CFO THOUGHT LEADER Bridging Legal & Finance: Closing Contact Risk Gaps - A Suite Voices Miniseries Episode
Oct 31, 2025
Shaun Sethna, General Counsel and GM for The L Suite, dives into the intersection of legal and finance. He highlights common contract risks CFOs often overlook, like vague termination clauses. Shaun emphasizes the importance of aligning company strategies and cross-training teams to enhance collaboration. He advocates for AI to summarize agreements and track obligations efficiently. Additionally, he shares insights from an M&A case illustrating how mutual understanding between legal and finance can prevent costly oversights.
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Transcript
Episode notes
Locked-In Contracts May Not Be Secure
- Locked-in term language can be illusory if other termination grounds are vague or absent of notice-and-cure protections.
- Contracts that look secure can still be ended easily through broad breach or reputation clauses, exposing future revenue risk.
Align Strategy Before Contracting
- Align the executive team on strategic goals before drafting or negotiating contracts to guide acceptable tradeoffs.
- Use that alignment to decide what contractual protections or flexibility the business needs.
Cross-Train Legal And Finance Teams
- Run cross-training: teach lawyers basic finance and teach finance basic legal concepts to surface each other's priorities quickly.
- Use these mini-classes so reviewers know when to loop in the other function and what to watch for.