FractionalQuestAsk about this roleSign inBook a call

Interim General counsel services · Head of legal

Interim General Counsel Services · Interim Head Of Legal Services

Interim general counsel services put an interim general counsel into your business full-time for a fixed term.

The general counsel is the company’s senior lawyer: contracts, disputes, regulation, governance and the management of external lawyers.

This page sets out what the service covers, when interim is the right shape, and how we come back with a shortlist of 3–5, each with rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Submit a brief → →

How a brief runswhat we undertake

  1. 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
  2. 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
  3. 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
  4. 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
  5. 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief

Shortlist3–5

Full-time, fixed term
Commitment

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire an interim general counsel

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Interim General Counsel Services candidates, their day rates and availability.

  1. 0115 minutes, video or phone
  2. 02We scope the role and the days a week
  3. 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
  4. 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Prefer email? Use the booking page →

Pick a day that suits · live availability

01/ the role

What interim general counsel services cover

An interim general counsel works full-time for a fixed term to cover a gap, lead a change or see a transaction through, then hands over.

Interim executives are hired for immediate impact: they expect to take decisions from the first week.

The service covers commercial contracts and negotiation, legal risk, disputes and litigation strategy, regulatory compliance and governance, and company secretarial and board matters and managing external law firms and legal spend.

If you are weighing the options, the same seat is also bought as fractional general counsel services, part-time general counsel services, outsourced general counsel services, or permanent general counsel search.

What the seat does day to day is set out in the general counsel role explained; executives looking for this work can see current general counsel roles.

02/ scope

What is in scope — and what is not

In scope

Commercial contracts and negotiation; legal risk, disputes and litigation strategy; regulatory compliance and governance; company secretarial and board matters; managing external law firms and legal spend.

Not in scope

Specialist advice in niche areas and court representation usually come from external firms, directed by the general counsel.

General counsel or a neighbouring seat?

An in-house general counsel knows the business and directs the work; an external firm brings depth on a specific matter.

Most businesses need both.

The scoping test: write down the three decisions you need the general counsel to own in the next ninety days. If you cannot, you are not ready to brief.

03/ the route

Fractional, interim or permanent?

Four taps. The answer names the route for the seat and the page that covers it.

How much of the week does the work fill?
Is there a fixed end or a programme?
Does the seat sit on the board for years?
Is the need now, or can it wait for a search?

The route · Fractional

A fractional general counsel services.

The work fills part of the week, so buy the days it needs.

A fractional general counsel services holds the seat on agreed days for as long as the seat is needed, and works for other clients on the rest.

The fractional general counsel services routeTalk it through

04/ comparison

Four ways to buy a general counsel fractional, interim, part-time or permanent

The same general counsel seat can be filled four ways. The difference is commitment, contract and how long you need it.

FractionalInterimPart-timePermanent
CommitmentDays a week, ongoingFull-time, fixed termSet days each weekFull-time, open-ended
Usual contractContract for services, often via the executive’s companyDay-rate contract for the mandateOften pro-rata employment; sometimes a contractorEmployment contract
Clients at onceA small portfolioOneOneOne
Best whenYou need general counsel judgement every week, not every dayYou need full-time cover or a change led nowYou want the same person on the same days for the long termThe seat is full-time work for years
ExitNotice period, or convert to permanentHand-over at the end of the mandateEmployment noticeResignation or redundancy

05/ timing

When interim general counsel services are the right call

Three situations where the interim shape beats the alternatives.

Scenario 01

Gap

Legal without a lead

An interim general counsel keeps contracts, disputes and board matters moving.

Scenario 02

Transaction

A deal

An acquisition, sale or financing needs full-time senior legal leadership in-house.

Scenario 03

Regulation

Regulatory change

An interim general counsel leads the response to new regulation or a regulator’s inquiry.

06/ vetting

How we vet the shortlist

Five stages: qualification, mandate fit, reference deep-dive, shortlist and analysis, kick-off.

  1. 01

    Qualification screen

    Verify Interim General Counsel Services tenure, sector context and stage fit.

    SOURCING
  2. 02

    Mandate fit

    Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.

    MATCHING
  3. 03

    Reference deep-dive

    We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.

    VERIFY
  4. 04

    Shortlist

    Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

    SHORTLIST OF 3–5

07/ how it runs

How an interim general counsel engagement runs from brief to hand-over

Brief.

You tell us the scope, the start date and the length of the mandate, and what success looks like in the first ninety days.

A clear brief names the decisions the general counsel will own.

Shortlist.

We come back with 3–5 interim general counsels against the brief, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

Mandate.

The interim general counsel starts with a written mandate and a review point.

Interim executives are judged on the outcome of the mandate, and the good ones plan their hand-over from the first week.

Hand-over.

When the mandate ends the interim general counsel hands over to the permanent appointment, often having helped to choose them.

08/ before you sign

Before you buy interim general counsel services three checks

Standing.

Check professional standing and references before you sign: regulates solicitors in England and Wales, including those working in-house; see the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Status.

Agree how the engagement will run in practice, because that decides its IR35 status; HMRC’s guidance for clients sets out who makes the status determination.

Scope.

Write down what is out of scope.

Specialist advice in niche areas and court representation usually come from external firms, directed by the general counsel.

09/ questions

Interim General Counsel services FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in an interim general counsel.

The general counsel seat’s full scope: commercial contracts and negotiation; legal risk, disputes and litigation strategy; regulatory compliance and governance; company secretarial and board matters; managing external law firms and legal spend. Specialist advice in niche areas and court representation usually come from external firms, directed by the general counsel.
It depends on scope, sector and days. We do not publish a band for this seat because no source we can verify publishes one; each candidate on our shortlist states their own rate, so you compare like with like.
An interim general counsel works full-time for a fixed term, usually to cover a gap or lead a change. A fractional general counsel works a standing number of days each week, often for several clients, for as long as the business needs it.
External legal bills rising, contracts signed without review, a regulator taking an interest, a transaction ahead, or a board needing a legal voice in the room. Interim is the right shape when the work is full-time and time-bound.
It depends on how the engagement runs in practice — control, substitution and whether the general counsel is part and parcel of your organisation. For medium and large private-sector clients, the client makes the status determination. Each candidate on our shortlist states their IR35 position.
You brief us on the scope, the days and the start date. We come back with a shortlist of 3–5 interim general counsels, each with day rate or salary, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

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.

Book a call →Submit a brief

10/ related

Keep exploring

Adjacent roles and reading.

/general-counsel-servicesAll general counsel services

Fractional, interim, part-time and permanent, side by side.

/fractional-general-counsel-servicesFractional General Counsel Services

An ongoing weekly commitment.

/part-time-general-counsel-servicesPart-Time General Counsel Services

Set days each week.

/what-does-a-general-counsel-doThe general counsel role explained

What the seat does day to day.

/vettingHow we vet

The five-stage process behind every shortlist.

Executive servicesGeneral Counsel services hubThe general counsel seat, fractionalIR35 guide

For hiring managers

Bring the brief. We bring the shortlist.

Sign up now →Book a call

  1. A shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position
  2. Fractional, interim, part-time, temporary or permanent — and non-executive directors
  3. Every candidate through our five-stage vetting
  4. Your briefs and their candidates, in one room
Fractional Quest logo — how to brief interim general counsel services, interim general counsel services