If you’ve ever tried to scale a legal team, you know it’s less like building a LEGO set with instructions and more like assembling IKEA furniture without the manual. 

You’re juggling immediate demands, hiring under pressure, and trying to stay ahead of the business’s needs while hoping the pieces fit together.

Scaling isn’t just about growing; it’s about growing intelligently. Your legal team needs to align with the company’s goals, anticipate future challenges, and foster collaboration across departments. And yes, technology should do more than just clutter your desktop—it should work smarter, not harder, for your team.

To help you crack the code, we’ve tapped into the collective wisdom of legal experts who have shared their strategies, stories, and lessons learned—some the hard way—on how to scale a legal team that thrives.

Want to skip the reading and go straight to the source? 

Check out the episode and get the inside scoop from the experts themselves.

Aligning legal with business goals

Scaling a legal team effectively requires more than expanding resources. It’s about operating as a true partner to the business. 

This means understanding the organization’s objectives, gaining the trust of its leaders, and anticipating challenges before they become roadblocks. 

Let’s see how seasoned legal leaders make this happen.

#1 Understand your business’s strategic priorities

“You need to delve deeply into the business and product to understand where it’s trying to go. And then understand the strategic initiatives for the business. What is the business trying to accomplish? What are their goals? What are their objectives over the next two, four, or six quarters. You need to know this because you're going to focus your efforts and energies on ensuring that you're helping move the company forward with those objectives and goals.”

-Adam Glick, VP of Legal Affairs and Corporate Secretary at Front

The legal function thrives when it operates with a clear view of the company’s direction. Immersing yourself in the product, customer experience, and market challenges gives legal teams a clearer path to becoming indispensable. 

Some companies even structure onboarding around this, encouraging legal professionals to spend the first 30–60 days simply learning the business.

#2 Build trust to gain a seat at the table

Trust opens doors. For legal teams, it’s the key to being included in strategic discussions rather than consulted after decisions are made. 

Building trust involves showing up—not just physically, but by demonstrating genuine interest in the business and aligning legal strategies with measurable outcomes.

“Build trust with other people in the business. To do that, you need to be enthusiastic about the product. Asking questions like, ‘How can I know more?’, ‘Can I come to the meeting?’”

-David Lancelot, CLO and EVP Advocacy at LawVu

Enthusiasm combined with actionable insights builds credibility. Leaders notice when the legal team speaks their language, helping them see legal not as a safeguard but as a strategic ally.

#3 Lead with vulnerability to build psychological safety

Leadership is most impactful when it’s human. Creating a high-performing legal team starts with making space for people to be their authentic selves. 

Vulnerability, far from being a weakness, sets the foundation for psychological safety—a critical component of trust.

“Trust is the foundation of all human relationships. The precursor to trust is psychological safety—knowing that you can be a version of your authentic self. Say what you're going to say, do what you're going to do, make mistakes, and be human.”

-Seth Weissman, Executive Coach at Weissman Coaching & Consulting

At Marketa, Seth leaned into this philosophy while leading a distributed team in the challenging environment of preparing for an IPO. He encouraged openness by sharing his own challenges—his imperfections, his uncertainties—and modeled a culture where people could take risks without fear of judgment. 

Watch Webinar - Building Efficient In-House Legal Teams 

Hiring strategically to scale effectively

Scaling a legal team starts with smart hiring decisions. You need to start by addressing the team’s most pressing needs, ensuring flexibility for growth, and building a foundation of diverse, high-potential talent. 

Here’s how legal leaders approach hiring strategically.

#1 Address immediate pain points first

When Gary Spiegel, now Chief Legal Officer at Alpine Wolf Capital, began building Anaplan’s legal team back in 2013, his hiring strategy was simple: survival. 

“The first hires were geared around keeping me sane. I desperately needed someone to manage revenue contracts and international operations. So one of the first hires was an attorney who could handle the EMEA business.”

Addressing immediate bottlenecks is a logical first step when scaling. For Gary, this meant hiring to support critical revenue-driving activities and ensuring business continuity across global markets.

#2 Hire multipurpose players for flexibility

In the early days of scaling, flexibility is key. Speigel shares,

“In the early stages, you need people who are flexible, can react quickly, and jump into unknown tasks without hesitation.”

Brian Chase, General Counsel at ServiceChannel, also shares success from this approach. 

“I was looking for somebody to just help manage the privacy program. But the woman that I hired had a lot more abilities than just tracking paperwork and. So, she now manages our privacy and compliance program.”

Hiring multipurpose players ensures your team can adapt to shifting priorities, especially in fast-moving environments where legal needs evolve rapidly.

#3 Look for growth potential over credentials

Building a legal team isn’t about hiring clones of yourself.

“I looked for people who were diverse and better than me at their jobs. I did that knowing full well that some people might be threatened by bringing in a cohort of folks who were experts in their fields. But for me, this was the ticket to success. I was very right to bet in that way because all of these people very quickly gained the trust of the co-founders and other management because they were so good at what they did.”

-Kristen Sverkchek, Advisor at Lyft

Looking beyond resumes to assess cultural fit, curiosity, and growth potential creates teams with broader perspectives and skill sets. A diverse, capable team challenges assumptions and drives innovation, making it a cornerstone of successful scaling efforts.

Also read: Embracing Legal’s Role as Business Co-Leaders with David Lancelot 

Empowering your legal team to thrive

A thriving legal team doesn’t happen by chance. It’s the result of intentional efforts to create an environment where people feel supported, valued, and free to take ownership of their roles. 

Empowerment lies at the heart of effective leadership, and these insights from legal leaders highlight how it’s done.

#1 Invest in coaching and professional growth

Celaena Powder, General Counsel at Seismic, believes in the transformative power of giving her team room to learn

“The greatest gift we can give in the legal department is the opportunity to fail. The opportunity to fail and give somebody a shot at something, allow them to make a mistake and go try it again, is incredible. That's how a lot of people learn; that's how I've learned. That's how a lot of folks on my team have seen success.” 

Daily coaching is another cornerstone of Powder’s leadership approach. She encourages her team to take calculated risks, creating opportunities for them to learn from mistakes and improve. 

#2 Foster autonomy and ownership

“We decide roles based on two things: business needs and what you’re interested in doing. Autonomy is invaluable for retention.”

- Lydia Cheuk, General Counsel at Away.

Giving team members agency over their work builds deeper engagement. By aligning roles with individual interests, leaders not only retain top talent but also foster a sense of ownership that drives productivity and innovation.

#3 Build a culture of collaboration and trust

“People care a lot more now about mental wellness and balance in their lives. Those kinds of priorities have taken over things like compensation. Choice and autonomy matter a lot more. So, to all the employers out there, whether you're hiring fresh grads or not, you need to create an employee experience to be competitive. And that has to do with more than just your compensation and your stock option packages.”

- Akshay Verma, Chief Operating Officer at SpotDraft

Leveraging technology to work smarter

Technology has transformed the way legal teams operate, offering tools to improve efficiency, scale operations, and contribute strategically. 

Leaders who embrace these advancements position their teams to work smarter, not harder.

#1 Automate repetitive tasks to focus on strategy

Lancelot puts it bluntly, “How do we get rid of soul-destroying work so we can focus on strategy? The idea of reaching a tipping point where a certain amount of the work is off your lawyer's place sounds so good! You’re having a good time partnering with the business, spending more time in meetings and offsites and understanding the strategy and becoming strategic leaders.”

Tools like SpotDraft streamline processes like contract creation, approvals, and renewals, allowing legal teams to reclaim time for more impactful work. Automation doesn’t just reduce inefficiencies—it empowers teams to align closer with business objectives.

#2 Strengthen global alignment with collaborative tools

Glick suggests, “If you’re doing 75% of our business in the EU, go hire someone to go sit in London or some other European country to be there and give you the eight hours of time zone coverage when you’re sleeping to help accelerate all the label work that you need to do.” 

Collaboration platforms, workflow management tools, and centralized data systems streamline operations for decentralized teams. 

SpotDraft, for instance, offers collaboration on MS Word. So, you don’t have to manage two tools, you can just work inside MS Word on top of SpotDraft to ensure the right people see the comments you want them to see, no matter where they are.

#3 Pilot initiatives for broader adoption

Lancelot explains the value of starting small: 

“Start with a test case. That's what we did with contract management—focus on a place where you can win. For us, it was the UK or Australia at the time… It worked great, and then they became our evangelists.”

Implementing new technology can be daunting, but piloting it in controlled environments helps refine the process and address challenges early. This approach ensures smoother company-wide adoption and maximizes the technology’s impact on operations.

Also watch: Building, leading, and scaling legal teams | Bonus Episode 

Building for long-term success

A legal team built for the long haul balances tactical hiring with a focus on culture and adaptability. You can’t just do away with meeting immediate needs. You need to prepare for the complexities of tomorrow.

#1 Balance costs with scalability

Spiegel explains, “Once you get into the public company side, it’s more about focusing on redundancy and scalability without overspending on hiring.”

Strategic hiring ensures your team is equipped to handle increasing workloads without straining budgets. This balance is critical for sustainable growth, especially in public companies where financial scrutiny is heightened.

#2 Create a unified culture across teams

“Within our team, we're a total safe space. But how do we showcase ourselves to the rest of the organization? We will always be helpful. We are always business first. We will be their thought partner. We will help them come up with a creative solution,” explains Lydia Chuck.

Fostering a collaborative mindset positions legal as a trusted advisor, bridging gaps across departments and ensuring alignment with organizational goals.

#3 Prioritize continuous learning and adaptation

Sverkchek explains: “What I care about is whether this job is what my hire is looking for? Does it fit into where their next step is? Because ultimately the thing I care about the most is whether they are going to learn here. Are they going to be excited to try and figure this thing out?”

Encouraging growth and adaptability prepares teams to navigate shifting regulations and evolving business landscapes, ensuring long-term success.

Scaling legal teams with strategy and purpose

Scaling a legal team requires intentional effort. Leaders who integrate legal into strategic decision-making, hire with flexibility in mind, and foster a culture of autonomy and collaboration create teams that thrive. Leveraging technology further amplifies efficiency, enabling teams to focus on impactful work and adapt to future challenges.

SpotDraft offers the tools you need to support this journey. Explore the platform to transform your legal operations.

Request a personalized demo!