Senior Counsel, M&A

General Mills; Minneapolis (MN); On-site; USD 150,000 - 249,000; Full time

Job summary

General Mills seeks a senior attorney with substantial M&A experience to join its M&A legal practice group in Minneapolis. The role covers strategic portfolio shaping from negotiations through signing, closing and post-closing integration, in collaboration with the Assistant GC and Center of Excellence.

The ideal candidate has significant M&A experience in a law firm or in-house setting and will work with cross-functional teams to guide complex transactions to successful close.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree required.
• At least 4 years of M&A experience.
• Experience in a large law firm or corporate legal department preferred.
• Strong project management, judgment, and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide legal counsel and support to the M&A team to achieve portfolio shaping objectives.
• Direct interaction with corporate M&A team and the M&A Center of Excellence.
• Identify and resolve legal issues across transaction life cycle.
• Lead due diligence for buy-side and sell-side transactions.
• Prepare and negotiate transaction documents including purchase and merger agreements and MSAs.
• Support post-signing matters and integration planning workstreams.

Skills

Project management

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Juris Doctor degree

4+ years of experience in M&A

Job description

COMPANY OVERVIEW

We exist to make food the world loves. But we do more than that. Our company is a place that prioritizes being a force for good, a place to expand learning, explore new perspectives and reimagine new possibilities, every day. We look for people who want to bring their best — bold thinkers with big hearts who challenge one another and grow together. Because becoming the undisputed leader in food means surrounding ourselves with people who are hungry for what’s next. General Mills is seeking a senior attorney with M&A experience to join its M&A legal practice group. The position will be responsible for providing support to the company’s strategic portfolio shaping activities, including acquisitions, divestures and joint ventures in partnership with the Assistant General Counsel, M&A. This role will work closely with the Corporate M&A team and the M&A Center of Excellence to deliver on General Mills’ strategic portfolio shaping objectives throughout the full life cycle of the transactions from negotiations to signing, closing and post-closing integration/separation matters. Ideal candidates will have significant M&A experience at a law firm or in-house.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide legal counsel and support to the M&A team to successfully achieve desired portfolio shaping objectives through acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures.
• Provide day-to-day support and direct interaction with corporate M&A team and the broader M&A Center of Excellence team.
• Liaise with Legal and Corporate Affairs subject matter experts to identify and resolve a wide variety of legal issues that arise throughout the life cycle of each transaction.
• Support the early stages of transactions, including NDAs, engagement letters, IOIs, and MOUs.
• Lead and coordinate legal due diligence for buy-side and sell-side transactions.
• Assist, in collaboration with the cross-functional team and outside counsel, with the preparation and negotiation of transaction documentation, including purchase and merger agreements, transition services agreement, license agreements, supply/co-manufacturing arrangements, and joint venture and shareholder agreements.
• Advise and support on post-signing matters, including preparation of any regulatory filings, managing closing checklist matters, and assisting with integration planning workstreams to ensure close readiness.
• Lead and advise on post-closing transaction matters, including interpretation of transaction documentation requirements, support of the ongoing integration or separation workstreams, and carrying out of any post-closing legal requirements.

Minimum Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree
• At least 4 years of experience

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working in a large law firm or legal department of a large publicly held corporation, with responsibility for supporting M&A transactions.
• Strong project management, judgment, and communication skills, including with cross‑functional team members, stakeholders and outside advisors under tight timelines.
• Ideal candidate will also have familiarity with commercial law matters.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is: $149,500 - $249,300 Annual. At General Mills we strive for each employee's pay at any point in their career to reflect their experiences performance and skills for their current role. The salary range for this role represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to, educations, skills, work experience, certifications, etc. As such, pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range. Beyond base salary, General Mills offers a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well‑being.

Benefits

• Foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support and perks.
• Benefits may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors.
• You may also be eligible to participate in an annual incentive program.
• An incentive award, if any, depends on various factors, including, individual and organizational performance.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet a minimum 18-year age qualification.

Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE)

General Mills is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital or familial status, status regarding public assistance, or membership or activity in a local human rights commission.

Reasonable Accommodation Request

If you need to request an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please fill out our online accommodation request form by following this link: Accommodation Request.