Education: 1992: J.D., Harvard Law School; 1988: B.A., Wheaton College.

Career in Brief: 2001–present: McDonald's Corporation (2005–present: Managing Litigation Counsel; 2002–2005: Senior Litigation Counsel; 2001–2002: Litigation Counsel); 1992–2001: Winston & Strawn LLP (2000–2001: Partner; 1992–2000: Associate).

Location of Company HQ: Oak Brook, Illinois.

Primary Industry Sector: Restaurant.

Revenues in the Last Financial Year: $28.1 billion.

Number of Employees Worldwide: 440,000.

Law Department Locations: Most of our attorneys in the US are based in Oak Brook, Illinois. Because McDonald's operates in more than 100 countries, we also have attorneys based in a number of locations throughout the world.

What is the total number of attorneys in the company worldwide, and how many focus on litigation? McDonald's Global Legal Department currently has 213 attorneys, 12 of whom focus exclusively on litigation.

Where does litigation fall within the organizational structure? The Litigation Practice Group reports to the Senior Vice President and Chief Counsel of Global Operations, who reports to the General Counsel.

How typical or unique is the scope of responsibilities for the company's litigation attorneys? Given the expansive scope of McDonald's operations, the company's litigation attorneys are involved in a wide variety of matters, including class actions, government investigations, supplier disputes, and franchising, intellectual property, employment, antitrust and real estate litigation. In addition to handling active litigation matters, the litigation attorneys provide advice and counsel to business clients and colleagues all over the world to mitigate risk, resolve disputes and defend the McDonald's brand.

What is keeping your department's attorneys the busiest at the moment? McDonald's operates one of the largest franchise systems in the world, and also manages an extremely large portfolio of real estate assets. The litigation attorneys, along with our colleagues in the Global Legal Department, therefore spend a good deal of time attempting to resolve disputes in the franchising and real estate arenas. Additionally, like most large employers and companies in the retail sector, we spend our time working to resolve disputes in employment and intellectual property matters.

Have any recent legal developments changed the way your department operates? We recently expanded the responsibilities of our e-discovery attorney to ensure that we stay on the cutting edge of developments in that area.

What types of issues will cause you to turn to outside counsel? We partner with outside counsel in virtually all cases that are in active litigation. However, approximately 75% of our litigation docket is composed of pre-litigation matters, and we typically do not retain outside counsel in those matters unless they require specific expertise that we lack in-house.

What types of issues will cause you to push for alternative fee arrangements with outside counsel? We will consider alternative fee arrangements for a variety of matters. Like most litigation departments, we place a high priority on managing cases efficiently and cost-effectively. We also strive to provide realistic cost projections to our business clients, which is challenging because of the inherently unpredictable nature of litigation. Alternative fee arrangements can provide more predictability and align our incentives with those of our outside counsel.

What three things does a law firm need to do to impress you? Think strategically and creatively, and work with me to devise a strategy tailored to achieve the company's objectives. Welcome my input, but do not always agree with everything I say. A true partnership involves challenging one another to ensure that we consider an issue from all angles. And be unfailingly honest and transparent. If something goes wrong, it is much better to inform me immediately so that we can work together to devise a solution.

Can you describe the career path that led you to become an in-house litigation counsel? I spent nine years working in the Litigation Department at Winston & Strawn's Chicago office, and I greatly enjoyed my practice there. But when I learned that McDonald's was hiring a litigation attorney, I thought it would be an exciting challenge to work for one of the world's largest and most recognizable brands. I feel truly blessed to be doing what I love at a company that I love.

If not an attorney, what would you wish to be? If I had enough talent, I would have loved to be a professional musician.

What one piece of advice would you give to prospective in-house litigation counsel? Do not think of yourself solely as a litigation attorney. You will provide the most value to your clients when you help them think strategically about the issues confronting the business, work with them to develop and assess alternatives, and counsel them on the best ways to achieve their objectives while minimizing risk and protecting the brand.