Why Lawyers Need to Be Accountable feat. Anne Marie Engel

Apr 29
3 min read

Anne Marie Engel is a lawyer, fractional general counsel, and self-described accountability architect. In this episode, Anne Marie shares how her 30-year legal career led her to rethink the role of lawyers in business, why accountability and fiduciary duty are being lost in the profession, and how she now helps companies prevent problems before they start.

About This Episode

Background

Anne Marie Engel’s legal career has never followed a single track. Over more than three decades, she has worked across contracts, leadership, business operations, and legal advisory roles, building a perspective shaped by both traditional legal work and hands-on business experience. Her path includes running her own business, working as a contract administrator, and serving as executive counsel, all of which contributed to how she now approaches law as something deeply integrated into how businesses function.

“It’s kind of a culmination of all the crazy stuff that I’ve done in my legal career," shares Anne Marie Engel on You Are A Lawyer.

That range of experience gave her something many lawyers do not develop: the ability to see how legal decisions actually play out inside organizations. Instead of viewing law as separate from business, Anne Marie sees it as embedded in every decision, every department, and every risk a company takes. That perspective ultimately led her to redefine her role entirely.

Why Law School

For Anne Marie, law was not just about a career path. It was about stepping into a profession built on trust, responsibility, and the expectation of acting in someone else’s best interest. Over time, however, she became increasingly aware that the profession was drifting away from those core principles, especially in moments where strong legal voices should have provided clarity and guidance.

“We certainly are fiduciaries of our clients," explains Anne Marie Engel on Episode 242 of You Are a Lawyer.

That belief shapes how she sees the purpose of a law degree today. It is not simply about technical knowledge or legal analysis. It is about responsibility. Law school trains people to think critically, but the real work begins in how those skills are applied in service of others. For Anne Marie, that fiduciary duty is not optional. It is the foundation of the profession.

What Can You Do with a Law Degree

Anne Marie’s career shows that a law degree can extend far beyond traditional legal roles. She has used her training in contract administration, leadership, project management, and advisory work, all of which require understanding not just the law, but how organizations operate. Her approach centers on being proactive rather than reactive, helping businesses identify and prevent risk instead of stepping in only after something has gone wrong.

“You need to be talking about the business," shares Anne Marie Engel on Episode 242 of You Are a Lawyer.

That shift from purely legal thinking to business-aware advising is where she believes lawyers can create the most value. A law degree becomes powerful when it is used to understand systems, guide decision-making, and support long-term strategy. In her view, lawyers should not sit on the sidelines waiting for problems. They should be integrated into how decisions are made from the beginning.

Lawyer Side Hustles

Anne Marie’s current work as an accountability architect and fractional general counsel brings all of her experience together into one model. She works with businesses to audit their legal structures, build systems, and create processes that reduce risk while supporting growth. Instead of acting as a traditional outside lawyer, she steps in as a partner who helps leaders understand what their legal function should actually be doing.

“I can come in and we’re going to map out your legal issues and we’re going to set the legal operations up in your business,” Anne Marie Engel expresses in Episode 242 of You Are a Lawyer.

Her work focuses on structure, clarity, and accountability. She helps companies move away from reactive legal strategies and toward intentional systems that support their goals. It is less about solving isolated problems and more about building a foundation that prevents them.