Fractional & Interim General Counsel
Senior in-house legal cover for growing UK businesses, ongoing or for as long as you need it.
Fractional or Interim: Which Do You Need?
Fractional General Counsel
Ongoing, part-time cover with no end date in mind. A set amount of time each month on a committed term, for businesses that need a senior lawyer of their own but not a full-time one. More on fractional General Counsel for scale-ups.
Interim General Counsel
Cover for a defined period, when your General Counsel or senior lawyer is away, leaving, or not yet hired. It runs for as long as the gap lasts, then hands back cleanly.
Not sure which fits? Most businesses know within one short call.
If you already have an in-house team and need extra senior capacity alongside it, see fractional counsel for in-house legal teams.
Interim General Counsel Cover
When Businesses Need It
- Your General Counsel is on parental leave or long-term sick leave.
- Your only lawyer has resigned and you're recruiting.
- You've decided to hire your first General Counsel but need cover while you search.
- A transaction, restructure or dispute needs senior legal leadership now, for a set period.
How It Runs
An agreed number of days a week for an agreed period, on a fixed fee. I pick up the live matters, work to your existing processes, and keep a clear record of what's been done, so the handover at the end is as smooth as the start.
When the Gap Closes
When your General Counsel returns or a permanent hire starts, I hand over properly. If you're recruiting, I can help shape the role and the job description too.
What the Role Covers
The contracts that matter.
Customer, supplier, partnership and technology agreements, drafted and negotiated, especially the ones with real exposure. See commercial contracts.
A contracting set-up that scales.
Templates, playbooks and sign-off rules, so routine contracts stop needing a lawyer every time.
IP, technology and confidentiality.
Making sure the business owns what it thinks it owns. See IP, technology and confidentiality.
AI procurement and governance.
Which AI tools the business uses, on what terms, and with what controls. See AI governance.
Due diligence readiness.
Getting contracts and IP in order before a funding round, a sale or an enterprise customer's procurement process.
Early-stage disputes.
Advising on a dispute and working to resolve it before court proceedings are issued.
Leadership support.
Being the person the leadership team rings before the decision, not after it.
Outside specialists.
When a matter needs a specialist, for example employment, data protection or advice on the buying and selling of a company, I'll say so, recommend an expert from my network and help you to brief them.
What It Doesn't Cover
I'm not licensed to conduct litigation, and I don't handle wills or probate. If something needs a specialist, I'll tell you upfront. The full detail is on How CHORD Works.
What an Engagement Looks Like
A UK division of a global energy business needed a lawyer of its own without adding headcount. Since early 2026 I've been its sole legal adviser, on a fixed monthly retainer with an agreed level of availability each week.
The work covers drafting and negotiating contracts for the sale and maintenance of large-scale energy equipment, and settling disputes arising from them. The fee is the same every month, so the business knows what legal will cost before the year starts.
How It Starts
1. A Short Call
What's going on, what's urgent, and what the business is trying to do next.
2. A Clear Scope and a Fixed Price
Agreed in writing before anything starts.
3. Learning the Business
Key contracts, how deals get done, where the risk sits, and who needs what from legal.
4. A Priorities List
Within the first few weeks, a short written view of the biggest legal risks and what to fix first. Then the ongoing work.
Fractional GC, a Full-Time Hire, a Law Firm or an ALSP?
| Compared on | Fractional GC (CHORD) | Full-Time In-House Hire | Law Firm | Resourcing Platform (ALSP) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Fixed monthly fee or fixed-fee project | Salary, benefits and recruitment fees | Usually by the hour | A day rate, marked up by the platform |
| Typical cost | ££££ | ££££ | ££££ | ££££ |
| Matches your workload | As required, flexing up or down | A full salary, whatever the workload | Only what you use | Flexes by assignment |
| Knows your business | Yes, and more so with every month | Yes | Matter by matter | Little, and resets each assignment |
| Time to start | Once scope is agreed | Months of recruitment, plus notice periods | Quickly, one matter at a time | Quickly |
| Who does the work | Me, every time | Your hire | Whoever is available | Whoever is free, via an account manager |
| Commitment | A 3, 6 or 12-month term, or a single project | Permanent | Per matter | Rolling or per assignment |
Fractional GC (CHORD)
Full-Time In-House Hire
Law Firm
Resourcing Platform (ALSP)
£ is a general guide to typical cost, not a quote.
What Clients Say
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between a fractional and an interim General Counsel?
A fractional General Counsel is ongoing, part-time cover with no end date in mind. An interim General Counsel fills a specific gap, such as parental leave or a recruitment gap, for a defined period. CHORD offers both.
How long does interim General Counsel cover last?
As long as the gap. That might be a few months of parental leave cover or the time it takes to recruit a permanent General Counsel. The period and the days each week are agreed upfront and can be extended if needed.
Can an interim General Counsel help us hire a permanent one?
Yes. I can help define the role, write the job description and hand over properly once your new General Counsel starts.
How much does a fractional General Counsel cost?
It depends on how much time the business needs. CHORD works on a fixed monthly fee for a committed term of 3, 6 or 12 months, with longer terms costing less per month, or a fixed fee for a single project. You'll have an exact price before any work starts.
How many hours a month do I get?
That's agreed upfront, based on what the business needs. When a deal lands and you need more, hours flex up at your term rate. Unused hours in a quiet month roll forward within the limits in your engagement terms.
When does a business need a fractional General Counsel?
Usually when a deal or a deadline forces the question. A contract with more exposure than usual, a funding round with due diligence, a customer's procurement team asking for things you don't have, a dispute, or simply more contracts than the founder or finance lead can safely handle.
Can a fractional General Counsel replace our law firm?
For most day-to-day commercial work, yes. Litigation and specialist areas still need a specialist firm, and part of the role is knowing when that's the case and making sure you're not paying for more than you need.
Do you work remotely or on site?
Mostly remotely. I'm based in Warwickshire and work with clients across the UK, and I'll come on site when it's useful, particularly early on.
How is confidentiality handled?
As a solicitor I owe you a professional duty of confidentiality, and the engagement terms include confidentiality obligations too. Confidential information only goes into tools that are properly secured, and it is never used to train external AI models.
Is CHORD Legal a regulated law firm?
No. I'm individually regulated by the SRA as a solicitor. CHORD Legal is a legal consultancy, a recognised model that keeps overheads, and fees, down.
Find Out Whether Fractional or Interim Cover Fits Your Business
Based in Warwickshire, working with clients nationally.
Call: +44 7783 534486 · Email: cam@chord.legal · Connect on LinkedIn →
“CHORD” and “Chord Legal” are trading names of CHORD Legal Limited, registered in England and Wales, company number 14820174. Registered office: 124 City Road, London, EC1V 2NX. Cam Gow is a solicitor regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (“SRA”) (SRA ID 453794). CHORD Legal Limited is not authorised or regulated by the SRA. This is a structure the SRA's rules expressly permit.
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