When Kathleen Premo served as a general counsel, there were times in which she wished she could quickly tap outside expertise to help her team manage an array of projects, including those involving specialty legal issues.

Now at the Epstein Becker & Green law firm, Premo is a member of its General Counsel Services practice featuring former in-house professionals that aid legal department leaders with a variety of tasks. This assistance includes helping companies enter new markets, launch new products and undertake regulatory change projects.

The growing Epstein Becker & Green GC team with nearly 40 attorneys also offers mentoring to new general counsel and can plug gaps when a legal department is short-staffed.

The approach of offering outside general counsel services is one other law firms are employing as well to secure business from companies and organizations across industries.

“In this model, our clients are able to access individuals who have a true sense of what it takes to serve a business client from the inside and can support those legal teams and those business executives in a business-forward manner,” Premo told Legal Dive.

Helping clients grow

Clients in growth mode are one of the biggest users of Epstein Becker & Green’s GC Services practice, according to Premo.

This strong demand has come amid the economy’s rebound from the initial steep downturn sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Premo’s team helps ensure clients have contracting processes and controls in place to expand. The firm also frequently provides analysis about the regulatory implications of businesses entering new jurisdictions.

“We're seeing a lot of situations where companies, whether they're PE-backed or not, are growing and they are looking for more sophisticated high-level talent that can give them both very practical guidance on what needs to be built out, but also the deeply sophisticated regulatory guidance and the M&A talent to get to get the job done,” Premo said. 

For example, Premo is helping one client acquire numerous health care practices across the U.S.

To ensure smooth acquisitions, Premo said she has built a multifaceted team to assist the national healthcare client with a variety of responsibilities, including handling finance and other due diligence work.

Lawyers on the Epstein Becker & Green team, which includes members with transactions experience, are also making sure the integrations with the new health care practices go smoothly and the post-deal structures are properly set up for the client. 

“It gives them the peace of mind, trust and security to make those big leaps in business knowing they've got somebody that has their back that's partnering with them,” said Premo, who is based in Florida.

Mentoring GCs

Epstein Becker & Green also frequently gets tapped to support GCs who are new to the role or are just starting to build out their legal teams.

In some instances, the law firm’s attorneys may have worked with the company far longer than the GC, so they can provide key institutional knowledge, as well as general guidance about how to operate as GC.

Premo’s time serving as GC of JSA Healthcare Corporation, as well as her work as in-house counsel at both Eckerd Pharmacies and Shriners Hospitals for Children, helps inform the advice she provides newer general counsel.

“Our clients might be able to come in with somebody who isn't as experienced as I am, and I can provide a little of my seasoning to help guide them and mentor them,” she said.

As an example, Premo shared that she and her team are supporting an organization in which the GC was promoted from a different role and needs to build out her in-house team.

“This individual is working to develop job descriptions and to start the recruiting process but still has some really mission critical things that need to get done right now,” Premo said. “We’re partnering to support her team until her growth vehicle is fully developed so that she can support it on her own.”

Specialized advice

If a new GC or another client has needs that extend into specialized areas of the law, the GC Services practice can tap expertise from other areas of Epstein Becker and Green. This could include guidance on antitrust or employment law issues, according to Premo. 

“The business intel that we already have from working side-by-side with our clients allows us to get really succinct, thoughtful, cost-effective and quick responses for these clients when specialty issues come up as well,” she said.

Additionally, the law firm’s affiliated EBG Advisors provides strategy and management consultancy services to clients who desire such assistance.

The steady demand from clients for advice and support about a wide array of topics has sparked Epstein Becker and Green to keep expanding its GC Services practice.

The practice now features more than a dozen attorneys who left Epstein Becker and Green to accept in-house roles and have returned to the firm in recent years to support clients with the skills they learned.

Overall, the GC Services team includes attorneys who have served as general counsel or assistant general counsel for medical groups, hospital systems, health plans, pharmacies, and companies in the health-care IT, research and pharmaceutical industries, according to Premo. 

“We are fortunate to continue to attract and grow our ranks with experienced former in-house attorneys,” she said.