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Company: Gilbane Building Company Q:
Describe your background and the path you took to becoming in-house counsel.
A: I started at Dorsey & Whitney in Minneapolis right out of law school. After a short stint in the IP group, I transitioned into the litigation practice group and eventually narrowed my focus on real estate (easements, commercial landlord-tenant, and title disputes) and construction claims. I enjoy guiding clients through disputes, but I also enjoy finding ways of problem solving outside the bounds and procedural rules of litigation/court processes, including what clients can do on the front end long before disputes come up. With this, I started considering the idea of going in-house and made the leap in mid-2022.
Q: How does working in-house compare or differ from firm life?
A: Working in-house has been nice, because there is continuity working with the same business units and teams across projects every day. When I practiced at Dorsey, especially as a litigator, I would handle a matter that was a snapshot in time. It was often an issue that happened in the past, while my client's business continued onward without me. As a big picture thinker, I enjoy getting to see the day-to-day progress in my role as operations support, which in turn, allows me to develop more tailored solutions, because I better understand the long-term goals.
Q: How and when do you use outside counsel? In what kinds of matters?
A: Gilbane generally uses outside counsel for litigation and major claims and as an extension of the legal department to look into more nuanced or complex questions. The day-to-day questions concerning business operations, all contract reviews, and minor pre-litigation disputes, such as letters and preliminary mediation, we typically handle in-house. But we look to outside counsel to manage the litigation process and also provide valuable insight on local laws and standards of practice given that Gilbane does work all over the country.
Q: What kind of work does your company do? Do you focus on specific sectors, states, or regions?
A: Gilbane is a global, comprehensive construction and facilities-related solutions firm. While we have the capacity to deliver high-quality facilities in any sector and all over the county, we shine and have deep experience in the K-12, Higher Education, Life Sciences, and Advanced Electronics sectors.
Q:
What are some of your interests or hobbies?
A: Anything that gets my body up and moving is great. I do lots of walking with my pup, yoga, hiking, and slow-pitch softball. I've been playing softball since I was eight and played in college. I also enjoy hanging out with my family here in California, which has been nice after living away from home for many years.
Q: What qualities or characteristics do you look for in outside counsel?
A: I look for clear communication, initiative, being proactive rather than just reactive, and creative problem solving. I like updates and a team that is not afraid to challenge something we are doing to make it better.
Q: What is your biggest pet peeve about working with outside counsel?
A: Permitting insufficient time to review and approve a filing or substantive correspondence, especially if the deadline has been on the calendar for a while. For most things, we need a few business days because we often have to go to the project teams to confirm facts and figures, so we need time to be able to do that and make changes, if necessary, without being pressed for time.
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