Kimberly Cahill Email & Phone Number

Boston, Ma, Us

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Define and direct an effective, compliant, legally-defensible risk management strategy consistent with the rules of professional practice and firm business goals. Navigate and alleviate complex ethics and compliance issues. Set policies, standards, and best practices for conflict checks, resolution, business intake workflow, ethical walls, onboarding and departure activity, and other areas of risk. Assess new matters and ongoing engagements for risks and quality concerns. Employ rules, criteria and well-placed automation to extend the reach of the General Counsel and foster positive, risk-aware habits in lawyers and staff. Bridge the communications gap between legal and technical teams ensuring greatest possible outcome and satisfaction and lowest possible risk. Serve as subject matter expert and "guardian for the firm" on conflicts and risk-related questions. Work closely with management and attorney leadership to achieve objectives. Secure resources and technologies and devise practices and templates necessary to carry out the program. Negotiate vendor service contracts. Maintain working knowledge of all departments and practice areas to assist with matter setup and recognize cross-departmental risk. Advise attorneys and staff regarding risk associated with engagement and lateral activity. Communicate policies and procedures and help users negotiate the process. Compose reference guides and conduct training. Evaluate all firm engagements for errors and potential issues. Identify vulnerabilities and recommend solutions. Define and uphold standards for corporate research, searching, and analysis. Identify conflicts correctly, consistently, and with utmost speed and accuracy. Train Analysts to do the same and with the same degree of accuracy, reliability, and articulation. Employ sound judgment, diplomacy, and instinct to recognize when a proposed resolution doesn’t go far enough or an issue rises to level of complexity or sensitivity warranting additional review.

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

• Designed, implemented and oversaw Risk Management and Information Governance programs for the firm. Primary areas of responsibility: conflicts, new matter intake, workflow, records, and retention/destruction. • Worked closely with Loss Prevention Partners, Ethics Partner, Managing Partner, Executive Director, Executive Committee, Practice Group Leaders and Department Chairs, Conflicts Committee, Information Security Committee, and other administrative management to achieve risk management and information governance goals• Managed two staff support teams including Conflicts Analysts and Information Governance Analysts • Maintained expert knowledge in both disciplines and enacted best practices. Procured resources and technologies necessary to roll out and support both programs. Managed collective operational budget.ACCOMPLISHMENTS• Streamlined conflict clearance and matter intake for faster turnaround times and reduced risk• Upgraded conflict checking function from a simple name search to include focused research and pre-analysis for the attorneys• Successfully completed several major workflow process overhauls and upgrades• Designed, developed and implemented customized business intake workflow systems• Implemented comprehensive corporate research and an advanced synonym searching• Conducted training programs for all offices on conflict awareness, workflow software, and advanced risk topics. Led user workshops.• Developed and updated key policies• Created and implemented firm-wide ethical wall process at zero cost• Developed standards to better control information relating to lateral attorney movement and the Client/matter lifecycle

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Greater Boston Area

Resolved conflicts of interest through daily interaction with attorneysOrganized discussions and arranged for waivers, ethical walls, and declinations as necessaryReviewed all incoming new business for potential conflicts according to firm policy, liability insurance guidelines, and rules of ethics and professional conductEvaluated billing arrangements and terms of engagement for all matter requestsGuided practitioners in drafting appropriate language for waivers and engagement lettersProvided follow-up for attorneys concerning pending engagements and outstanding conflict issuesTracked receipt and imaging for waiver letter documentationConducted and analyzed family tree research using all available corporate resourcesControlled risks associated with potential process pitfalls such as “additional parties”, matters litigated after initial intake, and “general” mattersManaged publication and distribution of daily firm-wide confidential conflicts/new business listBenchmarked best practices for Elite, conflict reports, workflow processes, intake forms, and extend eventsConstructed and managed ethical walls in Elite and Hummingbird DMS using IntApp Ethical Wall Builder and timekeeper restrictionsTrained new Conflicts staff regarding proper intake processes and proceduresSupported Records Department, particularly regarding questions about ethical walls and client records releases

Greater Boston Area

Completed 4-month contract term for audit of select client agreements Designed system for information capture and analysis of specific contract languageTransferred results of audit into the new system as searchable, trackable dataPerformed project risk assessment and developed contingency plan

Greater Boston Area

Initiated knowledge management system, which combined knowledge bases of Conflicts, Finance, Marketing and Human Resources data and displayed information by user access level Oversaw conflicts and CRM databasesFulfilled roles of Database Administrator and Data Steward for InterAction CRM systemTroubleshot Elite and InterAction databases and provided support to users and project teamDefined and implemented database structure, best practices, workflow process and smart-form needsCommunicated firm's KM needs to vendors, developers, principal stakeholders, and core team membersDeveloped business for prospective casesDefined classification system for previously un-captured case information. This taxonomy:Integrated 2-8 levels of work descriptions to capture each practice area Streamlined data for Marketing and Practice Development purposesManaged and reported client and prospect data for use by Marketing and consultants

Greater Boston Area

Led Conflicts research team specializing in Intellectual Property and Health Care practice areasSupported attorneys in private bond and investment transactions, securities compliance, and general corporate maintenance matters Streamlined conflicts and new business intake processes for all practice areasMaximized quality of service provided to firm attorneys by benchmarking best practices used by other firmsEvaluated business process flow both independently and as part of firm’s Process Improvement ProgramDefined technical specifications for new Records and Conflicts software, and evaluated available productsCultivated awareness of conflicts issues through individual, group, and attorney educational sessionsConducted corporate research, ran conflict reports and produced client quality checksDeveloped system for managing engagement letters and restrictive documentsBuilt ethical walls, both around specific related parties and around specific subject matter issuesCreated forms and processes for firm's new workflow system Led firm-wide conflict checking, new business intake, and workflow forms software training program

M.S., Computer Information Systems

M.S. in Computer Information Systems with a concentration in Databases and Project Management & Graduate Certificate in Internet.

Certificate, Paralegal Studies

B.A., Government

Activities and Societies: Co-Alumnae Class President (2014 - 2019) Alumnae Class Vice President (1999 - 2004) Class Treasurer (1998.