Senior Legal Counsel

Cardinal Health; Saint Paul (MN); On-site; USD 125,000 - 179,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

401k plan

Paid time off

Job summary

Cardinal Health is seeking a Senior Legal Counsel to serve as the primary legal partner for division leaders, providing guidance on commercial contracts, risk mitigation, and strategic business support. You will draft and negotiate agreements, liaise with internal teams, and ensure compliant contracting with customers, vendors, and strategic partners.

The role requires a law degree, active license to practice, and 5+ years within a large organization or top firm, with healthcare knowledge

Qualifications

• High academic achievement in law school
• Licensed to practice law in the relevant jurisdiction
• 5+ years of experience in a large complex organization or national law firm preferred
• Commercial/transactional experience; healthcare law knowledge preferred
• Strong written and verbal communication; ability to interface with personnel at many levels
• Proactive, self-starting with urgency and ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
• Developed business acumen and ability to translate legal risk into strategic solutions

Responsibilities

• Provide proactive and pragmatic legal advice to contracting business clients across the enterprise
• Draft and negotiate commercial contracts with external parties
• Manage fast-paced, high-volume workload while ensuring compliance
• Identify legal and compliance issues and escalate risks appropriately
• Collaborate with Litigation, Privacy, Regulatory Counsel, and Compliance teams
• Develop and improve contract templates in response to changing requirements
• Support business leaders with risk mitigation and strategic planning
• Serve as primary liaison to the Litigation team when engaging in disputes
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of regulations and case law relevant to commercial transactions
• Ensure accuracy and consistency of product information and messaging in communications

Skills

Contract drafting

Contract negotiation

Communication skills

Interpersonal skills

Risk assessment

Self-starter

Business acumen

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Juris Doctor (Law degree)

License to practice law

Job description

US-Nationwide-FIELD

Full time

What Commercial Transaction contributes to Cardinal Health

Legal provides the company with strategic, proactive, practical and cost-effective legal advice and services in order to protect the organization's assets, operations and image. This function provides legal counsel related to commercial, corporate securities, intellectual property, labor and employment, and regulatory law, among other areas. This function also litigates all company legal matters, manages outside counsel and manages legal operations.

Commercial Transaction provides legal advice, counsel and services to domestic and international businesses in support of customer, vendor, supplier, and strategic relationships, including drafting and negotiating contracts, participating in and providing input on business strategy, and otherwise acting as primary day-to-day legal contacts for business clients.

Job Summary

The Senior Legal Counsel serves as the primary legal partner to leaders of a division within a business unit, providing counsel on legal issues and risk mitigation guidance. The Senior Legal Counsel provides legal advice, counsel and services to domestic and international businesses in support of customer, vendor, supplier, and strategic relationships. This includes drafting and negotiating commercial contracts with external parties on behalf of the business, protecting the business’ interests and ensuring that contracts are compliant. Also, Senior Legal Counsel liaises with a variety of Legal and other internal teams to resolve legal issues while participating in and providing input on business strategy and otherwise acting as primary day-to-day legal contacts for business clients.

Responsibilities

• Provide proactive and pragmatic legal advice and guidance to contracting business clients across the enterprise based on advanced knowledge of commercial transactions and knowledge of corresponding laws and regulations
• Demonstrate strong business acumen and ability to draft and negotiate contracts
• Handle fast paced and high-volume workload
• Identify legal and compliance issues and business risks and elevate appropriately
• Effectively communicate with all levels of the Cardinal Health organization
• Identify and collaborate with subject matter experts from other teams, specifically Litigation, Privacy, Regulatory Counsel, and Compliance
• Proactively identify opportunities for process improvements and efficiencies, including enhancements or adjustments to contract templates based on changes in legal requirements or business strategies
• Work under the general supervision of senior attorneys and exercise sound judgment as to matters that require attention of Legal and Department senior leadership
• Provide excellent client service, counsels assigned division leaders on a variety of legal issues and serves as a trusted partner to the business proactively identifying legal risks and providing insights on how the business can incorporate risk mitigation into strategic planning.
• Meets with external parties to negotiate terms of agreements and to achieve the most favorable terms for the business. Based on combination of legal considerations and business acumen, counsels business leaders on the acceptance or refusal of external party terms.
• Reviews terms and revisions from external parties and manages the iterations of commercial agreement terms.
• Reviews a variety of marketing and public relations communications to ensure the compliance of all product information and messaging.
• When the business engages in litigation, serves as a primary liaison and expert on the business in support of the Litigation team.
• Proactively developing and maintaining legal knowledge in specialized area(s), remaining up to date on current regulations, cases, trends, and best practices

Qualifications

• Law degree with a record of high academic achievement in the undergraduate level and in law school
• License to practice law
• Candidates with at least 5 years of experience in a large complex organization or nationally recognized law firm preferred
• Commercial/transactional experience required; knowledge of healthcare law preferred
• Excellent oral and written communication skills; acute attention to detail
• Outstanding interpersonal skills, including diplomacy and flexibility, and the ability to interface effectively and engender trust and confidence with personnel at many different levels throughout the company
• Enthusiasm and “self-starter” qualities enabling him or her to manage responsibilities with an appropriate sense of urgency; the ability to function effectively and efficiently in a fast paced and dynamic environment
• Business acumen, including a well-developed understanding of business and commerce and the ability to diagnose corporate legal problems and present positive, creative solutions and alternatives

Anticipated salary range: $125,300-$178,900

Bonus eligible: Yes

Benefits: Cardinal Health offers a wide variety of benefits and programs to support health and well-being.

• Medical, dental and vision coverage
• Paid time off plan
• Health savings account (HSA)
• 401k savings plan
• Access to wages before pay day with myFlexPay
• Flexible spending accounts (FSAs)
• Short- and long-term disability coverage
• Work-Life resources
• Paid parental leave
• Healthy lifestyle programs

Application window anticipated to close: 10/16/2026 *if interested in opportunity, please submit application as soon as possible.

The salary range listed is an estimate. Pay at Cardinal Health is determined by multiple factors including, but not limited to, a candidate’s geographical location, relevant education, experience and skills and an evaluation of internal pay equity.

Cardinal Health supports an inclusive workplace that values diversity of thought, experience and background. We celebrate the power of our differences to create better solutions for our customers by ensuring employees can be their authentic selves each day. Cardinal Health is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, pregnancy, veteran status, marital status, creed, status with regard to public assistance, genetic status or any other status protected by federal, state or local law.

To read and review this privacy notice click here (https://www.cardinalhealth.com/content/dam/corp/email/documents/corp/cardinal-health-online-application-privacy-policy.pdf)

Headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE: CAH) is a distributor of pharmaceuticals, a global manufacturer and distributor of medical and laboratory products, and a provider of performance and data solutions for healthcare facilities.

We are a crucial link between the clinical and operational sides of healthcare, delivering end‑to‑end solutions and data‑driving insights that advance healthcare and improve lives every day. With deep partnerships, diverse perspectives and innovative digital solutions, we build connections across the continuum of care.

With more than 50 years of experience, we seize the opportunity to address healthcare's most complicated challenges — now, and in the future.

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