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The bad news for British Petroleum (BP) just keeps on coming. Remember that $20 billion the company set aside for claims arising out of the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill? They only have $1.7 billion unassigned after Business Economic Losses claims were higher than expected, reports Reuters.

Nearly two billion? That’s quite a bit, isn’t it? The company has also been hit by over 2,200 new lawsuits in the days before April 20, the three-year statute of limitations deadline imposed by the United States Oil Pollution Act of 1990. Meanwhile, they are currently in trial in New Orleans, Louisiana on related claims. According to Reuters, BP is expected to try to consolidate most of the new suits with the ongoing trial.

In what universe does Mike Rice's conduct not warrant a full investigation and swift and severe sanctions? Only in New Jersey, apparently, and some of those responsible for the wrist-slapping turned PR nightmare are getting the axe. Meanwhile, we can only hope that the university has learned a lesson in governance from this mess.

Mike Rice flung basketballs at players, berated them, physically struck them, and hurled homophobic insults constantly. His conduct only came to light after a disgruntled former employee, who is suing under a state whistleblower statute, leaked the tape to ESPN. Internally, however, Rutgers University was well-aware of the abuse - and responded with a short suspension and a fine.

As general counsel, you will need to wear a lot of different hats. And in taking on your different roles, you may have noticed that different moods and even different personality types can have varying degrees of effectiveness.

For example, sometimes it may make sense to be silent and remain behind the scenes advising your company. While at other times, you may want to be vocal and take the lead in discussions.

Inside Counsel recently took a look at seven types of GCs. Here's our take on the five of the more common GC personality types, and when they may be most effective:

Is it time for your company to address mass shootings? Does your workforce need training on how to escape, or how to avoid violent confrontations?

Several states like Alabama and Washington, believe so, and are encouraging employers to come up with training to address and prevent mass shootings.

In fact, some companies have even produced (corny) training videos that simulate what happens during an attack and what to do to protect yourself. The Alabama Department of Homeland Security's video is called "Run, Hide, Fight," while others bear titles such as "It Only Takes a Second," "Will You Be Here Tomorrow," and "Shake Hands With Danger," The Daily Beast reports.

But before you run out and hire a video production crew for your company, you should carefully consider whether your workplace needs to address this issue in the first place, and which type of training would be most effective.

With news of general counsel being deposed and even being held personally liable for their actions on the job, you may be wondering how to insulate yourself from legal liability and specifically how to avoid being deposed.

The law firm Reed Smith is tackling this exact issue in a series of articles on how in-house counsel can avoid being called as witnesses in employment cases.

In its first article, the firm provides its No. 1 tip for GCs to avoid depositions: Don't play a role in the decision-making process. But isn't this easier said than done?

What corporate legal lessons did you learn in 2012?

It's been a busy year for general counsel, as we witnessed an international patent war waged between two of the biggest tech companies in the world and the EEOC having perhaps its busiest year ever enforcing discrimination laws, just to name a few newsworthy developments.

While there are undoubtedly some stories and events you will want to forget from 2012 (such as general counsel salaries falling), here are the Top 10 lessons all GCs will want to remember:

If you're counsel for a Fortune 500 company (or a company that hopes to make it big one day), you may want to consider how your client stacks up when it comes to LGBT workplace equality.

The Human Rights Campaign's 2013 Corporate Equality Index ranks some of the biggest companies in the country, including multinational corporations, on how their policies address equality for LGBT employees. (For example, Thomson Reuters, FindLaw.com's parent company, scored 100 percent on the 2013 Corporate Equality Index.)

The Index describes the factors the HRC considered when rating each company -- factors that could be helpful for your client to consider as well. Not only is LGBT equality is the law in some states, but it's also good policy when it comes to preventing discrimination lawsuits.

It used to be unheard of for corporate executives, much less general counsel, to be held personally liable for crimes committed by a company.

But in the past 10 years, several GCs at companies like AIG, Hewlett-Packard, and World Health Alternatives have been personally targeted in legal actions, according to a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

You may be wondering if this is because corporate lawyers are committing more crimes or throwing ethics to the wind in this bottom-line-driven economy? Or is the prosecution of in-house counsel due to the federal government's renewed focus on holding corporate decision-makers (and those counseling them) accountable?

It's likely a combination of both. So if you're an in-house counsel, you should be aware that you may be held personally liable for your company's actions. Here are some tips you can incorporate to avoid liability:

More employers are turning to in house medical clinics in the workplace. These clinics provide a variety of services to employees such as diagnosing symptoms, writing prescriptions, and more. Is this trend a good idea?

These clinics can be a great morale boost to employees as they can simply have their medical issues checked out at work. More importantly for employers, these in house medical clinics can also save them a lot of money as employees are diagnosed and receive treatment earlier, writes NBC.

For every dollar spent on in-company programs, employers can get a return on investment of $1.50 to $3, according to a health care professionals study.

Online privacy is an ongoing issue but new Federal Trade Commission privacy guidelines show that the agency is taking these concerns seriously.

The guidelines were published on September 5, but they've been in the works for a while. They target mobile application developers but they apply to any company that plans to supplement its existing business with an app.

The new guidelines put the burden on companies to ensure that their privacy policies are sufficient and that consumer information is safe.