Same game, different rules: why compliance plays chess and legal plays poker
A breakfast roundtable for legal and compliance leaders.
Wednesday, 9 December, from 09:00 to 11:00.
The Boathouse London East, Paddington Basin.
Compliance and legal protect the same organization, but they rarely play by the same rules. Compliance thinks like a chess player: fixed rules, consistent standards, controls that prevent problems before they start. Legal thinks like a poker player: hidden information, conditional answers, and a position you can defend when things go sideways.
Both approaches work. The trouble starts when nobody has agreed which one governs a given decision. “It depends” stalls the conversation. Matters escalate because no one can resolve the standoff. The business hears two answers to one question, and boards and regulators notice when risk functions speak with two voices.
Over breakfast, Robert Greco, General Counsel at SpeakUp, will moderate an open, off-the-record conversation among general counsel, chief compliance officers, and heads of investigations. We’ll look at where the two functions collide in your organization, which escalation triggers you have (or haven’t) agreed in advance, and what it takes to build one story both sides can stand behind.
On the agenda
- Chess or poker? How legal and compliance approach the same risk differently, and when each approach should govern.
- “It depends”: what it really means when legal says it, and how to make it the start of a decision instead of the end of one.
- Same words, different meanings: why “risk” and “escalation” trigger different responses in each function.
- Defensible vs. safe: who in your organization has the standing to ask the harder question.
- Escalation thresholds: agreeing in advance when a matter moves up the chain, and what to bring when it does.
- Options, not conclusions: presenting leadership with trade-offs rather than a single answer.
- One story, many audiences: building a narrative that both functions can stand behind with the board, regulators, and the business.
- Documenting the why: capturing the reasoning behind decisions, not just the steps taken.
Have a topic you’d like to discuss? Reply to the confirmation email. We’ll shape the conversation around what’s on your mind.
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