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Legal Strategies C FOs must strike a balance in risk management, protecting their organizations without spending excessively on legal. A key question when trying to thread this needle is whether legal partners should work within the organization as general counsels, or be outside as legal consultants. “I’ve been on — and am currently on — both sides of the fence,” says Christopher Santomassimo, partner at Nicoll Davis & Spinella, LLP as well as general counsel for Agfa Corporation. “[Deciding which] depends on a combination of factors — there is no template based on something like company size or whether it is public or private.” In many cases, CFOs don’t have the legal expertise to confidently make decisions, even though they are the ones expected to serve as the organization’s gatekeeper regarding both regulatory and business risk. “Legal is one of those functions that CFOs are asked to outsource, but it can be a blind spot for them,” Santomassimo says. According to Santomassimo, the key is to develop a partnership with attorneys whom a company can trust and who can become “part of the fabric of your company and understand its pain.” Sever the relationship if you find you’ve partnered with a “‘no’ person,” who simply shoots down ideas out of concern they might expose the organization to risk. Instead, seek out a counsel who makes “business- friendly decisions,” and when he or she says no, suggests an alternative action. C 2nd QUARTER 2015 WWW.CFOSTUDIO.COM 43 Achieving Balance in Your Company’s Occupied Real Estate As your company evolves, achieving balance will be essential to its success. That’s true of the real estate your company occupies, too. Balancing transaction structure of multiple properties requires intelligent planning, not only of your company’s real estate, but more importantly based on your company’s operational, financial, M&A, and other objectives. At Real Estate Strategies Corporation, we plan and execute portfolio-wide and single transactions to enhance our clients’ real estate and their businesses. So, before you consider another transaction anywhere in North America, contact our CEO, Andrew Zezas, for a confidential discussion about how your company can achieve greater and more profitable balance in its occupied leased or owned real estate. Advisors to CFOs, General Counsels, Management, and Boards Licensed Real Estate Broker in Multiple States 732.868.0000 x111 KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER Visit www.CFOstudio.com to read more about the presenters