Asst General Counsel, Litigation

Work Location Type: Hybrid  

Req Number  326190

About Grainger

W.W. Grainger, Inc., is a leading broad line distributor with operations primarily in North America, Japan and the United Kingdom. At Grainger, We Keep the World Working® by serving more than 4.5 million customers worldwide with products and solutions delivered through innovative technology and deep customer relationships. Known for its commitment to service and award-winning culture, the Company had 2024 revenue of $17.2 billion across its two business models. In the High-Touch Solutions segment, Grainger offers approximately 2 million maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) products and services, including technical support and inventory management. In the Endless Assortment segment, Zoro.com offers customers access to more than 14 million products, and MonotaRO.com offers more than 24 million products. For more information, visit www.grainger.com.  

Compensation

The anticipated base pay compensation range for this position is $176,300.00  to $293,800.00.

Rewards and Benefits

With benefits starting on day one, our programs provide choice and flexibility to meet team members' individual needs, including:

• Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans with coverage starting on day one of employment and 6 free sessions each year with a licensed therapist to support your emotional wellbeing.
• 18 paid time off (PTO) days annually for full-time employees (accrual prorated based on employment start date) and 6 company holidays per year.
• 6% company contribution to a 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan each pay period, no employee contribution required.
• Employee discounts, tuition reimbursement, student loan refinancing and free access to financial counseling, education, and tools.
• Maternity support programs, nursing benefits, and up to 14 weeks paid leave for birth parents and up to 4 weeks paid leave for non-birth parents.

For additional information and details regarding Grainger’s benefits, please click on the link below:

https://experience100.ehr.com/grainger/Home/Tools-Resources/Key-Resources/New-Hire

The pay range provided above is not a guarantee of compensation.  The range reflects the potential base pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual base pay compensation will depend, in part, on factors such as geographic work location and relevant experience and skills.   

The anticipated compensation range described above is subject to change and the compensation ultimately paid may be higher or lower than the range described above. 

Grainger reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion at any time, consistent with applicable law.

Position Details

The Assistant General Counsel, Litigation reports to the VP, Associate General Counsel & Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer and serves as Grainger’s senior leader responsible for its global litigation and disputes portfolio. This role manages all enterprise litigation and pre-litigation disputes, leads a team of legal professionals, ensures the company's litigation posture supports enterprise objectives, and advises senior executives and the Board of Directors.

The Assistant General Counsel, Litigation collaborates extensively across the business—including with Finance, Internal Audit, Ethics & Compliance, and senior leadership—to drive disciplined litigation management, elevate reporting and analytics, and proactively minimize risk. The position requires exceptional litigation judgment, leadership capability, and experience operating in a complex, multinational environment. This is a hybrid role based in Lake Forest, IL

You Will

Manage Litigation and Strategy:

• Lead Grainger’s global portfolio of litigation, claims, and disputes, including products/tort, commercial, intellectual property, employment, and regulatory matters.
• Develop and implement litigation strategies that balance legal, financial, and reputational considerations to achieve favorable outcomes.
• Manage and evaluate outside counsel, ensuring performance excellence, effective staffing, and cost-efficient representation.
• Oversee discovery strategy, eDiscovery processes, and document management systems, ensuring compliance and operational effectiveness.

Advise Senior Leaders and Board of Directors

• Provide strategic counsel to senior executives and the Board of Directors on significant litigation matters, emerging risks, trends, and potential business impacts.
• Prepare Board materials and litigation updates, ensuring clarity, accuracy, and alignment with enterprise priorities.
• Serve as a trusted advisor and thought partner on dispute resolution, settlement strategy, and risk mitigation; provide trainings on litigation-related topics.

Control Spend and Enhance Reporting

• Partner closely with Finance, Controllership, and external auditors to support accruals, reserves, and litigation-related financial reporting.
• Champion operational discipline through robust data management, spend analytics, matter reporting, and performance dashboards; establish KPIs to evaluate litigation performance.
• Enhance internal processes for case tracking, matter budgeting, forecasting, and trend analysis to improve transparency and productivity.

Lead and Develop a Team

• Lead and mentor a team of legal professionals—including direct report(s) and supporting team members—ensuring strong performance, development, and engagement.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement within the legal function.
• Strengthen cross-functional alignment with internal partners to ensure consistent, enterprise-wide litigation strategy and readiness.

You Have

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school; licensed to practice law in Illinois.
• Minimum 10+ years of litigation experience, including at least 4 years of in-house experience and prior experience trying or litigating cases in private practice or at a government agency.
• Proven ability to manage complex litigation portfolios and outside counsel.
• Strong business acumen and ability to influence senior stakeholders.
• Must have experience with ediscovery and document management systems.
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving.
• Excellent negotiation and communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• The ability to build strong working relationships – internally within Grainger, external partners and counsel, and to communicate complex legal concepts to non-legal stakeholders.
• Must have impeccable judgment and the highest ethical standards, that is, someone who will always do the right thing.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or expression, protected veteran status or any other protected characteristic under federal, state, or local law. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive, accessible work environment that includes both providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities during the application and hiring process as well as throughout the course of one’s employment, should you need a reasonable accommodation during the application and selection process, including, but not limited to use of our website, any part of the application, interview or hiring process, please advise us so that we can provide appropriate assistance.