September 2025
Stop the pinball – What’s the risk appetite, and who owns the call?
by David Curtain
Every sales or marketing manager has been there – racing to meet a deadline to deliver on a stretch target, only to have Legal shut it down with a simple “no.” The product launch gets delayed because Legal and Marketing couldn’t align on compliant messaging. The ad opportunity that could drive significant sales missed because Legal took days to review the disclaimer.
The problem usually isn’t that Legal is too conservative. It’s that most organisations have never had a proper discussion about risk appetite, role clarity, or how these teams should work together.
Legal advises, the business decides
The most effective legal teams have shifted from being binary decision makers to being risk advisors. Instead of yes/no decisions, they make a commercial assessment of risk, and suggest options to get an outcome. For example:
‘The proposed approach is high risk for these reasons, but you can get a similar outcome if we do [x]. How confident are you in this supplier? Do we need to look at our QA processes or our insurance?’
This drives a constructive discussion about how to best manage residual risk, which is usually best done operationally (not with clever legal drafting). For example, it helps to look at the bigger picture and ensure customers get clear information about the product before buying, rather than relying on a disclaimer to fix a flawed user journey.
Legal advice helps the initiative owner to assess relevant risks, so they can decide what they’re willing to assume, in light of the mitigants available to them. That’s a commercial decision.
This needs to be documented clearly in your risk framework. Who’s authorised to make decisions? What are the escalation paths when there’s uncertainty? For risks that come up regularly, consider pre-approving authority levels. It removes the friction from routine decisions.
Are your templates blocking deals?
We’ve all seen it before. Templates and precedent documents that are too risk-averse, because the law firm that drafted them had to eliminate all possibility of a PI claim. People worried about making concessions without legal sign off. Deals that die a slow death of a thousand emails back and forth. Everyone gets cheesed.
The best legal teams sit down with their business stakeholders and work out where deals are stalling. Where do negotiations routinely end up? Where can drafting be pushed to the sensible middle ground, supported by fallback positions and guidance on how to use these without legal handholding?
Think carefully about the likelihood of risks eventuating, and what can be managed. As a wise CEO once said, ‘If we don’t sell any products, we won’t need any lawyers’.
How’s it really going?
Regular temperature checks between Legal and business teams are essential – without regular feedback, you’re flying blind. Ask how things are going, and what’s causing issues. Track key metrics, such as time-to-approval and revision cycles. Create a safe space for constructive feedback without conflict. The most valuable feedback often comes from the people who are actually using your processes. That’s where you’ll discover what’s working, what’s creating unnecessary friction and what needs to be adjusted.
The difference it makes
The best legal teams know the difference between minor issues and a serious one, and help the business navigate the pitfalls to get deals done. When legal teams stop owning business risk and start advising on it, everyone wins. Legal can focus on what they do best, and business leaders can make informed decisions they actually own.
At Front Foot, we take the time to understand what’s happening on the ground and address the real pain points that create stress across the entire organisation. The right rules of engagement make all the difference. And when you get it right, it’s advantageous for everyone.
