Speaking the Same Language – aligning legal and commercial thinking for greater commercial success

On 14-16 May 2025, Blake Morgan was delighted to host an interactive workshop at “The Lawyer General Counsel Strategy Summit” in Alicante, Spain, chaired by Blake Morgan Partners, Penny Rinta-Suksi, Oliver Storey-Harris and Rajiv Joshi, exploring how legal and business teams can better understand each other’s roles to mitigate risk and drive efficiency and value.

The session, titled “Speaking the Same Language”, brought together General Counsel and Heads of Legal from a range of organisations and sectors to explore two practical, scenario-based exercises. The first scenario examined the strategic and contractual negotiations involved in securing a major AI technology deal, while the second focused on the legal and commercial complexities of a distressed business acquisition under UK TUPE regulations.

By switching perspectives, stepping into the shoes of commercial colleagues, legal leaders were encouraged to consider the pressures, motivations, and assumptions that drive business decision-making. We set out a number of key themes and insights based on outcomes of the session below:

• Question everything – thoughtfully. Participants highlighted the importance of creating a culture where asking questions is not only accepted but expected. No question is too basic, particularly when time pressure and enthusiasm around a deal may cloud judgment.
• Context is key. Legal teams need a solid grasp of the commercial pretext, timelines, and broader strategic objectives behind a transaction to assess risk effectively and provide timely, tailored advice. Whilst some elements of a project may have been signed off by the board or CEO, not everything will be, so establish whether your specific concerns have been specifically signed off – it’s likely the won’t have been.
• Assumptions can be dangerous. Don’t assume you have all the facts – or that colleagues have the same understanding of a situation. Establishing knowns/unknowns and action points early on helps avoid misalignment and circling back to share your record keeping on this can be a life saver – not just for your team but the organisation as a whole.
• If it seems too good to be true. Apply healthy scepticism when evaluating opportunities. Teams should feel empowered to pause and interrogate deals that raise red flags, even when under pressure to move quickly.

The scenarios generated broader discussion on the recurring tension between commercial urgency and legal diligence:

• Distressed acquisitions often expose challenges between legal and commercial teams. With heightened opportunities and tight deadlines, we discussed experiences of business leaders attempting to bypass legal to ‘get the deal done’. The discussion reinforced the need for clear internal processes that enable agility without compromising risk management.
• Contract negotiation and specification alignment emerged as another critical area where legal adds value. When entering into critical commercial contracts, legal teams play a vital role in ensuring technical specifications and commercial expectations are fully aligned – and that critical risks are identified and catered for. Participants reflected on the importance of cross-functional collaboration in this area and shared examples of best practice.
• Raising debt was cited as another area where the GC’s strategic involvement is essential. Ensuring that covenants and representations are not only appropriate but operationally achievable, reinforcing the legal team’s role in shaping viable, long-term commercial outcomes.

The workshop emphasised that closer alignment between legal and commercial teams doesn’t just improve communication, it enhances the quality of decisions and supports stronger business outcomes.

We wish to thank all the workshop attendees for their engagement and contribution.

If you would like to contact Penny, Oliver or Rajiv concerning anything raised during the session, or are looking for any financing, restructuring, commercial or employment support, they would be very pleased to hear from you.

Penny is a commercial partner specialising in structuring and implementing projects, joint ventures and commercial contracts.

Oliver is a banking and finance partner, whose key expertise involves advising corporate borrowers on significant financing and refinancing transactions as well as restructuring matters.

Rajiv is an employment partner specialising in a variety of contentious and non-contentious employment law issues.

You can sign up to mailings for our Counsel+ forum here to receive learning resources and invitations to events and networking opportunities.