As an in-house legal adviser, Roberta Schuhalter Karp used to feel she had to justify her presence at corporate social responsibility meetings to her colleagues. "I would say: 'I'm not wearing my legal hat now - I just have a broader role within the company,' " says the vice-president of corporate affairs and general counsel at Liz Claiborne, the clothing company. "I haven't had to do that for several years."
Ms Karp is not alone in having broadened her role. As corporate liability expands to include issues from breaches of labour practice codes in developing countries to concerns over obesity in the west, senior lawyers are regular participants in meetings to discuss them.
"Companies have their in- house lawyers with them at the table as part of the team," says Phillip Rudolph, partner in the corporate social responsibility practice at Foley Hoag, a Washington DC-based law firm. "Because, depending on the role the lawyer plays and the value they are perceived to add to the management team, they can be strategic thought leaders."
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