Buchan Love ON: The In-House Lawyer’s Mindset & How to Transit from Practice to In-House

Shulin Lee chats with Buchan Love to talk about the in-house lawyer’s mindset. After 11 years in practice, he successfully transited from law firm to in-house. He very quickly learnt how to balance competing interests of being a legal counsel and a business enabler. He shares how as a senior lawyer, he earned the trust of the business, managed a global legal team as well as built up the careers of other lawyers. Buchan is a well-respected Head of Legal, Regional Counsel and Executive leader. With over 20 years of experience working in Asia, in regional and global roles, Buchan has a great track record of providing C-Suite stakeholders with operationally realistic solutions and prudent governance, enabling sustainable reputation and growth. As a commercial lawyer, he’s highly experienced in providing practical but ethical solutions in heavily regulated and highly sensitive industries, such as in Life Sciences, Pharmaceuticals and FMCG. Buchan Love - https://www.linkedin.com/in/buchan-love/What to listen for:0:00  Intro2:40  Start of his legal journey as an M&A lawyer4:52  Feeling of being “trapped” - when at the crossroads6:50  Seeking a pathway out of private practice.9:26  Seizing the chance to do a client secondment11:00  His transition to In-house13:40  Initial culture shock16:40  Huge adjustment in mindset needed19:30  Dealing with the pressure of the business looking to you for all the answers20:45  Thought process before moving in-house22:20  Realization that you’re part of the business too.27:40  Key challenge of an in-house lawyer31:13  Deposits into the “trust bank” with small wins37:25  Having a business owner mentality39:01  Transiting to work in the Singapore market41:35  Managing a global legal team47:14  Philosophy in building and recruiting a team53:29  Cashing out early and his return to NZ.54:50  How Covid made him re-assess his priorities1:03:05  Advice to senior lawyers looking to move in-house1:07:58  Tips for junior lawyers looking to move in-house1:12:53  What he would have done differently in his career1:15:16  Evolution of legal industry1:22:00  Quick personal questionsPeople mentioned on the show:Matthew Chapple - https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-chapple-ab83316John Gao - https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-gao-289a722/Watch the  video at https://youtu.be/JtxWOv77-9gConnect with me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/shulinlee/More on the podcast - https://www.AfterTheBar.com.sg