Business Case for an Interim Lawyer

By Christian Steinmetz and Maren Siegels

Short answer: A convincing business case for an interim lawyer or compliance professional answers five questions on one page: what the problem is, what doing nothing costs, which solution you propose, what budget it needs and which risks remain. Calculate the budget as days per week × weeks × day rate; at Alpinum Solutions, an experienced profile under staff leasing in Germany costs EUR 720–960 per day and CHF 800–1,200 per day in Switzerland (excluding VAT, as of 18 October 2026). What persuades the CFO and HR is the comparison with the cost of inaction, not the day rate on its own.

This guide is for general counsel, heads of legal and heads of compliance in Switzerland and Germany who need internal approval for an interim engagement. It shows how to build the business case, present a worked budget, answer typical objections and fit everything on one page.

Describe the situation: volume, deadlines, risks

The starting point is persuasive when it is described with figures from your own organisation, not as general overload. Finance decides on volumes, dates and risks. Before you submit the request, collect:

Trigger: vacancy, parental or maternity leave, illness, a transaction, a regulatory project or a backlog.
Volume: open contracts, requests or files and how many are added each week, taken from your ticketing system, register or shared inbox.
Deadlines: regulatory dates, signing or closing dates, audit findings with a remediation deadline.
Capacity: hours available in the team compared with the hours the volume requires.
Business impact: delayed sales deals, supplier contracts on hold, postponed projects.

To calculate the gap between demand and capacity, see legal team capacity planning.

The cost of inaction: outside counsel, delays, regulatory exposure

The cost of inaction is the benchmark against which an interim budget is judged. Without this section, management compares the day rate with zero. Three types of cost can usually be evidenced:

External spend: routine work sent to law firms because there is no in-house capacity. Use your own invoices from recent months: hours × agreed rate.
Cost of delay: revenue booked later because contracts are pending, or projects that slip. A conservative estimate agreed with the business unit works best.
Regulatory exposure: missed deadlines, open audit findings or incomplete documentation. Name the rule and the deadline concerned, not a hypothetical fine.

There are also costs that are harder to measure: overtime, attrition risk and managers doing operational work. Mention them briefly but leave them out of the calculation. A business case built only on evidenced figures is harder to challenge.

Solution and budget with a worked example

The solution describes which role you deploy, at what workload, for how long and with what result at the end. The budget follows a simple formula: days per week × weeks × day rate, plus agreed expenses and VAT.

Worked example, Germany (volumes and chosen rate are assumptions)

Assumed trigger: a legal counsel position is vacant; the successor is expected to start in five months.
Assumed solution: experienced legal counsel (3–6 years) under staff leasing, 4 days a week for 20 weeks.
Assumed rate: EUR 840 per day, mid-point of the EUR 720–960 range.
Calculation: 4 × 20 = 80 working days × EUR 840 = EUR 67,200 excluding VAT.

Worked example, Switzerland (volumes and chosen rate are assumptions)

Assumed trigger: audit findings on KYC files with a remediation deadline.
Assumed solution: senior compliance officer (7+ years), 3 days a week for 26 weeks.
Assumed rate: CHF 1,400 per day, within the CHF 1,200–1,800+ range.
Calculation: 3 × 26 = 78 working days × CHF 1,400 = CHF 109,200 excluding VAT.

Set the cost of inaction for the same period against the budget, for example the outside counsel hours that the interim professional takes over in-house. All rate ranges, cost drivers and a comparison of models are in costs in interim legal and compliance.

Staff leasing or freelancing in the request

State the intended model in the request. Under staff leasing, the company generally holds the right to give professional instructions and the professional is integrated into the organisation; in Germany this is Arbeitnehmerüberlassung (temporary agency work), in Switzerland Personalverleih (Swiss staff leasing). Under freelancing, the professional delivers independently within an agreed mandate. Both models work part-time or full-time.

Answering objections from finance, HR and procurement

Most objections can be answered in the request itself. Use this overview to prepare:

"The day rate is higher than a salary." Compare total cost for the period: an interim engagement avoids recruitment effort, notice periods and idle time after the project. You pay for the capacity you agreed.
"A law firm can do this." For independent advice and representation, yes. For ongoing internal work that should stay in the team, an integrated professional often fits better. The comparison of interim lawyer, law firm and permanent hire sets out the differences.
"We have a hiring freeze." An interim engagement is not a permanent hire and is time-limited. Check with HR and finance beforehand whether it falls under your internal headcount rule.
"How do we choose the provider?" Procurement needs comparable offers. The RFP checklist for interim providers gives you twelve questions.
"What if it takes longer?" Build in an extension option and a mid-point review. That keeps the budget under control.
"Is it legally sound?" For staff leasing, the provider needs a licence from the Federal Employment Agency in Germany (section 1(1) AÜG) and a cantonal licence in Switzerland (Article 12 AVG). Ask to see it, and check the contract structure for freelancing.

Template: a one-page business case

The structure below fits on one page and can go straight into an approval request. Each row answers a question that management, the CFO or HR will ask.

Section	Content	Data source	Sample wording
1. Trigger	What happened, since when, until when?	HR, project plan	"The legal counsel role is vacant from 1 March; the successor is expected to start in August."
2. Volume and deadlines	Open items, weekly intake, key dates	Ticketing system, register, regulatory calendar	"Open contract requests: X, growing by Y a week; deadline Z."
3. Cost of inaction	Outside counsel spend, delays, regulatory exposure	Law firm invoices, business unit, compliance	"Routine work sent to law firms in the last three months: hours × rate."
4. Proposed solution	Role, seniority, model, workload, duration	Role profile	"Experienced legal counsel, staff leasing, 4 days a week, 20 weeks."
5. Budget	Formula, rate, expenses, VAT	Provider's offer	"80 days × day rate = amount excluding VAT."
6. Alternatives	Law firm, permanent hire, reprioritising without extra capacity	Own assessment	"Option A costs more; option B misses the deadline."
7. Risks and governance	What remains open, who directs the work, when is it reviewed?	Project plan	"Directed by the head of legal; review after ten weeks."
8. Request	What exactly needs approval?	–	"Approve a budget of up to X and engagement until date Y."

Keep the page factual. A clear request based on your own data and a short review of alternatives persuades more than a long argument.

Limits and risks

Worked examples are not a quote: the ranges are guide values; the binding rate is in the offer for your engagement.
Responsibility stays with the company: Alpinum provides professionals and does not provide legal advice as a law firm. Your legal team sets priorities and takes decisions.
Underestimated onboarding: include onboarding and handover in the budget, especially for short engagements.

FAQ: the business case for interim support

Who needs to approve an interim engagement internally?

Your internal approval rules decide. Typically the head of legal or compliance confirms the need, controlling or the CFO approves the budget and procurement approves the contract. HR is involved where headcount rules are affected. In Germany, an existing works council must also be involved before a leased professional starts (section 14(3) AÜG, section 99 of the Works Constitution Act). Map the approval chain before you submit.

How do I deal with a hiring freeze?

A hiring freeze usually applies to permanent roles. A time-limited interim engagement through staff leasing or freelancing is not a permanent hire, but some companies still treat it as relevant to budget or headcount. Clarify the rule with HR and finance and justify the exception with the deadline, the risk and the cost of inaction.

How long should I plan the engagement for in the request?

Plan until the natural end point, such as the successor's start date, the return from leave or project completion, plus onboarding and handover. Agree a mid-point review and an extension option. This keeps the request realistic and the budget manageable if timelines move.

Which figures convince CFOs most?

Evidenced figures from your own organisation: outside counsel spend in recent months, the number and age of open items, and specific deadlines. Add a clear budget formula and a review of alternatives. General market figures or hypothetical fines are easier to challenge than your own data.

Next step

For the request, you need a reliable offer. Describe the role, workload, duration and preferred start; selected profiles are usually available within 48 hours, and the start date is agreed between the company and Alpinum.

Last updated: 30 October 2026.

Building the business case for interim legal or compliance support