Walmart Won’t Fill General Counsel Position

A Walmart location in Indianapolis

Walmart Inc. of Bentonville said it won’t fill its general counsel position left empty when Karen Roberts retired last month.

Roberts had been Walmart’s executive vice president and general counsel since December 2012, according to her LinkedIn profile. She worked for the retailer for 27 years.

“Following Karen’s planned retirement, Karen’s direct reports will either report directly to Rachel Brand, who serves as Walmart’s chief legal officer, or Rachel’s other direct reports,” Walmart spokesman Randy Hargrove said via email.

Brand’s duties include overseeing Walmart’s global legal, compliance, ethics, corporate governance, investigative and corporate security functions, according to her profile on the retailer’s website. The Harvard Law School-educated attorney was the first woman to serve as U.S. associate attorney general. She serves on the board of the Walmart Foundation and is the executive sponsor for Walmart’s Tribal Voices Associate Resource Group.

Roberts said in a message on her LinkedIn page that she plans to spend more time with her family, travel and on hobbies.

“I also plan on focusing on increasing my philanthropic work and drawing on my experiences to help companies in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors,” said the University of Arkansas Law School graduate. “The road I’ve traveled the past 27 years has been filled with fantastic memories, friendships, and experiences covering business, compliance, and law that far exceeded what I ever could have imagined. To those who have been part of this journey, THANK YOU! I look forward to this next phase of life being just as rewarding as the last.”