A panel made up of Paul Hoferer, Vice President and General Counsel for the Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Company, Theodore Horton-Billard, Division Head for Farmers Insurance Group, Judy C. Norris, Vice President & Senior Corporate Counsel for Blockbuster, Inc., and Peter Myers, Senior Vice President & Group Counsel for Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., discussed what their corporations look for when hiring appellate counsel.

Each corporate client's needs are unique, however, the panelist agreed on some general principles: corporate counsel often look for appellate counsel at the very beginning litigation, they will retain appellate counsel to provide immediate help to trial counsel in order to preserve the record. In smaller cases, however, corporate counsel may wait until the need for appellate counsel arises. Corporate counsel are continually mindful of the "David v. Goliath" syndrome. The size of the retained firm, or prominence of the individual lawyer, may depend on the size of the firm on the other side, or reputation of opposing counsel handling the case.

Corporate counsel must feel comfortable with the lawyer they hire, and there must be a good mix with existing trial counsel. Sometimes, it is the individual lawyer who draws the attention of the corporate client. Some corporate counsel are comfortable using appellate practitioners within the same firm as the retained trial counsel. They also make it a practice to use local counsel whenever possible. However, national firms are used when addressing national or global issues.

Corporate counsel consider the practical or political ramifications that litigation will have, not only on the corporation itself, but also on the industry as a whole. Corporate counsel look for lawyers who are able to manipulate the presentation of the case in a way most favorably to the corporate client's area of practice within a particular jurisdiction. As a result, they desire specialists who know the judicial panels within each applicable region, who are able to tailor the briefs to suit the particular needs and agendas of sitting justices.

Corporate counsel must decide quickly who to hire. Telephone calls and letters received after the case is in the paper are too late. Therefore, you must establish your contacts in advance. Attend meetings and conferences where corporate counsel are present and introduce yourself. Follow up personal introductions with letters and phone calls.

Corporate counsel sometimes request proposals for representation. When they do, they are looking for lawyers in the particular community who meet their needs, who are customer -service oriented, and who are capable business partners to help them manage the litigation and its impact on the business. Corporate counsel look for firms that can deliver service in a pinch or time crunch. They want honest, straightforward appraisals of the merits of the case and proposed plans of action, with information on all potential adverse ramifications of certain actions and a cost benefit analysis.

Corporate counsel are more likely to employ outside counsel that have knowledge of corporate employment policies, and corporate political or social business outlook. They appreciate outside counsel who have researched the case and potential issues well ahead of the initial interview. They want lawyers who are able, based upon experience, to give statistical probability for prospective court rulings and an explanation of how the judicial panel hearing the case may decide it. Lawyers who are knowledgeable about trends in law and apply them to applicable facts that affect the corporation will be retained.

Once retained, there is an expectation that outside appellate counsel will be able to prepare a budget of the potential cost of litigation, and deliver timely status reports. Corporate counsel are looking for a team approach. Some are very hands-on and require extensive care and feeding. They expect outside counsel to deliver draft briefs well in advance of due dates and to participate in moot court rehearsals of oral arguments. Corporate counsel would also like to be notified of any extension or other procedural requests well in advance of their making just in case such a request may have an overall corporate or business impact.

Intercorporate communications, issues of press communications, global issues and institutional issues necessitate regular reports. However, all status reports and communication should be short, clear and precise.

On the other hand, corporate counsel fire outside counsel who fail to follow direction, who submit poor quality legal work, who have frequent billing disputes, who have inadequate reporting, who take cases from adverse corporate clients, who breach the chain of command, who fail to return e-mails or phone calls, who fail to give drafts of briefs well ahead of time, who are poor communicators, and who do not get the results the client expects.