Corporate Counsel II - Regulatory Affairs

ALDI•Aurora, IL

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

ALDI is seeking a Corporate Counsel II to join their Regulatory Affairs team. This role is crucial for helping the business navigate a complex regulatory environment. The Corporate Counsel II will partner with business leaders to identify and manage risk, provide practical legal guidance, and support compliance across various regulatory matters impacting a national retailer. The position is particularly suited for an attorney experienced in sustainability and environmental compliance, including packaging regulations, extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs, waste and recycling, climate-related regulations, and other ESG obligations. Additionally, the role involves advising on weights and measures, pricing and promotional practices, product labeling, and other retail operations regulations. This collaborative position requires working across multiple functions to develop compliance strategies, monitor legal developments, engage with regulatory agencies and stakeholders, and prepare the organization for evolving legal requirements. The ideal candidate will possess strong legal judgment, a business-minded approach, deep knowledge of federal and state regulatory frameworks, and the ability to translate complex legal concepts into actionable advice for business growth and risk management.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree required.
A minimum of 5 years of progressive experience in a legal environment required, preferably in a combination of law firm and corporate or in-house experience with significant experience advising on regulatory, compliance, administrative law, or governmental affairs matters.
J.D. from an ABA accredited law school required.
Licensed to practice in Illinois (or immediate ability to become licensed) required.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite.
Ability to analyze and present complex data.
Ability to anticipate legal risks as well as utilize excellent judgment and analytical skills.
Ability to interpret and apply company policies and procedures.
Ability to stay organized, multi-task, and prioritize in a professional and efficient manner while working under strict deadlines.
Negotiation skills.
Ability to plan and organize workflow and embrace new challenges.
Ability to apply creative solutions.

Nice To Haves

Experience advising on sustainability frameworks is preferred.
Experience monitoring legislation, regulatory developments, agency guidance, and enforcement trends and advising business stakeholders regarding legal and operational impacts is preferred.
Experience interacting with or advising on matters involving federal, state, or local regulatory agencies preferred.
Experience supporting retail, food and beverage, consumer products, supply chain, product compliance, advertising, privacy, or other highly regulated industries preferred.
Or a combination of education and experience providing equivalent knowledge.

Responsibilities

Communicates effectively and informs direct leader of issues, status, and results of assigned tasks.
Identifies legal and regulatory affairs issues and recommends responsive action, with an emphasis on risk mitigation.
Engages with leadership, various business units, government agencies, industry groups, and external stakeholders regarding regulatory matters and compliance obligations.
Partners and liaises with outside counsel on legal matters and manages relevant external consultants.
Recommends process improvements for area of responsibility.
Provides strategic counsel to assigned business units on a wide range of legal and regulatory affairs issues to drive strategy and operational goals.
Researches, monitors, assesses, and communicates emergent legal trends, new legal and regulatory issues and laws, legislation, regulations, agency guidance, rulemaking activity, enforcement developments, and court decisions in multiple jurisdictions to drive strategy and operational goals; identifies and communicates impactful updates and business implications to direct leader and relevant business units.
Drafts legal memorandums, regulatory assessments, attorney correspondence, reports, and other work product to identify exposures and risks then reports findings to direct leader.
Partners with Quality Assurance, Sustainability, Buying, Supply Chain, Operations, Compliance, and other business functions to assess regulatory requirements and implement effective compliance solutions.
Serves as a liaison for various areas of the business, including creating and reviewing related agreements.
Assists in responding to regulatory inquiries, examinations, inspections, audits, investigations, and enforcement matters initiated by governmental authorities.
Partners with and manages outside counsel with respect to complex legal and regulatory affairs matters.
Identifies proactive, cost-effective solutions that will eliminate and/or mitigate legal and business risks.
Ensures effective implementation and communication of Legal programs, providing visibility of key milestones and progress.
Assists in developing, implementing and driving process improvements and infrastructure solutions to enhance the department’s ability to assist the Company and function efficiently.
Ensures compliance with legal documentation and Company policies.
Prepares and analyzes data to identify exposures and risks.
Provides proactive analysis of current projects and analytical review of reported results.
Develops, reviews, and delivers compliance guidance, policies, procedures, and training materials to support adherence to applicable regulatory requirements.
Advises business partners on regulatory requirements relating to retail operations, sustainability and environmental compliance initiatives, product labeling obligations, food and product compliance, weights and measures requirements, pricing, marketing and advertising, consumer protection, and other regulations affecting the Company.
Performs special projects as requested.
Drafts, reviews, and negotiates agreements.
Collaborates with team members and communicates relevant information to leadership.
Complies with ALDI privacy and security requirements and policies if job responsibilities include possible access to confidential and/or sensitive information.
Other duties as assigned.