Fractional general counsel · Fractional GC · The top legal seat, part of the week
Fractional general counsel · what one does, what one costs, when you need one
A fractional general counsel is a senior in-house lawyer who holds the general counsel role for an agreed part of the week, on an ongoing basis, often for more than one company. They advise the CEO and board, own the company’s legal risk and manage its outside law firms, without a full-time appointment.
This page explains the role: the week, the cost, and how it compares with an interim or full-time GC. To hire a fractional general counsel or to browse fractional general counsel jobs, go to the hub. We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent legal leaders.
How a brief runswhat we undertake
- 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
- 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
- 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
- 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
- 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief
Shortlist3–5
In the press
Law Society Gazette (Ireland) Fractional legal roles grow in appeal – US survey · 28 Sep 2026
Reports a US survey of lawyers moving from the partner track into flexible and fractional legal work, and of legal departments using more of it. It is the shift that makes a senior in-house lawyer available for part of the week.
Fast Company 16 leaders on when fractional C-suite hires make sense · 24 Jun 2026
Senior leaders disagree on when a fractional C-suite hire makes sense: many back one for a defined mandate, others want a full-time owner for work that needs daily attention. A useful test before deciding how many days the legal seat needs.
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional general counsel
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with general counsel candidates, their day rates and availability.
- 0115 minutes, video or phone
- 02We scope the role and the days a week
- 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
- 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Pick a day that suits · live availability
On the board · last 3 months
Fractional general counsel jobs on the board
Live general counsel and senior legal roles
Fractional recruiting starts with the brief, not the CV pile. Send a general counsel brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five candidates, each through five-stage vetting.
01/ the role
What is a fractional general counsel?
A fractional general counsel is a general counsel engaged for part of the week, on an ongoing basis. They hold the top legal seat in full: the company’s legal adviser at leadership and board level, the owner of its legal risk, and the person who instructs and manages outside lawyers. “Fractional” describes the days, not the seniority. Many people shorten it to fractional GC.
Where the fractional general counsel is a solicitor, they bring their regulation with them. The SRA’s guidance for organisations that employ in-house solicitors explains that solicitors are officers of the court and members of a regulated profession, personally accountable for their professional obligations, which is why they act as a check that the organisation behaves legally, fairly and ethically. You can confirm a solicitor’s status on the SRA’s Solicitors Register.
General counsel or fractional lawyer?
A general counsel owns the legal function and advises the board. A fractional lawyer or legal counsel does legal work, such as contracts or employment matters, usually reporting to someone else. If the gap is capacity rather than leadership, see fractional lawyer jobs. For the full seat, see what a general counsel does.
02/ scope
What a fractional general counsel does, week to week
The first month
A review of the company’s legal position: its key contracts and their terms, open disputes, regulatory exposure, intellectual property, employment documents, and what it spends on outside law firms. The output is a short list of risks in order and a plan for each.
A typical week
Negotiating the contracts that matter, advising the leadership team on decisions as they are made, managing disputes and the firms handling them, and keeping templates and policies current so the business can sign routine contracts without them. Days are agreed in the contract and change as the work does.
The board
Directors stay legally responsible for the company’s records, accounts and performance whoever they hire to help. A general counsel advises them on their duties, including the duty to promote the success of the company, which requires directors to have regard to matters such as the long-term consequences of decisions and the interests of employees.
Privilege
Legal advice from an in-house solicitor attracts privilege in the same way as other solicitors’ advice, but the SRA’s guidance on privilege in-house notes that its scope is more complex: who the client is, and which communications mix legal and business advice. A part-week GC needs clear channels for legal advice from the start.
03/ comparison
Fractional, interim, part-time or a full-time GC
Four ways to fill the top legal seat. They differ in the days, the length and the contract; choose by how much of the week the legal work fills.
04/ vetting
How we vet fractional general counsel
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify general counsel tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING - 02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING - 03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY - 04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5
05/ what it costs
What a fractional general counsel costs the published benchmarks
A fractional general counsel is paid a day rate for the days worked, or a monthly retainer for an agreed number of days. No source we trust publishes a fractional GC day rate we can cite, so we do not quote one; we set out each candidate’s day rate on the shortlist.
The nearest benchmarks: Robert Half’s 2026 guide puts a full-time general counsel at £127,000 to £173,250 (25th to 75th percentile), median £145,500 (Robert Half). Robert Walters, a recruiter, puts London in-house general counsel, head of legal and legal director roles at £160,000 to £330,000 permanent, and contract (PAYE) work at £800 to £1,100 a day.
Compare the total, not the rate: a fractional GC decides what goes to outside firms and what stays in, and a salary carries employer costs on top. Our general counsel salary page has the full benchmarks.
06/ fractional vs interim
Fractional vs interim general counsel part of the week, or all of it for a while
Fractional general counsel vs interim general counsel comes down to the days and the end date. A fractional GC holds the seat part of the week on an ongoing basis, and stays while the business needs senior legal judgement without a full-time week. An interim GC works full-time for a fixed period: covering a departure or parental leave, seeing a company through a transaction, a large dispute or a regulatory deadline, then leaving.
Robert Walters’ London contract rate of £800 to £1,100 a day (PAYE) is the nearest published benchmark for interim work. A part-time general counsel is different again: usually an employee of one company on reduced hours. For full-time cover, see interim general counsel jobs; for a permanent appointment, general counsel recruitment.
07/ when
When to hire a fractional general counsel the usual triggers
Companies usually look at when to hire a fractional general counsel once legal work has outgrown the founder, the finance director and ad hoc calls to a law firm, but does not yet fill a general counsel’s week. The common triggers:
Outside legal spend rising. Several firms instructed by different people, with no one senior deciding what goes out and what stays in.
Contracts holding up sales. Larger customers sending their own terms, and no one to negotiate them quickly and consistently.
A raise, a sale or an acquisition. Due diligence, warranties and disclosure, where someone needs to own the company’s side.
A regulator or a dispute. A new regulatory regime, or a claim that needs managing over months.
If the need is daily and has an end date, an interim GC fits better. When the work fills the week, most companies move to a full-time general counsel, sometimes the same person; we recruit that permanent hire too.
08/ hiring
How to hire one the short version
Write down what the GC must own in the next twelve months, who they report to, which outside firms they will manage and how many days that takes. Check a solicitor’s status on the SRA register, ask for in-house experience in a business like yours, and take references from the CEOs or boards they advised. The Law Society’s In-house Network has guidance on the in-house role for both sides.
Settle the contract before the start date. Where the GC works through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply; status depends on how the engagement runs in practice, and a medium or large client makes the determination (HMRC’s guidance for clients). Our IR35 guide explains the tests.
To hire a fractional general counsel through us, send the brief. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate or pay, availability and IR35 position set out, after our five-stage vetting.
09/ questions
Fractional general counsel FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional general counsel.
Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5
Bring the brief. We architect the team.
A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
