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Job Description:
We are seeking to hire a food law lawyer at its worldwide headquarters in Minneapolis. This is an in-house lawyer position within our Worldwide Law Team, which is comprised of approximately 400 legal professionals (including 200+ lawyers) working in over 30 offices globally.

The lawyer filling this position will provide legal counsel to the company, Incorporated and its affiliates as an in-house lawyer and will be a part of our Law Department. This lawyer will work closely with businesses (primarily in the U.S. but also globally) and their commercial, operations and regulatory personnel, our Corporate Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs and Scientific and Regulatory Affairs functions, and outside legal and technical resources. This lawyer will also work with other lawyers and paralegals who provide legal counsel to the company worldwide as part of a multidisciplinary team and will function as a co-lead of the company Worldwide Food Law Team.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Provide food law counseling to the U.S. office and global businesses, including counsel on the application of food laws and regulation (primarily U.S. laws) to U.S. and global operations; preventive law training and education; and guidance on compliance with company policies and procedures;
• Advise businesses on food product retrieval events (recalls, withdrawals, etc), interfacing with customer and supplier legal counsel, as necessary;
• Manage food related information requests, investigations, enforcement actions and litigation, relating to our food businesses, including the retention, supervision and management of outside counsel, if necessary;
• Engage with FDA and state food authorities as appropriate to manage the company food law related issues;
• Provide legal advice on a variety of food-related issues including proposed or new legislation and regulation (including the new U.S. Federal Food Safety Modernization Act);
• Provide counseling relating to new product development, including GRAS applications and substantiation of health, nutrition, natural and other food-related claims;
• Facilitate cross-business and cross-functional collaboration in the food safety and food law space; and
• Support for food-related policy development and implementation.

QUALIFICATIONS:
• A law degree and license to practice law with practical experience in the food law area.
• 3+ years of food law experience.
• 5+ years FDA experience preferred.
• Forward thinking, proactive, ability to identify existing and emerging food law issues and effectively lead cross-function teams to resolution.
• Experience interpreting, applying and advising on FDA laws and regulations for both human and animal feed (additional experience with USDA laws and regulations preferred).
• Excellent academic track record (top 25% of law school class preferred).
• Knowledge and understanding of FDA organization and policy development and implementation.
• Maturity and strong leadership capabilities.
• Ability to effectively manage conflict and apply judgment in counseling.
• Excellent advocacy, communication and drafting skills.
• Strong strategic conceptual strength and ability to lead change and influence key internal and external stakeholders.
• Creative, resilient and flexible style and approach to solving legal problems.
• Ability and desire to work with diverse teams in meeting corporate goals and missions.
• Ability to balance legal expertise and advice with deep business acumen and commercial understanding.
• Ability to develop and leverage connections and expertise - internally and externally.
• Ability to travel in the U.S. and globally as needed.
Strong public speaking and teaching skills and the ability to share and explain complex concepts.