ACC Australia National Conference 2019

The ACC Australia National Conference is Australia's largest gathering of in-house counsel. It brings together experts in the legal, technology, mental health and wellbeing fields to share keynotes, masterclasses, panel discussions and workshops to address current technical legal topics alongside much needed soft skills.

Our team attended the ACC National Conference from Wednesday 13th November to Friday 15th November. It was terrific to attend the conference again this year and be a part of the forward-thinking discussions surrounding the future of the in-house legal industry.

Applying a more strategic lens to digital disruption was a key theme of the ACC National Conference this year, with former CEO of Facebook ANZ Stephen Scheeler’s keynote speaking to how artificial intelligence could help remove some of the biggest points of friction between in-house legal teams and other business units. Deputy Chair of the ABC Kirstin Ferguson then called passionately for bolder leadership in corporate counsel.

Plexus CEO Andrew Mellett took the ACC stage to outline the most common legal transformation traps and how to avoid them, telling the audience that working harder has failed, and now it’s time to work smarter. You can view his presentation here.

Three days at the ACC National Conference made it clear that the future of in-house legal is rapidly approaching. 98% of General Counsel recognise that transformation is critical for future success, yet only 27.6% are actively implementing a strategy. In order for in-house legal teams to deliver more for less, they will need to overcome their ‘tomorrow fallacy’ and make the first move.