VP & Corporate Counsel

Brook & Whittle; Westlake (OH); On-site; USD 180,000 - 235,000; Full time

Job summary

Brook & Whittle Ltd. is seeking a Corporate Attorney to provide comprehensive legal support focused on commercial, supply, and general contracts, regulatory compliance, corporate governance, and risk management.

This role partners with executive leadership and cross‑functional teams to act as a trusted business advisor. You will draft and negotiate contracts, supervise outside counsel, oversee policy compliance, and contribute to strategic transactions and risk mitigation in a growing

Qualifications

• JD from an accredited law school and admission to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• 5–10+ years of legal experience, with a mix of law firm and in house experience, preferably in a manufacturing, industrial, or closely related environment.
• Strong background in commercial contracting and corporate or general business law; experience with supply chain, procurement, and manufacturing operations is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with regulatory and compliance issues relevant to manufacturing, such as product safety, environmental regulation, trade compliance, and data/privacy.
• Demonstrated ability to manage outside counsel and legal budgets effectively.
• Proactive business advisor; provide legal advice to facilitate business decision-making to manage risk and enable growth objectives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex legal concepts clearly and influence decision making.
• Proven judgment, integrity, and ability to work independently in a fast paced, plant driven environment while collaborating effectively with cross functional teams

Responsibilities

• Provide day to day legal advice to senior management and business teams on a wide range of issues, including commercial, operational, and corporate matters.
• Draft, review, and negotiate a broad spectrum of contracts (customer and supplier agreements, NDAs, MSAs, equipment and tooling agreements, logistics, IT, and service contracts) to align with business objectives and manage risk.
• Support manufacturing, supply chain, and procurement teams with legally sound terms on quality, delivery, warranty, indemnity, limitation of liability, force majeure, and change management.
• Oversee legal aspects of company policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws and industry regulations (e.g., product safety, environmental, export controls, trade compliance).
• Manage and coordinate litigation and disputes, including commercial, product liability, employment, and regulatory matters, and supervise outside counsel as needed.
• Advise on corporate governance matters, including corporate records, delegation of authority, and legal entity management.
• Partner with EHS and operations teams on environmental, health, and safety compliance, incident response, and regulatory reporting related to manufacturing activities.
• Advise on and support strategic transactions (M&A, joint ventures, site expansions, real estate leases), including due diligence, transaction documents, and post-close integration.
• Monitor legal and regulatory developments affecting the manufacturing sector and recommend proactive changes to contracts, policies, and practices.
• Lead the creation and continuous improvement of standard contract templates, playbooks, and legal processes to increase efficiency and consistency.
• Effectively manage external legal counsel for specialty matters, including IP, credit matters, litigation.
• Review existing contracts for potential risks/exposures, leveraging prior work completed by external counsel.
• Develop a legal contracts storage/management system
• Be a business advisor - Provide legal advice to senior leadership in the context of helping the company to make good business decisions.

Skills

Juris Doctor (JD)

Commercial contracting

Regulatory compliance

Corporate governance

Risk management

Leadership

Education

Juris Doctor degree

Tools

External counsel management

Contract drafting

Job description

Full-time

Description

Position Summary:

The Corporate Attorney is responsible for providing comprehensive legal support to Brook & Whittle, with a focus on commercial, supply, and general contracts, regulatory compliance, corporate governance, and risk management. This role partners closely with executive leadership, operations, supply chain, HR, and finance, and may act as de facto General Counsel or primary legal contact for the company. This is a critical new role being added to improve legal contracts, risk, compliance, and business management for a growing business; legal affairs were previously managed via external counsel.

Essential Functions:

• Provide day to day legal advice to senior management and business teams on a wide range of issues, including commercial, operational, and corporate matters.
• Draft, review, and negotiate a broad spectrum of contracts (customer and supplier agreements, NDAs, MSAs, equipment and tooling agreements, logistics, IT, and service contracts) to align with business objectives and manage risk.
• Support manufacturing, supply chain, and procurement teams with legally sound terms on quality, delivery, warranty, indemnity, limitation of liability, force majeure, and change management.
• Oversee legal aspects of company policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws and industry regulations (e.g., product safety, environmental, export controls, trade compliance).
• Manage and coordinate litigation and disputes, including commercial, product liability, employment, and regulatory matters, and supervise outside counsel as needed.
• Advise on corporate governance matters, including corporate records, delegation of authority, and legal entity management.
• Partner with EHS and operations teams on environmental, health, and safety compliance, incident response, and regulatory reporting related to manufacturing activities.
• Advise on and support strategic transactions (M&A, joint ventures, site expansions, real estate leases), including due diligence, transaction documents, and post-close integration.
• Monitor legal and regulatory developments affecting the manufacturing sector and recommend proactive changes to contracts, policies, and practices.
• Lead the creation and continuous improvement of standard contract templates, playbooks, and legal processes to increase efficiency and consistency.
• Effectively manage external legal counsel for specialty matters, including IP, credit matters, litigation.
• Review existing contracts for potential risks/exposures, leveraging prior work completed by external counsel.
• Develop a legal contracts storage/management system
• Be a business advisor - Provide legal advice to senior leadership in the context of helping the company to make good business decisions.

Qualifications:

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and admission to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• 5–10+ years of legal experience, with a mix of law firm and in house experience, preferably in a manufacturing, industrial, or closely related environment.
• Strong background in commercial contracting and corporate or general business law; experience with supply chain, procurement, and manufacturing operations is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with regulatory and compliance issues relevant to manufacturing, such as product safety, environmental regulation, trade compliance, and data/privacy.
• Demonstrated ability to manage outside counsel and legal budgets effectively.
• Proactive business advisor; provide legal advice to facilitate business decision-making to manage risk and enable growth objectives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex legal concepts clearly and influence decision making.
• Proven judgment, integrity, and ability to work independently in a fast paced, plant driven environment while collaborating effectively with cross functional teams

Other Duties:

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

About Us:

Brook & Whittle Ltd. is one of North America’s leading Sustainable Labeling Solutions providers, producing pressure sensitive labels, shrink sleeves and flexible packaging for many of the nation’s leading brands. The company serves multiple consumer markets, including Personal Care, Beverage, Food, Nutraceuticals, Wine & Spirits, and Household Chemicals. The company’s rapid growth can be attributed to its world-class staff of employees and its commitment to sustainability, print innovation, and the latest technological advancements. Wouldn’t it be cool to go into a store, pick up a product and say “we make that label!”

Our culture is first and foremost one of collaboration and teamwork. We hold ourselves to high professional, ethical, and fairness standards. We have zero tolerance for anything less. We celebrate our diverse workforce and reward good performance through our recognition program, advancement opportunities, and our compensation structure.

We believe people are our greatest asset. Thus, we highly value individuals of strong character with drive, ambition and creativity. Relationships are our cornerstone whether it be clients, vendors or co-workers. We are the best at what we do and are looking for an exceptional individual to join our growing organization.

AAP/EEO Statement

Brook & Whittle LTD provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Brook &Whittle complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Brook & Whittle expressly prohibits any form of workplace harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status. Improper interference with the ability of Brook & Whittle LTD’s employees to perform their job duties may result in discipline up to and including discharge.

Salary Description

180k - 235k

Notice of AI Use in Job Application Review

As part of our commitment in creating a fair, efficient, and consistent hiring process we may use artificial intelligence (AI) to help our recruiting teams organize, summarize, and analyze information provided by candidates, including resumes, application responses, and other materials submitted during the application process.AI may be used to identify patterns, highlight relevant skills, and experience, and assist in comparing a candidate’s qualifications with the requirement of a specific role. These tools are to improve efficiency and consistency while supporting more informed hiring decisions, which will ultimately be made by the hiring team.