LexisNexis recently commissioned research to look at how in-house counsel are approaching the issue of value creation within their businesses. Amongst the attributes identified as providing higher value and increasing the influence and impact of in-house legal teams were: a mixture of legal and non-legal skills and the ability to handle corporate ethics. These will be considered below.

In terms of assessing the skills of in-house lawyers, our research indicates that there has been a shift in focus from purely looking at legal expertise and knowledge, to also encompassing commercial and technological ability. Core technical legal skills are now a given, and it's the business and non-legal skills which make in-house counsel truly stand out and add value. Some of the most highly regarded skills and competencies include:

• Confidence in productivity software like MS Office and project management software (96%).

• Soft skills such as influencing, collaboration and relationship building (95%).

• Experience working in industry or business (94%).

Drafting and legal research, whilst still very high up on the list, actually fall below these three attributes, at 91% and 86% respectively.