Thought Leadership

Thought Leadership

Exploring Leadership, Governance, and Integrity

Across four decades in the courtroom, boardroom, C-suite, and classroom, Alex Dimitrief has explored what leadership and integrity look like under pressure. His writing and speaking engagement examine crises and corporate culture, the evolving role of lawyers, the responsibilities of modern CEOs, and the human dynamics that shape trust inside organizations.

Publications & Media

This collection highlights representative publications, keynote addresses, interviews, teaching materials, and media features – from insights on crisis leadership and corporate purpose to reflections on inclusion, accountability, and the future of the legal profession.

Alex’s insights have reached audiences through leading outlets including Bloomberg Law, Law360, Directors & Boards, and Corporate Counsel, as well as global broadcast interviews and podcasts examining ethics, governance, and the demands placed on modern leaders.

  • The New Normal: Remote Working, Billing and Law Firm Activism, Accelerating Trends in Law Firms, September 2021
  • Rebuilding Trust, A World of Opportunity, February 2018
  • Not@GE, Generally Counseling (GE Leadership Blog), October 2017
  • Still Too Separate and Unequal, Generally Counseling (GE Leadership Blog), July 2016
  • Billing, in Successful Partnering Between Inside and Outside Counsel, Thomson Reuters Westlaw and the Association of Corporate Counsel, Chapter 14, 2012 (with Kate O’Leary)
  • Taking Federalism Seriously, 36 DePaul Law Review 463, 1987 (with Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr.)

A Map to Nowhere – The Gerrymandering Decision, Chicago Tribune, August 1986

  • Featured speaker at 50+ law firm and legal department retreats and off-sites
  • Panelist, How to Work With GC’s, CMO Series Live, New York, July 2024
  • Chair, A Journey to Empowerment, 2022 Global Leaders in Law Conference, Napa Valley, June 2022
  • Panelist, American Investment in China, The Federalist Society, Washington, DC, May 2022
  • Chair, Leading with Purpose, 2020 Global Leaders in Law Conference, Lake Como, Italy, October 2021 
  • Panelist, Welcome to the New Normal, Legal Marketing Association, June 2021
  • Panelist, Value-Based Approaches to Pricing Conversations, Legal Marketing Association, March 2021
  • Panelist, How to Raise Your Rates and Not Alienate Your Clients, ALM Media Webinar, January 2021
  • Panelist, Navigating the Coronavirus Pandemic, ALM Media Webinar, March 2020
  • “Effective Presentations to Senior Management,” Nokia, February 2020
  • “A Conversation with Alex Dimitrief,” Novartis Legal Week, Davos, September 2019
  • Panelist, “Working Across the C-Suite,” Arthur Page Society Conference, Boston, September 2019 
  • Keynote Speaker, “Working Wiser,” Global Counsel Leaders Circle, Washington, May 2019
  • Panelist, Inaugural Am Law 100 Conference on Gender Parity, Georgetown Law School, May 2019
  • “Restoring Civil Discourse in America,” Bill of Rights in Action Awards Dinner, Constitutional Rights Foundation – Chicago, November 2018
  • Panelist, “A New Era of Paradigm Shift,” Kiev International Economic Forum, October 2018
  • Panelist, “How Can Global CEOs Support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?”
    Future Investment Initiative, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 2018
  • Panelist, “The Globalization Challenge,” Minority Corporate Counsel Association’s Creating Pathways to Diversity Conference, New York, September 2018
  • “Corporate Culture and the Evolving Role of Lawyers,” Richards Kibbe & Orbe LLP Speaker Series,
    New York, September 2018
  • Panelist, “Men in the Mix,” National Summit for Achieving Long-Term Careers for Women in Law, Northwestern University, June 2018
  • Commencement Speaker, New York Law School, June 2018
  • Panelist, “The Future of Energy,” Summit of the Americas, Lima, Peru, April 2018
  • Panelist, “New Frontiers: Emerging Technologies and Political Risk,” Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, March 2018
  • Panelist, “Renewable Energy, Future Cities,” Innovation to Impact Forum, MIT, March 2018 
  • “General Counsel Interview,” 34th International Conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Washington, D.C., November 2017
  • Panelist, “The Role of Law in Protecting and Embedding Value,” Financial Times Live: The Rule and Role of Law, New York, November 2017
  • Panelist, “Fostering the Industrial Internet to Accelerate Economic Growth and Transformation,” Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, Washington, D.C., September 2017 
  • Keynote Speaker, Annual Conference, Ethics & Compliance Initiative, Washington, D.C., April 2017
  • Panelist, “General Counsel:  Who Hires, Who Fires, Who Determines Diversity in Selection of Outside Counsel,” Just the Beginning, Thurgood Marshall Courthouse, New York, September 2016
  • “Importance of Business and Commercial Ties in Helping to Build a Foundation for Constructive Engagement Between Countries,” St. Petersburg International Legal Forum, May 2016
  • Opening Keynote, Annual Ethics Summit, Ethisphere, New York, March 2016
  • Guest Lecturer, “Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Ask a Client But Were Afraid to Ask,” Husch Blackwell University, Washington University School of Law, St. Louis, January 2016
  • Panelist, “The Future of Civil Litigation,” Sedona Conference, April 2011
  • Panelist, “Update on the Federal Rules Advisory Committee,” 5th Annual Symposium on Civil Justice Issues, George Mason University Judicial Education Program, December 2010
  • “The Cost of Litigation,” Conference on Civil Litigation, Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure, Duke University School of Law, May 2010 (with the Searle Institute)
  • Keynote Speaker, “Defending GE, Its Products & Its People,” Hollingsworth LLP 20th Annual Seminar on Toxic Torts, Washington, D.C., April 2008
  • Automotive Recalls Reconsidered, International Bar Association, Paris, September 1995

 

 

Academic Perspective

Alex’s perspective is also shaped by his academic work. From 2019 to 2022, he taught The Corporation as a Citizen at Harvard Law School, exploring the intersections of business, policy, and corporate responsibility, and Corporations as a Distinguished Adjunct Professor and Senior Fellow at New York Law School, where he also advised the Center for Business and Financial Law. These teaching roles sharpened the themes that run through his writing and public commentary.

Exploring Leadership, Governance, and Integrity

Across four decades in the courtroom, boardroom, C-suite, and classroom, Alex Dimitrief has explored what leadership and integrity look like under pressure. His writing and speaking examine crises and corporate culture, the evolving role of lawyers, the responsibilities of modern CEOs, and the human dynamics that shape trust inside organizations.