What is a General Counsel, and what does he do? That's a common question, so let me explain by starting with an analogy. An Internal Medicine or Family Practice Doctor performs a similar role in medicine. Those doctors handle the "whole patient", and are the general treating doctors. If a specialist is needed, they know where to find them and they monitor what the specialist does.
In business law, the general counsel performs the same role. Every day the small businessman has a variety of legal issues to deal with, some small that he/she handles and others that require the assistance of an attorney. Perhaps it is a lease problem, or a building purchase/sale, or a contract or, unfortunately, litigation. Maybe the owner wants to start a business but doesn't know the steps. Perhaps the owners don't get along and need a "business divorce", or have a name that they want to trademark, or they are negotiating with a bank or investor and need assistance. The issues are endless and as broad or narrow as the business. The owner knows how to run the business, they generally don't have the knowledge or experience to handle these legal matters.
The point of all this is that the client explains the situation and the attorney's job is to identify the issues to be resolved, recommend solutions, and on the agreement of the client, to implement them. Sometimes that means bringing in a specialist, but generally not. If a specialist is needed, the attorney will find them, perhaps negotiate the fees, and monitor the efforts for the best benefit and the least cost, for the owner.
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