Retail Litigation Center Announce Leadership Transition Plan

Deborah White, RLC President, to retire at end of 2025

Washington, DC
01/29/2025

The Retail Litigation Center (RLC) and Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) announced today that Deborah White will leave her dual roles as President of the RLC and Sr. EVP, General Counsel of RILA at the end of 2025. A search to identify Deborah’s successor is underway.

Ms. White has led the RLC and RILA’s legal function since 2012. During this time, Deborah established RILA and the RLC as essential legal resources for the largest retailers operating in the United States. In doing so, she built a remarkable community of legal leaders who work together to drive major wins for the industry. Among the many achievements rightfully credited to Ms. White’s leadership was the legal strategy that led to retailers’ victory at the US Supreme Court in South Dakota v. Wayfair in 2018. The landmark victory overturned 50 years of precedent to level the playing field for all retailers by compelling remote sellers to collect and remit sales tax owed, just like their brick-and-mortar brethren.

“On behalf of the RILA Board of Directors, I want to thank Deborah for her genuine leadership and commitment to serving the RILA members and industry at large,” said RILA Board Chair Corie Barry. “Deborah has brought tremendous care, creativity and determination to her work, delivering victories time and again for RILA members.”

“The value that Deborah brings to the retail legal community goes well beyond her sharp legal skill. Deborah is a trusted strategic counselor and a bridge builder, who has brought legal leaders together to form an indispensable community of peers who find incredible value in working together and learning from each other,” said RLC Board Chair and PetSmart Chief Legal Officer Lacey Bundy.

“It has been a true honor to work with so many talented lawyers and executives to build layered communities dedicated to serving the legal needs of the retail industry,” said White. “My tenure has been both tremendously rewarding and unimaginably fun. I look forward to working with my colleagues for one last ‘lap around the calendar’ and to assisting in a smooth transition to the next lawyer who gets the privilege of enjoying the outstanding opportunities this dual role affords.”

Ms. White’s contributions to the success of RILA and the RLC are innumerable.

She has been an innovator, compounding retailers’ policymaking influence by recognizing the previously untapped opportunity to advance the retail industry’s goals through the judicial branch. The three branches of government approach that Deborah envisioned, where an affirmative legal strategy would complement legislative and regulatory advocacy, is now fundamental to RILA’s approach advancing the industry’s policy goals.

Ms. White turned a nascent law conference into RLAW, a one-of-a-kind, must-attend event that attracts the retail industry’s top legal talent and ensures they are prepared for the challenges that lie ahead.

Ms. White has grown the RLC into a powerful trade association in its own right, with more than 80 members, a strong internal team, and a remarkable track record of success. During her time, the RLC has filed more than 250 amicus briefs in support of the interests of retailers and launched a unique Defense Division that develops practical programs and tools to help retailers defend against the plaintiffs’ bar.

Ms. White also founded RILA’s internal legal department, building the current outstanding team that is focused on providing key regulatory, compliance and legal operations programs for RILA’s members, as well as on serving as a resource for all of RILA.

“Deborah’s accomplishments are too many to count,” said RILA President and CEO Brian Dodge. “Her imprint on RILA and the industry is unmistakable. I am grateful for her dedication, wise counsel and friendship, and 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.”

The search for Ms. White’s successor is jointly led by RLC Board Chair Lacey Bundy and RILA CEO Brian Dodge.

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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.

Directed by the chief legal officers of the country's leading retail companies, the Retail Litigation Center (RLC) is the trade association RILA established in 2010 to design ways to help leading retailers solve complex, common litigation issues through collaboration among smart in-house litigators and their outside counsel defenders.