Assistant General Counsel, Conflicts

Who We Are

FTI Consulting is the leading global expert firm for organizations facing crisis and transformation. We work with many of the world’s top multinational corporations, law firms, banks and private equity firms on their most important issues to deliver impact that makes a difference. From resolving disputes, navigating crises, managing risk and optimizing performance, our teams respond rapidly to dynamic and complex situations.

At FTI Consulting, you’ll work side-by side with leaders who have shaped history, helping solve the biggest challenges making headlines today. From day one, you’ll be an integral part of a focused team where you can make a real impact. You’ll be surrounded by an open, collaborative culture that embraces diversity, recognition, professional development and, most importantly, you.

Are you ready to make your impact?

About The Role

FTI Consulting, Inc.’s Conflicts Department seeks an attorney to help oversee all conflicts issues, both legal and business, in connection with the processing and acceptance of its client engagements.  FTI is comprised of several different consulting disciplines that provide various litigation and non-litigation based consulting services. Together, FTI’s reporting segments submit more than 10,000 potential engagement requests per year, each of which must be analyzed for potential conflicts and client relationship sensitivities.  The conflicts attorney will play a key role in assessing these requests and helping to direct the team responsible for conducting an initial review of the potential new engagements.  This position reports to the Associate General Counsel for Conflicts.

The following experience and competencies are required for this role:

• Communication, Advocacy, and "Influencing" Skills. A key aspect of this role includes interacting with FTI's senior management and professionals, senior partners at law firms, and senior in-house lawyers within client organizations. A candidate must have excellent interpersonal, relationship building, and communication skills, as well as the ability to patiently and professionally deal with contentious points of view while driving toward resolution.
• Collaborative and Team-Oriented. A candidate must have experience working in teams and possess a collaborative working style. The role requires the individual to be culturally astute, organizationally savvy, adaptable, and capable of building consensus across a diverse range of stakeholders.
• Significant Litigation Experience. The candidate must have significant experience in litigation matters, either in private practice, an in-house legal department, government, or a combination of these entities.
• Superior intellect, with the ability to think critically and make clear and well-reasoned decisions in complex situations; ability to see and handle more than the legal issues of a project; strong, pragmatic business acumen with the ability to recognize the business consequences of legal advice; a strategic and innovative thinker who can bring value to his or her clients and find creative solutions to complex legal problems.
• Gravitas, judgment and self-confidence, but also humility, deference, respect for others, and willingness to work as a team member.
• Ability to manage crises deliberately and thoughtfully but also expeditiously and calmly. Grace under pressure.
• Personal credibility and the ability to articulate positions concisely and quickly, in a manner that is useful and easily understood by all stakeholders.

What You’ll Do

The role of the attorney in this process involves various responsibilities:

1. Review and Analysis of Conflicts Decisions.

All new engagements are submitted to FTI's Conflicts Group for review and analysis. A portion of these engagements raise significant client relationship issues and/or perceived conflicts; these submissions require consideration by Conflicts Department leadership and, in many cases, discussion among FTI's division heads and senior professionals.

This position will be responsible for helping to analyze and advise on challenging conflicts decisions and oversee the FTI’s conflicts and client acceptance processes. This includes working collaboratively with other staff within the Conflicts Group, which consists of approximately 18 analysts, attorneys, and other professionals located in the U.S. and internationally.  The attorney will help Conflicts Department leadership ensure that the conflicts process runs efficiently, while maintaining quality and consistency of the work.

This position will also help facilitate and intermediate discussions with division heads and senior professionals when conflicts issues arise. Generally, the senior business leaders are experienced with this process and collaborate with Conflicts Department staff in weighing various legal, commercial, and relationship concerns to determine whether to approve a given engagement. A critical element of this role is the need to be viewed by FTI professionals as an impartial arbiter who will thoughtfully weigh different points of view and then make a decision.

2. Interactions with Outside Counsel and Clients.

FTI has two major distribution channels: 1) referrals from law firms and 2) direct client relationships. The attorney will interact with law firms and clients on at least two levels.

First, FTI often is approached to provide services for one party in a litigation (e.g., ediscovery) or consulting engagement (e.g., merger analysis) where FTI is also already providing services to another party. Where the other role is public (i.e., an expert has been disclosed), the attorney may contact the engaging law firm or client, disclose the other role and explain the protective measures (ethical walls) that FTI will establish to protect the confidentiality of client information.

Second, should law firm or end clients have concerns about potential or perceived conflicts issues, the attorney will engage with that party to listen to and address their concerns in a professional and courteous, but steadfast, manner.  The attorney will also help support firm professionals and segment leadership when such issues arise, assisting them in delivering high quality client service while also managing any identified risks.

How You’ll Grow  

We are committed to investing and supporting you in your professional development and we have developed a range of programs focused on fostering leadership, growth, and development opportunities. We aim to promote continuous learning and individual skills development through on-the-job learning, self-guided professional development courses and certifications. You’ll be assigned a dedicated coach to mentor, guide and support you through regular coaching sessions and serve as an advocate for your professional growth.   

As you progress through your career at FTI Consulting, we offer tailored programs for critical professional milestones to ensure you are prepared and empowered to take on your next role. 

What You Will Need To Succeed  

Basic Qualifications:

• JD degree from an accredited law school.
• Minimum of 5+ years of broad-based legal experience.
• Excellent written and oral communication.
• Ability to interact with stakeholders and leaders in a highly matrixed yet collaborative organization.
• Experience in effectively developing and implementing dispute resolution strategies.
• Ability to travel to client and FTI Consulting office(s)

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FTI Consulting is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, protected veteran status, religion, physical or mental disability, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, or any other basis protected by law, ordinance, or regulation.