Insights from 3M GC Ivan Fong about Embracing Opportunities

Ivan Fong, senior vice president for legal affairs and general counsel of 3M Company, started in an unusual place for an attorney: as a chemical engineer with undergraduate and graduate degrees from MIT. He attended Stanford Law School and subsequently built a distinguished career from a big law partnership to senior in-house positions in some of America’s finest legal departments. These positions were all punctuated by stints of public service at the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. But what advice does he have to offer lawyers looking to build a successful in-house career?

In this episode of In-House Legal, Randy Milch interviews Fong about the course of his legal career, how his time in public service set him up to go in-house at General Electric, and how he charted his course internally at such a big company.

Topics include:


Fong’s decision to switch from engineering to legal

Clerkships for Judge Abner J. Mikva and Justice Sandra Day O’Connor

Why he started in big law after law school

Choosing the right company over a specific subject matter

Appellate work, ecommerce, and patent litigation

Fong’s position as Deputy Associate Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice

Legal doctrines concerning unlawful conduct and the internet

Moving in-house at GE and then becoming GC at Cardinal Health

Doing pro bono work as a general counsel