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By Murray Gottheil | July 20, 2024
In my heyday of clients and billings, my largest client asked me to handle an outsourcing transaction. I would hazard a guess that had it been completed, it would have made quite a ripple in the business community.
A Bay Street firm was the client’s corporate counsel. The client may have been my biggest client, but we handled only a sliver of their legal work.
The transaction involved outsourcing the warehouse, transportation, and logistics services for a national chain of stores. The outsource provider would lease warehouses across the country, hire the employees, operate the inventory management system, and contract with shippers to transport goods by land, air, and sea. If the system failed in any significant manner, the impact on our client’s business could be devastating.
I was a suburban business lawyer with at least an echo of impostor syndrome left from my early days, so of course I questioned why the client had turned to me instead of to their Bay Street firm, which had specialists in outsourcing.
But then I started thinking. This was a sophisticated client. They used many lawyers and they had a reason for choosing me.
I thought about the fees that this file would generate. I would say no if I had to, but it had to be for a good reason – not my own insecurity.
Finally, I thought about what I brought to the table. As a business lawyer, I had general experience in many areas, including commercial leasing, technology contracts, employment law, trademarks, and even a bit of outsourcing. Some of my experience was dated, but I had partners to lean on who were experts in several of these areas.
Most importantly, and probably the reason that the client wanted me on the file, was that I worked hard, always delivered, and was pretty good at figuring out what was important and what was not. I was the type of lawyer who measured risk and got things done, instead of making mountains out of molehills.
I took on the project. On day one, I asked my associate to find everything that had ever been written on outsourcing transactions and create a list of issues for us to be aware of.
We worked on it for months. The agreements were finalized and ready to sign. Then one side backed out for reasons that were never divulged, but likely had nothing to do with the transaction itself.
I never did make it into Report on Business. But I learned a lot about outsourcing transactions and a bit about my own psychology.
I am a firm believer that lawyers should never take on matters that they are not capable of handling. I have seen too many idiots working on matters that they should have stayed clear of.
At the same time, it is important not to underestimate your ability to learn and grow. The legal profession is full of people who will make you doubt yourself. Ignore them.
Murray is a happily retired lawyer who lives in the country, drives a pick-up truck, writes, teaches and mentors. You can reach him at murray@murraygottheil.com or see what he is up to at lawanddisorderinc.com.
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