal library.
They often work overtime - it ain't a 9 to 5 job. What's more, as per the requirements of the client, a corporate lawyer may be required to travel to various locations in order to investigate legal issues. With that said, in a nutshell, the following points describe the job of a corporate lawyer:
  • To write and revise legal documents.
  • To represent employers and clients in legal matters.
  • To ensure legality of business practices and transactions.
  • To keep companies out of legal problems.
  • To keep clients updated with regards to new business laws and regulations.
  • To advice on labor relations, tax issues, employee contracts, etc.

How to Become a Corporate Lawyer

A bachelor degree along with three years of law school are grass-root level requirements. As an aspiring lawyer, you could apply for courses in corporate law, tax and insurance law, where you will be exposed to the nitty-gritty of the job. What's more, you could also specialize in corporate law by taking relevant electives like creditor's right, commercial transactions, trial advocacy, and trade regulations.
After you have completed your bachelor's degree course, you could work as an intern or assistant in a law firm while you're studying in a law school. Other than that, you could type briefs, work in your law school's library, and come to terms with many contacts, and embark into the legal world.
If your performance is good, your law school will get you recruited. However, if it doesn't, you could keep checking newspaper and law journals for vacancies of a corporate lawyer.
Job prospects for corporate lawyers are expected to increase through 2014, for many corporations require protection from nosediving damages, and hence, for this reason, corporate lawyers are a must-have for every firm. As of today, on an average, the salary for lawyers in the corporate domain ranges somewhere between $70,000 - $130,000.
As experience increases, so do the salary figures. Indeed, the salary figures demonstrate that this job is one of the most coveted in society today. While a client is entrusted with the legal activities of the company, the job of a corporate lawyer gains utmost significance.