I see nothing untoward about talking to a lawyer before talking to McQueary. Also, that lawyer (Courtney Wendell) was a Penn State counsel, not their personal counsel. There's a difference.
From Joe Paterno's own grand jury testimony:
Q: To whom or with whom did you share the information that McQueary had given you?
Mr. Paterno: I talked to my immediate boss, our athletic director. (note by me: later records would show that this initial phone call occurred on Sunday 11-February, 1 day after McQueary told Paterno. It's also on the record and a fact that Paterno/Curley/Schultz met in person later that afternoon of 11-February)
Q: What is that person’s name?
Mr. Paterno: Tim Curley.
Q: How did you contact Mr. Curley?
Mr. Paterno: I believe I did it by phone. As I recall, I called him and I said, hey, we got a problem, and I explained the problem to him.
Q: Was the information that you passed along substantially the same information that Mr. McQueary had given you?
Mr. Paterno: Yes.