Build Your Network: Legal Groups and Leaders to Follow

If you’re a legal leader looking for a community, advice, or mentorship – this post is for you. Finding insights from professionals you trust isn’t always easy. We took feedback from legal experts and have put together a list of the industry groups to join and leaders to follow. The education and network you need as an in-house legal hero are closer than you think. Check it out. 

Legal Industry Groups (to join!)

• ACC: Association of Corporate Counsel aims to be the premier global legal association serving the diversified needs of in-house counsel. 
  • Through ACC, you’ll gain access to peer-created resources, innovative and educational webinars and events, and (maybe most importantly) connect to a large community of in-house legal counsel. 
  • The ACC stays current and is constantly developing new resources and programs responding to and anticipating their member’s needs.
• IAPP: The International Association of Privacy Professionals is the world’s largest information privacy organization. 
  • This is an incredible resource for legal professionals aiming to advance their careers by helping their organizations manage today’s privacy risks and protect their organization's data.
  • They also offer conferences with training and workshops across the globe – something for every region. 
• ABA: The American Bar Association defends liberty and delivers justice as the national representative of the legal profession.
  • The ABA has been advocating for the legal profession since it was founded in 1878, working to advance the rule of law.
  • There are many specific member groups where you can find the resources you need – including practice-specific committees, top-tier CLE, peer-reviewed scholarly journals, curated content, and more. 
• CLOC: The Corporate Legal Operations Consortium is a global community of experts focused on redefining the business of law.
  • CLOC is the community for legal ops professionals or legal teams that need to operationalize.
  • This is your one-stop-shop for legal ops resources – from content to events to a community, both virtual and in-person.
• MCCA: The Minority Corporate Counsel Association was founded in 1997 to champion the hiring, retention, and promotion of diverse attorneys in corporate law departments and law firms.
  • MCCA offers advisory services including leadership development, strategic services, and strategic tools.  
  • Get to know MCCA and its mission with this quote, “As we look ahead to our next quarter-century, we will accelerate the pace of change. We will be informative but impatient. We will not stop until our companies look like our country. We will help corporate America know better, and do better, to lead better.”
• TechGC: An independent, invitation-only, community platform for General Counsels of leading venture capital funds and high-growth technology companies.
  • TechGC is a community built by GCs for GCs. They offer premium information through webinars, events, and written content.  
  • Note that membership is by invitation or referral only and is limited to the General Counsel, Chief Legal Officer, or Head of Legal at each company fund. You can request an invitation here. 
• Your local bar association section for your industry. Check them out for regional news and networking opportunities! 
  

Legal on LinkedIn (to follow!)

• Andy Dale: General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer at Alyce
  • If you don’t follow Andy on LinkedIn, you’re missing out! Follow him to learn in-house legal insights and best practices – with humor along the way. 
  • Andy also hosts The Data Protection Breakfast Club with Pedro Pavón, Privacy, Ads, and Data Policy at Facebook. Tune in to stay on top of the latest and greatest when it comes to data protection and privacy.
• Tim Parilla: Chief Legal Officer at LinkSquares
  • Tim is our very own legal leader here at LinkSquares. He previously spent seven years as General Counsel for DraftKings, where he scaled the legal function and managed the company’s legal posture throughout numerous financing and fundraising rounds, litigation, and regulatory actions, at both the state and federal level, including the high-profile legal challenges the company faced in 2015 alongside the explosion in popularity of daily fantasy sports and strategic acquisitions. 
  • And, he’s got a webinar series! Check out Cockpit Counsel where Tim invites leaders aboard to share advice that will help you navigate even the most turbulent times of in-house counsel work.
• Ross Guberman: President, Legal Writing Pro 
  • Ross is President of one of the world's leading legal-writing training companies.
  • He is the author of Point Made: How to Write Like the Nation’s Top Advocates and Point Taken: How to Write Like the World’s Best Judges. He also coauthored Deal Struck: The World’s Best Drafting Tips with Gary Karl.
• Nada Alnajafi: Corporate Counsel, legal writer, and a great LinkedIn follow! 
  • In addition to her in-house legal career, Nada is the founder of Contract Nerds, a modern legal blog all about contracts for contracts professionals around the world. 
  • Nada is also the author of Contract Redlining Etiquette.  
• Laura Frederick: Founder and President of the How to Contract training platform
  • How to Contract helps lawyers and legal professionals learn the skills they need to draft and negotiate contracts in the real world – and provides a community for them, too. 
• Flo Nicolas: Host of the Contract Tech Showcase at How to Contract
  • Flo is a self-proclaimed #NonBoringLawyer and an advocate for DEI in tech & legal industries. 
  • Another amazing LinkedIn follow! 
• Eliana Lee: Legal Tech & AI Champion | Legal Engineer at LinkSquares
  • As an experienced legal AI/data science attorney and developer, Eliana’s passion is machine learning and predictive analytics. 
  • Follow Eliana for insights on the legal tech scene and AI for legal – Eliana has a JD and MSDS, so she’s got you covered. 
• Danielle Sheer: Chief Legal and Compliance Officer at Commvault 
  • Danielle's perspective on team building, leadership, funding/IPO's and even more topics make her a truly unique and helpful LinkedIn follow.
  • Check out her recent accomplishments in accelerating deals faster at Commvault in this video 
• Information Technology Audit and Governance Group: LinkedIn's largest group focused on all things related to all areas of GRC, information technology audit, compliance, cybersecurity, quality assurance, business continuity, disaster recovery, IT governance, fraud, risk, and forensics. 

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