Interim Head of Legal: The First 30 Days

By Christian Steinmetz and Maren Siegels

Short answer: In the first 30 days, an interim head of legal clarifies the mandate, gets to know the team, open matters and risks, and sets binding priorities. Week 1 is for conversations and taking stock, week 2 for priorities and first relief, and weeks 3 and 4 for the team, outside counsel management and budget. We recommend that on day 30 the interim head of legal presents a short report to management covering risks, priorities and the plan until the end of the assignment.

This guide is for CEOs, CFOs, HR leaders and general counsel in Switzerland and Germany who are bringing in an interim leader to run their legal department for a limited period. It sets out what must be agreed before the start, what happens in each week and how to tell whether the first 30 days have worked.

Before the start: mandate, authority and reporting line

An interim head of legal can only make an impact as quickly as the mandate is clear. Before day one, the company should put five points in writing.

Reason and objective: a vacancy until a successor starts, an absence of the current head, a reorganisation or a project that ties up the existing leader. This determines whether stabilising, building or handing over comes first.
Authority: which decisions the interim head takes alone and which need approval, including powers of attorney, signing rights, budget authority and instructing outside law firms.
Reporting line: to the CEO, CFO or board, with a fixed slot, for example weekly.
Workload and availability: full-time or part-time, days on site, rules for urgent requests and a deputy.
End point: handover to a successor, return of the head of legal or completion of the project.

The engagement model also shapes who directs the work. Under staff leasing, the company generally holds the right to give professional instructions and the interim head is integrated into the organisation. In Switzerland this is called Personalverleih (Swiss staff leasing); in Germany, Arbeitnehmerüberlassung (German temporary agency work). Under freelancing, the professional works independently within the agreed mandate. The differences between the roles are explained in fractional GC or interim head of legal.

System access, a list of open matters and deadlines, the legal department's organisation chart, the list of outside law firms with budgets, and the rules on signatures and approvals should also be ready. A general checklist for the start of temporary professionals is available in the guide to onboarding interim staff.

The 30-day plan at a glance

The plan splits the first 30 days into three phases, each with a clear output. The table works as a template for the kick-off with management.

Week	Goal	Output
Before the start	Agree mandate, authority, reporting line and access	Written mandate, powers of attorney, kick-off date
Week 1	Listen and take stock	Interview notes, list of open matters and deadlines, first risk list
Week 2	Set priorities and create first relief	Prioritised list, intake rule for new requests, two or three quick wins delivered
Weeks 3–4	Organise team, outside counsel and budget	Task allocation, outside counsel overview with budget status, handover document started
Day 30	Report to management and confirm direction	30-day report with risks, priorities, resource needs and plan to the end of the assignment

Week 1: conversations, risks and open matters

In the first week, an interim head of legal mainly listens and builds a complete picture of open matters and deadlines. Decisions are taken only where a deadline or a risk requires it.

Conversations

Management and the sponsor: expectations, priorities, sensitive issues.
Each team member individually: tasks, workload, open points, ideas.
Key internal clients such as procurement, sales, HR, finance and compliance.
The two or three most important outside law firms.

Taking stock

Pending proceedings, transactions and negotiations with deadlines.
Open legal risks, for example from contracts, regulator enquiries or internal reports.
Contract backlog: number of open reviews and age of the oldest request.
Board and shareholder meeting dates.

The output is a simple list: matter, deadline, owner, risk high, medium or low. The same list later forms the basis of the handover.

Week 2: priorities and quick wins

In the second week, the interim head of legal decides what is done first, what can wait and what no longer belongs with the legal team. The priorities are agreed with the sponsor.

Secure critical deadlines: every deadline in the next 60 days has an owner and a deputy.
Organise intake: new requests come through one channel, stating urgency and business value.
Pick quick wins: two or three visible improvements, such as an approval rule for standard contracts, a template or clearing the oldest contract requests.
Define escalation: who decides when a business unit and the legal team disagree?

Quick wins should build trust, not pre-empt the plans of the future head of legal. Fundamental changes such as new structures or role profiles belong in the report to management, not in week 2.

Weeks 3–4: team, outside counsel and budget

In weeks 3 and 4, the interim head of legal organises the team's work, the relationship with outside law firms and the budget. The aim is a legal department that runs day to day without constant escalation to its head.

Team

Allocate tasks according to strengths and workload, and set deputies.
Introduce a short team routine, such as a weekly meeting on deadlines and priorities.
Name capacity gaps. If the team lacks working capacity as well as leadership, an additional interim legal counsel at junior, experienced or senior level can join.

Outside counsel and budget

Overview of all current law firm mandates with scope, fee basis, costs to date and expected remaining costs.
Rules for new instructions: who may instruct and above which amount approval is needed.
Comparison with the legal department's budget, flagging expected overruns.

The handover document starts in parallel. Recording decisions, open points and contacts from week 3 saves weeks at the end of the assignment. How the later handover to a permanent appointment works is covered in from interim head of legal to permanent appointment.

The 30-day report to management

A 30-day report of two to four pages has proved useful: it shows management where the legal department stands and what will happen until the end of the assignment. It gives both sides a shared basis for decisions.

Situation: team, workload, open matters and backlog in a few sentences.
Top risks: five to ten legal risks with a rating and a proposed action.
Priorities: what will be completed by the end of the assignment, with dates.
Decisions needed: questions only management can answer, such as budget, choice of law firms or headcount.
Resources: whether capacity is missing and how it could be added.
Handover: planned process up to the successor's start or the head of legal's return.

The interim head of legal presents the report in person. Management then confirms or changes the priorities, which protects both sides from unspoken expectations.

How to tell the first 30 days have worked

The first 30 days have worked if no deadline was missed, priorities are confirmed in writing and the team knows who decides what. Measurable signs include:

all deadlines for the next 60 days recorded with owners,
a complete risk list and outside counsel overview,
the number and age of open contract requests stable or lower than at the start,
the 30-day report presented and priorities confirmed,
a handover document in place.

Limits and risks

Unclear authority: without powers of attorney or signing rights, the interim head cannot decide and requests pile up. Settle this before the start.
Too much restructuring: major reorganisations without a mandate burden the future head of legal. Structural questions belong in the report.
Responsibility stays with the company: Alpinum Solutions provides legal professionals and leaders and is not a law firm. The company directs the engagement and remains responsible for its legal function.
Freelancing and leadership: if a freelance interim head leads a team and is integrated into the organisation, in Germany this points to employment (Section 7(1) SGB IV). The status determination procedure provides certainty (Section 7a SGB IV). In Switzerland, the AHV compensation office assesses status based on the actual economic circumstances. For an integrated leadership role, staff leasing is therefore often the better fit.
Formal functions: whether the interim head can also take on a formal role, such as data protection officer, depends on the company's requirements and the rules in Switzerland or Germany.
Part-time without rules: an interim head working 60 % needs fixed days on site and a deputy for urgent matters.

Frequently asked questions about starting an interim head of legal

What authority does an interim head of legal need?

An interim head of legal needs the authority required to run the legal department day to day: setting team priorities, instructing law firms within the agreed budget and approving standard contracts. The company decides whether powers of attorney or signing rights are granted. What matters is that this authority is set out in writing before day one and is known internally.

Does an interim head of legal work part-time or full-time?

Both are possible. Because an interim head leads a team and must be available for urgent questions, full-time is more common in the first weeks. Once things are stable, the workload can be reduced, for example to three or four days a week. This requires fixed days on site, a deputy and clear rules for urgent requests.

How is the success of an interim head of legal measured?

Success is measured against agreed outcomes, not hours. In the first 30 days, what counts is secured deadlines, a confirmed priority list, a complete risk and outside counsel overview and a presented report. Later, objectives from the mandate are added, such as a reduced contract backlog or a documented handover to the successor.

What should an interim head of legal avoid in the first weeks?

They should not launch fundamental changes without a mandate, such as new role profiles or switching law firms without agreement. These questions belong in the 30-day report. Nor should they take on work the team can handle, because that makes the handover at the end of the assignment harder.

How quickly can an interim head of legal start?

At Alpinum Solutions, selected profiles are usually available within 48 hours; the start date is agreed between the company and Alpinum. When the person actually starts depends on their availability, interviews, the contract and system access being ready.

Next step

Alpinum Solutions provides companies in Switzerland and Germany with legal leaders through staff leasing and freelancing, part-time or full-time. Describe the reason, the team and the planned end of the assignment, and you will receive selected profiles.

Last updated: 30 October 2026.

Interim head of legal: the first 30 days