Have questions? Of course you do.
Our fractional in-house legal department is a new model. This FAQ makes it simple.
Contact Us
Have questions?
Of course you do.
Our fractional in-house legal department is a new model. This FAQ makes it simple.
Contact Us
Have questions?
Of course you do.
Our fractional in-house legal department is a new model. This FAQ makes it simple.
Contact Us
Frequently Asked Questions
The three most asked questions:
What is Unified Law?
A fractional in-house legal department—GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and legal assistants without the payroll
How are you different?
We are all in-house or government attorneys. We think like business partners, not vendors.
Who do you work with?
US tech companies, consumer brands, PE sponsors, and social enterprises.
Frequently Asked Questions
The three most asked questions:
What is Unified Law?
A fractional in-house legal department—GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and legal assistants without the payroll
How are you different?
We are all in-house or government attorneys. We think like business partners, not vendors.
Who do you work with?
US tech companies, consumer brands, PE sponsors, and social enterprises.
Frequently Asked Questions
The three most asked questions:
What is Unified Law?
A fractional in-house legal department—GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and legal assistants without the payroll
How are you different?
We are all in-house or government attorneys. We think like business partners, not vendors.
Who do you work with?
US tech companies, consumer brands, PE sponsors, and social enterprises.
Your questions, answered
Explore our comprehensive FAQ collection for details and helpful explanations. If your question isn’t answered here, our team is happy to help via chat or email support.
The Model
What a fractional legal department is and how it works.
Why not just hire a full-time GC?
Because stage fit matters more than credentials. A Fortune 500 GC may look great on paper but can crash in a growth company. Early-stage and mid-stage businesses need builders who thrive in chaos, move fast, and create systems from scratch—not optimizers trained for steady states. Our model flexes as you grow, so you’re never stuck with the wrong hire.
What's Builders vs Optimizers
Builders thrive in turbulence. They can work without infrastructure, make calls with incomplete information, and prioritize speed over perfection. Optimizers shine once systems are established—they polish, perfect, and scale. Both are valuable, but only if matched to the right growth stage. We give you builders when you’re building, and optimizers when you’re ready to refine.ck any question to view its answer instantly below.
What if my company is PE-backed?
Then you already know the pressures: compressed timelines, constant M&A, multiple stakeholders, fund-level scrutiny. We do too. That’s why our model includes attorneys who’ve been in the boardroom, run exits, and understand investor expectations from day one.
What is the top mistake in legal capacity building?
Hiring for resume instead of reality. The “perfect” Fortune 500 background often flames out in a $50M growth sprint. The GC who can build from scratch may not look as shiny on paper, but they’ll create order from chaos. Our model makes sure you don’t have to guess—we match the right team to your actual stage.
Why do so many funds end up hiring the wrong GC?
Because they hire for pedigree instead of pace. Credit funds bring in PE lawyers. Hedge funds poach investment bankers. Private debt platforms grab from law firms. Then they’re surprised when their legal team can’t keep up. Fit isn’t about prestige. It’s about matching the legal team to your fund’s actual metabolism.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Can a fractional model really keep up with market speed?
Absolutely. In fact, it’s built for it. One GC alone can’t cover regulatory oversight, daily deal flow, and investor demands. Our model gives you a team—senior GCs backed by specialists and support attorneys—so you’re not bottlenecked. You get legal leadership that moves at the same velocity as your investment strategy.
What’s the hidden cost of hiring the wrong full-time GC?
For growing companies, it’s often 18 months and $1.5–2.5M. That includes salary, severance, search fees, missed deals, and executive distraction. And that’s conservative—at enterprise scale, those costs easily double or triple.
Why is the cost so high?
Because the damage goes beyond compensation: • Missed opportunities. M&A delayed, expansions stalled, market windows missed. • Remediation. Weak contracts, compliance gaps, disputes, fractured teams. • Executive distraction. CEOs and CFOs pulled into legal firefighting instead of strategy. • Cultural damage. Talent walks, boards lose confidence, and business units sidestep legal.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Isn’t a full-time GC the better long-term solution?
Sometimes—once you’re big and stable enough. But most growth-stage and mid-market PE-backed companies don’t need a $400K+ GC plus staff. They need a legal function that drives returns, accelerates deals, and keeps them exit-ready. That’s exactly what Unified delivers—without the 18-month, multimillion-dollar gamble.
What are the signs a traditional GC hire might fail?
We see three patterns again and again: 1. The Big Law Savior Syndrome. Companies bring in a law firm partner expecting transformation. Nine months later, they’re stuck with slow systems and risk-averse decision-making. In-house work is about balancing speed and risk—not replicating law firm process. 2. The Industry Clone Trap. Hiring from the “exact same industry” sounds safe but often backfires. Industry clones can be locked into old ways of thinking and blind spots. The best GCs often come with adjacent experience and fresh perspective. 3. The Consensus Hire Warning. Everyone likes them, but no one’s excited. They don’t challenge assumptions. Great legal leaders press on sacred cows and ask hard questions. If the hire feels like the “safe bet,” it may end in mediocrity.
How does Unified Law solve these problems?
Instead of gambling on one hire, you get a fractional in-house department that already checks all the boxes: • Former GCs who know how to lead with business judgment • Builders who thrive in controlled chaos • Teams that simplify and accelerate instead of over-engineering • Perspective across industries, not just one narrow lane
Why is this better than just hiring a single GC?
Because with one person, you risk misalignment that costs 18 months and millions in lost value. With Unified, you get a team that flexes with your stage, your deals, and your goals—no guesswork, no costly pivots.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Pricing
Subscription, hourly, and equity-for-services.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Your questions, answered
Explore our comprehensive FAQ collection for details and helpful explanations. If your question isn’t answered here, our team is happy to help via chat or email support.
The Model
What a fractional legal department is and how it works.
Why not just hire a full-time GC?
Because stage fit matters more than credentials. A Fortune 500 GC may look great on paper but can crash in a growth company. Early-stage and mid-stage businesses need builders who thrive in chaos, move fast, and create systems from scratch—not optimizers trained for steady states. Our model flexes as you grow, so you’re never stuck with the wrong hire.
What's Builders vs Optimizers
Builders thrive in turbulence. They can work without infrastructure, make calls with incomplete information, and prioritize speed over perfection. Optimizers shine once systems are established—they polish, perfect, and scale. Both are valuable, but only if matched to the right growth stage. We give you builders when you’re building, and optimizers when you’re ready to refine.ck any question to view its answer instantly below.
What if my company is PE-backed?
Then you already know the pressures: compressed timelines, constant M&A, multiple stakeholders, fund-level scrutiny. We do too. That’s why our model includes attorneys who’ve been in the boardroom, run exits, and understand investor expectations from day one.
What is the top mistake in legal capacity building?
Hiring for resume instead of reality. The “perfect” Fortune 500 background often flames out in a $50M growth sprint. The GC who can build from scratch may not look as shiny on paper, but they’ll create order from chaos. Our model makes sure you don’t have to guess—we match the right team to your actual stage.
Why do so many funds end up hiring the wrong GC?
Because they hire for pedigree instead of pace. Credit funds bring in PE lawyers. Hedge funds poach investment bankers. Private debt platforms grab from law firms. Then they’re surprised when their legal team can’t keep up. Fit isn’t about prestige. It’s about matching the legal team to your fund’s actual metabolism.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Can a fractional model really keep up with market speed?
Absolutely. In fact, it’s built for it. One GC alone can’t cover regulatory oversight, daily deal flow, and investor demands. Our model gives you a team—senior GCs backed by specialists and support attorneys—so you’re not bottlenecked. You get legal leadership that moves at the same velocity as your investment strategy.
What’s the hidden cost of hiring the wrong full-time GC?
For growing companies, it’s often 18 months and $1.5–2.5M. That includes salary, severance, search fees, missed deals, and executive distraction. And that’s conservative—at enterprise scale, those costs easily double or triple.
Why is the cost so high?
Because the damage goes beyond compensation: • Missed opportunities. M&A delayed, expansions stalled, market windows missed. • Remediation. Weak contracts, compliance gaps, disputes, fractured teams. • Executive distraction. CEOs and CFOs pulled into legal firefighting instead of strategy. • Cultural damage. Talent walks, boards lose confidence, and business units sidestep legal.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Isn’t a full-time GC the better long-term solution?
Sometimes—once you’re big and stable enough. But most growth-stage and mid-market PE-backed companies don’t need a $400K+ GC plus staff. They need a legal function that drives returns, accelerates deals, and keeps them exit-ready. That’s exactly what Unified delivers—without the 18-month, multimillion-dollar gamble.
What are the signs a traditional GC hire might fail?
We see three patterns again and again: 1. The Big Law Savior Syndrome. Companies bring in a law firm partner expecting transformation. Nine months later, they’re stuck with slow systems and risk-averse decision-making. In-house work is about balancing speed and risk—not replicating law firm process. 2. The Industry Clone Trap. Hiring from the “exact same industry” sounds safe but often backfires. Industry clones can be locked into old ways of thinking and blind spots. The best GCs often come with adjacent experience and fresh perspective. 3. The Consensus Hire Warning. Everyone likes them, but no one’s excited. They don’t challenge assumptions. Great legal leaders press on sacred cows and ask hard questions. If the hire feels like the “safe bet,” it may end in mediocrity.
How does Unified Law solve these problems?
Instead of gambling on one hire, you get a fractional in-house department that already checks all the boxes: • Former GCs who know how to lead with business judgment • Builders who thrive in controlled chaos • Teams that simplify and accelerate instead of over-engineering • Perspective across industries, not just one narrow lane
Why is this better than just hiring a single GC?
Because with one person, you risk misalignment that costs 18 months and millions in lost value. With Unified, you get a team that flexes with your stage, your deals, and your goals—no guesswork, no costly pivots.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Pricing
Subscription, hourly, and equity-for-services.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Your questions,
answered
Explore our comprehensive FAQ collection for details and helpful explanations. If your question isn’t answered here, our team is happy to help via chat or email support.
The Model
What a fractional legal department is and how it works.
Why not just hire a full-time GC?
Because stage fit matters more than credentials. A Fortune 500 GC may look great on paper but can crash in a growth company. Early-stage and mid-stage businesses need builders who thrive in chaos, move fast, and create systems from scratch—not optimizers trained for steady states. Our model flexes as you grow, so you’re never stuck with the wrong hire.
What's Builders vs Optimizers
Builders thrive in turbulence. They can work without infrastructure, make calls with incomplete information, and prioritize speed over perfection. Optimizers shine once systems are established—they polish, perfect, and scale. Both are valuable, but only if matched to the right growth stage. We give you builders when you’re building, and optimizers when you’re ready to refine.ck any question to view its answer instantly below.
What if my company is PE-backed?
Then you already know the pressures: compressed timelines, constant M&A, multiple stakeholders, fund-level scrutiny. We do too. That’s why our model includes attorneys who’ve been in the boardroom, run exits, and understand investor expectations from day one.
What is the top mistake in legal capacity building?
Hiring for resume instead of reality. The “perfect” Fortune 500 background often flames out in a $50M growth sprint. The GC who can build from scratch may not look as shiny on paper, but they’ll create order from chaos. Our model makes sure you don’t have to guess—we match the right team to your actual stage.
Why do so many funds end up hiring the wrong GC?
Because they hire for pedigree instead of pace. Credit funds bring in PE lawyers. Hedge funds poach investment bankers. Private debt platforms grab from law firms. Then they’re surprised when their legal team can’t keep up. Fit isn’t about prestige. It’s about matching the legal team to your fund’s actual metabolism.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Can a fractional model really keep up with market speed?
Absolutely. In fact, it’s built for it. One GC alone can’t cover regulatory oversight, daily deal flow, and investor demands. Our model gives you a team—senior GCs backed by specialists and support attorneys—so you’re not bottlenecked. You get legal leadership that moves at the same velocity as your investment strategy.
What’s the hidden cost of hiring the wrong full-time GC?
For growing companies, it’s often 18 months and $1.5–2.5M. That includes salary, severance, search fees, missed deals, and executive distraction. And that’s conservative—at enterprise scale, those costs easily double or triple.
Why is the cost so high?
Because the damage goes beyond compensation: • Missed opportunities. M&A delayed, expansions stalled, market windows missed. • Remediation. Weak contracts, compliance gaps, disputes, fractured teams. • Executive distraction. CEOs and CFOs pulled into legal firefighting instead of strategy. • Cultural damage. Talent walks, boards lose confidence, and business units sidestep legal.
How does Unified Law help companies avoid this risk?
With our fractional in-house department, you get GC-level leadership without the $1.5–2.5M downside of a bad hire. We scale with your stage and needs, so you’re never locked into one expensive profile. Instead of gambling on one person’s fit, you get an embedded team of seasoned in-house counsel who already know how to deliver at speed.
Isn’t a full-time GC the better long-term solution?
Sometimes—once you’re big and stable enough. But most growth-stage and mid-market PE-backed companies don’t need a $400K+ GC plus staff. They need a legal function that drives returns, accelerates deals, and keeps them exit-ready. That’s exactly what Unified delivers—without the 18-month, multimillion-dollar gamble.
What are the signs a traditional GC hire might fail?
We see three patterns again and again: 1. The Big Law Savior Syndrome. Companies bring in a law firm partner expecting transformation. Nine months later, they’re stuck with slow systems and risk-averse decision-making. In-house work is about balancing speed and risk—not replicating law firm process. 2. The Industry Clone Trap. Hiring from the “exact same industry” sounds safe but often backfires. Industry clones can be locked into old ways of thinking and blind spots. The best GCs often come with adjacent experience and fresh perspective. 3. The Consensus Hire Warning. Everyone likes them, but no one’s excited. They don’t challenge assumptions. Great legal leaders press on sacred cows and ask hard questions. If the hire feels like the “safe bet,” it may end in mediocrity.
How does Unified Law solve these problems?
Instead of gambling on one hire, you get a fractional in-house department that already checks all the boxes: • Former GCs who know how to lead with business judgment • Builders who thrive in controlled chaos • Teams that simplify and accelerate instead of over-engineering • Perspective across industries, not just one narrow lane
Why is this better than just hiring a single GC?
Because with one person, you risk misalignment that costs 18 months and millions in lost value. With Unified, you get a team that flexes with your stage, your deals, and your goals—no guesswork, no costly pivots.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Working Together
Onboarding, integration, communication, speed.
What are the signals it’s time to bring Unified Law in?
Three big ones: 1. Outside counsel spend approaches $50K annually. At that level, you’re paying enough for legal work that you could be getting double or triple the value with Unified’s fractional department model. Instead of scattered billable hours, you get an embedded team that moves faster, covers more ground, and scales with you. 2. Executives are burning 10+ hours/week on legal work. If your CFO or COO is redlining contracts, strategy is stalling. 3. You’re 12–18 months out from a major event. IPO, PE exit, international expansion—these need legal infrastructure built early, not bolted on late.
How is bringing Unified Law in early different from waiting?
Early engagement means: Legal strategies aligned with your growth goals Predictable subscription pricing instead of ballooning outside counsel bills A team that scales with you through the big event, instead of scrambling at the finish line
What about working across the rest of the C-suite?
Legal touches everyone. Your CFO wants cost control. Your CRO needs deal velocity. Your COO demands operational efficiency. Your CMO wants marketing flexibility. We find the intersection points where legal strategy actually advances each agenda—so legal becomes a growth tool, not a blocker.
Why should Unified Law be involved in quarterly or annual planning?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
What do we actually add to planning sessions?
Revenue opportunities hidden in contracts. Dormant rights, auto-renewals, geographic licenses, overlooked IP. We surface value others miss. Risk-adjusted growth paths. We spot regulatory angles competitors overlook, giving you first-mover advantages. Deal velocity improvements. We redesign processes to cut deal timelines by 30–50%, turning Q4 into a momentum builder instead of a scramble. Strategic cost management. We help allocate legal resources to the initiatives that actually multiply value—not just those that check boxes.
Isn’t quarterly planning mostly financial and operational?
Exactly—which is why legal belongs in the room. The right legal input can unlock revenue, accelerate deals, and de-risk expansion. We translate legal into growth, so your financial and operational plans have more lift.
What’s the bottom line if legal is left out?
Companies that loop us in from day one hit their numbers more consistently. Companies that don’t spend Q4 explaining misses to their board.
Industries
Tech, consumer brands, private equity, nonprofits, regulated sectors.
FAQs – Private Equity
Why do most PE firms underutilize legal?
Because they treat it as a cost center. Traditional thinking is: operating partners drive EBITDA, consultants cut costs, bankers chase add-ons. Legal gets called in to plug risk holes. But a PE-savvy GC—or a fractional in-house department like Unified—can actually accelerate returns.
What’s “cross-portfolio arbitrage” and how does Unified deliver it?
Because planning without legal at the table is like launching a product without market research. Too many companies invite legal in at the last minute to “review risks.” By then, 90% of the decisions are already made—and the hidden opportunities are already missed.
How does Unified support exit readiness?
We start engineering exits from day one: Cleaning up cap tables and equity docs before diligence hits Drafting contracts for transferability Keeping institutional knowledge intact as management turns over Building buyer-ready governance packages That preparation translates into smoother diligence and higher multiples at exit.
Can legal really build LP confidence?
Absolutely. LPs are asking sharper questions about portfolio governance. With Unified, you can show bulletproof compliance programs, ESG frameworks, professional board packages, and litigation prevention strategies. That credibility builds trust—and sometimes unlocks capital.
How is Unified different from just hiring a GC for each portco?
Cost and leverage. One full-time GC per company is expensive and often overkill. Unified gives you a fractional in-house department—experienced former GCs backed by a full support team—that scales across your portfolio. You get the velocity, governance, and exit prep of a seasoned GC, without the cost of building a legal department at every portco.
How should PE firms maximize value from Unified Law?
Treat us like an operating partner, not outside counsel. Bring us into weekly calls, share playbooks across companies, and measure us on business outcomes—deal speed, cost reduction, exit readiness—not billable hours. That’s how legal shifts from cost to competitive edge.
Our Team
All in-house or government attorneys. GCs, AGCs, paralegals, and assistants.
Pricing
Subscription, hourly, and equity-for-services.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Trust & Confidentiality
Privilege, conflicts, sensitive information.
Impact
Capital raised, deals closed, red flags avoided, client results.
Raising Capital? Start Here.
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Raising Capital? Start Here.
Get our GC-built checklist to speed up diligence, cut red flags, and close faster. Delivered straight to your inbox.
Raising Capital? Start Here.
Get our GC-built checklist to speed up diligence, cut red flags, and close faster. Delivered straight to your inbox.
© 2024-2025 Unified Law Group, PB LLC. All Rights Reserved.
© 2024-2025 Unified Law Group, PB LLC.
All Rights Reserved.
© 2024-2025 Unified Law Group, PB LLC.
All Rights Reserved.
© 2024-2025 Unified Law Group, PB LLC. All Rights Reserved.
© 2024-2025 Unified Law Group, PB LLC. All Rights Reserved.