RILA’s Kathleen McGuigan Will Turn the Page at End of 2025

Washington, DC - Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) announced today that Kathleen McGuigan, Executive Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, will end her professional legal career in December. The process to identify her successor will begin in June and be conducted internally.

Ms. McGuigan joined RILA’s legal team in 2013, advancing through a variety of senior roles to become EVP & Deputy General Counsel in 2018. During her time at RILA, Kathleen has provided exceptional service to member companies, building bridges among retail legal and compliance leaders, and creating resources to support the complex needs of the largest retail companies operating in the United States. 

“The RILA team and our members are endlessly grateful to Kathleen for the countless ways she has supported the organization and the industry,” said RILA President and CEO Brian Dodge.  “Her dedication to excellence, thoughtful counsel and enthusiasm for the retail industry have produced a remarkable record of accomplishments and challenged us all to raise our game. I look forward to working with her throughout the year to continue to deliver exceptional value to retail legal leaders and to ensure a smooth and successful transition.”

“I am very proud of the accomplishments we have made in the past decade - building RILA’s strong team of lawyers and associates, forming deep relationships with retail in-house legal leaders, establishing a record of strong advocacy on behalf of the retail industry and creating new communities, programs, tools and resources to help retailers tackle pressing and challenging problems,” said McGuigan. “I can honestly say that working at RILA has been one of the most fun, challenging and rewarding legal jobs of my career. Over the next 8 months, I look forward to working with RILA’s leadership and outstanding legal team members to ensure we continue to deliver for RILA members throughout 2025 and beyond." 

Ms. McGuigan has played a crucial role in expanding connections and deepening relationships within the retail legal community. In 2014, she launched a new peer group for retail deputy general counsel, dozens of whom later moved on to serve as CLO’s within the retail industry. In addition to providing value directly to these future chief legal officers, the forum McGuigan cultivated provided visibility across businesses, enabling RILA and its legal leadership to act early to develop solutions to emerging issues.

Under her leadership, RILA has built a best-in-class regulatory advocacy team of attorneys and associates that have skillfully advanced retailers’ views on a variety of matters, including climate disclosure regulations before the SEC and non-compete rules before the FTC.  Further, Ms. McGuigan established a unique peer group of member company chief ethics and compliance officers, and created resources to support member companies’ complex regulatory compliance needs. 

Finally, through her thoughtful counsel and hard work Ms. McGuigan has made enduring contributions to RILA’s corporate governance practices as well as to RILA’s sister organization, the Retail Litigation Center, and the annual Retail Law Conference jointly hosted by the two organizations. 

“Kathleen has been absolutely essential to the growth and success of RILA’s legal team from its inception,” said RILA General Counsel Deborah White. “She personally mentored each lawyer and member of RILA’s regulatory and compliance team and has launched several professionals into successful new careers even beyond our association. I am personally grateful to Kathleen’s partnership over the years as we have tackled thorny problems and celebrated our team’s great accomplishments. The foundation that Kathleen has set through her example of excellence and the team members she has cultivated will pay dividends to RILA and its members long into the future.” 

“I am incredibly grateful for all that Kathleen has done to support RILA members and my peers and me in the retail legal community,” said Maria Leggett, Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary at AutoZone. “The enormous trust she has engendered among retail legal leaders reflects her adept legal skill and selfless commitment to service. I can’t thank her enough for the many ways she has supported me and the industry at-large.”

The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) is the U.S. trade association for leading retailers. Through collaboration and thought leadership, RILA convenes top retail executives to network, share best practices, advance ideas, and act to effect change.  

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