Matt Campobasso is general counsel (GC) and corporate secretary to Enfusion, a publicly traded fintech company that provides investment management software to asset managers. Over 18 years, he has been a government attorney, a law firm partner, and the general counsel for both private and publicly traded companies.

In this interview, Matt discusses his approach to leading Enfusion’s legal team, advising Enfusion’s CEO and board of directors, and what GCs need from outside counsel.

This interview was condensed and edited for clarity.

What first prompted you to consider a career in law?

Simply put, my uncle. He is one of the kindest and most gregarious people you will ever meet. When I was old enough to understand what a career was, I learned that he was the general counsel of AAA-Chicago Motor Club. We would talk about what it meant to be a lawyer, how he helped his clients, and the sorts of issues he dealt with as an attorney. The more I learned, the more I thought I might enjoy being a lawyer, especially because I’ve always liked problem-solving and I’m an effective communicator.

It sounds like it was about more than problem-solving and communication.

The main thing that attracted me was the opportunity to help people. I consider myself an empathetic person, and I enjoy lightening people’s loads. As an attorney, I take a lot of pride in knowing I did something to make a situation better. For a large part of my career, I was a litigator at a law firm. Nothing was more fulfilling than helping a client who called me feeling like their world was caving in, and ensuring we had a clear plan to move forward by the end of the conversation. Helping people — whether colleagues, clients, or shareholders — is where I have felt the most joy in my career.

You started as a criminal prosecutor and then became a litigation partner at a law firm. How did those roles lead to your current role as GC?

As much as I loved trying cases, I found myself frustrated that so many issues got to a courtroom. By the time a lawyer is standing in front of a jury, so much has gone wrong, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent, and the fate of both parties lies in the hands of a jury. Ten years into my law firm career, I realized I needed to get closer to the decisions that ultimately led to the phone calls I got from clients. Then I joined Elevate, a legal technology and consulting company, where I did in-house legal work for companies as a consultant. From there I joined TruQua, an SAP consultancy, as their GC. When TruQua was acquired by IBM in 2020, I joined Enfusion.

Do litigators make good in-house lawyers?

I think litigators make the best in-house lawyers because they are used to fighting fires. As a litigator, you are dropped into a situation where everyone is upset and significant amounts of money are at stake. You have to acclimate quickly and learn the subject matter better than the people who are living in the facts of the dispute. That’s a powerful skill set for an in-house lawyer.

What did you learn about working in-house that lawyers at law firms might not appreciate or understand, particularly if they have never worked in-house themselves?

As a firm lawyer, I didn’t fully appreciate how diverse, high-frequency, and loud an in-house lawyer’s life can be. You have this tremendous volume and variety of things to deal with every day. The best firm lawyers understand what I’m thinking about, and how I think, at a molecular level. These lawyers are a GC’s best friend. When I call an outside lawyer, the lawyer may think the issue I’m calling about is top of mind for me, and sometimes it is. But sometimes it’s number 50 on my list. The best lawyers say, “Let me lighten your load. Give this to me and I’ll come back to you with a path forward.” And they deliver.