The power of judgment

Gurpartap Basra, Co-founder & CEO of GC Connected, examines how judgment – more than legal expertise – defines a General Counsel’s credibility, influence, and impact at the leadership table.

The hardest part of the GC role isn’t knowing the law – it’s knowing what’s right.

Every experienced General Counsel eventually realises something:
Law is rarely the hard part.

The real challenge – and the true measure of credibility – lies in judgment.
Not just legal judgment, but human judgment: what to say, when to say it, and how firmly to stand by it.

Because in a world full of policies, frameworks, and precedents, judgment is the one skill that cannot be automated, delegated, or replaced.

Why judgment more than knowledge

Technical expertise is the entry ticket.
Judgment is what earns you influence.

Boards and CEOs do not turn to GCs for statutes or citations.
They turn to them for the decision behind the decision – the ability to cut through complexity and guide an organisation toward what is right, not just what is permissible.

That’s why great judgment often looks quiet from the outside.
It’s not dramatic. It’s measured. It shows up in the pauses before the advice, the restraint in not overreacting, the courage to say “not yet” when everyone else is shouting “yes.”

“Every GC eventually faces a situation where the “legal” answer and the “right” answer diverge. That moment defines careers.”

The three faces of GC judgment

1. Strategic (seeing around corners)
   Great GCs see risk as motion, not as a moment.
   They don’t just assess what could go wrong – they anticipate how decisions today will shape the business years from now.
   Strategic judgment means knowing when to push boundaries and when to pull the handbrake.
2. Moral (doing what’s right when it’s unpopular)
   The toughest calls often come when no one’s watching.
   It’s easy to advise what’s legal.
   Harder to stand for what’s ethical.
   Every GC eventually faces a situation where the “legal” answer and the “right” answer diverge. That moment defines careers.
3. Interpersonal (knowing when to speak and when to stay silent)
   Some truths land better after lunch.
   Others need to be said in the boardroom, not the corridor.
   Judgment isn’t just about content – it’s about timing and tone.
   As one GC put it recently, “You can be right too early, and that’s still wrong.”

Judgment as the currency of credibility

In fast-moving companies, GCs are surrounded by noise – opinions, data, and dashboards.
But when things go wrong, or stakes run high, the room always turns to one person:
The voice of judgment.

That’s the moment when credibility crystallises – when people stop asking what the law says and start asking what you think.

That shift doesn’t happen by title.
It happens by trust.
And trust is built on consistent, courageous judgment – over time, across small decisions that accumulate into authority.

Final thoughts

The GCs who lead with judgment don’t need to speak the loudest or quote the most case law.
They influence by balance – by knowing when to question, when to support, and when to stand firm.

Because in the end, judgment isn’t about winning arguments.
It’s about earning belief

And that’s what separates the good from the great.

About the author:

With over 25 years in publishing – and more than a decade focused on the legal world – Gurpartap Basra spent 11 years at Legal 500, where he launched and led the major GC-focused projects around the globe. He played a pivotal role in creating and establishing GC Powerlist across 50+ countries, rolling out the GC Summit series, and building a hugely successful global legal events business. Along the way, he’s built one of the strongest networks of General Counsel worldwide. Now, as the co-founder and CEO of GC Connected, he’s using that experience to bring senior in-house lawyers together on a platform designed for connection, collaboration, and shared insight.

Gurpartap Basra
Email: gbasra@gcconnected.com

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