Term of Employment: Full-Time, Exempt 

Reports To: Director of Transparency and Regulatory Affairs

Union: Bargaining Unit Position, Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU)

Location: Remote (U.S.-based)

Who We Are:

The Animal Legal Defense Fund’s mission is to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) accomplishes this mission by filing high-impact lawsuits to protect animals from harm, providing free legal assistance and training to prosecutors to assure that animal abusers are held accountable for their crimes, supporting tough animal protection legislation and fighting legislation harmful to animals, gathering data about and advocating for effective regulation of animal exploitative industries and providing resources and opportunities to law students and professionals to advance the emerging field of animal law.   

Role Description: 

The Principal Regulatory Affairs Manager plays a key role in advancing the ALDF’s Transparency & Regulatory Affairs Program (TRAP) by overseeing TRAP’s state and federal regulatory oversight initiatives. This position provides strategic analysis of regulatory developments impacting animal protection, advises Program Leadership, uses emerging technologies to improve efficiency in data gathering and review and supports ALDF's advocacy through regulatory engagement and government transparency tools.

The Principal Regulatory Affairs Manager manages the organization's regulatory monitoring program, develops systems to track rulemaking activities across federal and state agencies, and collaborates with colleagues across programs to support litigation, criminal justice, and legislative priorities. The position also supports ALDF's regulatory advocacy by assisting with the preparation of public comments, petitions for rulemaking, and other administrative advocacy submissions.

Additionally, the Principal Regulatory Affairs Manager helps advance organizational transparency efforts by developing and implementing strategies for obtaining government records through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and state public records laws in support of ALDF's strategic priorities.

How You Will Make a Difference: 

• Oversee ALDF's state and federal regulatory monitoring program, including daily review of the Federal Register and monitoring of agency rulemaking activities. 
• Analyze proposed and final regulations to identify developments relevant to ALDF's strategic priorities. 
• Advise the TRAP Director regarding regulatory actions, deadlines, and opportunities for organizational engagement. 
• Monitor regulatory activity across multiple federal and state agencies impacting animals used in agriculture, aquaculture, research, entertainment, and puppy mills. 
• Prepare concise regulatory analyses for internal stakeholders. 
• Conduct data collection, verification, and analysis related to regulated animal-use industries, including research facilities, commercial breeders, exhibitors, dealers, and slaughter establishments. 
• Review, organize, and analyze records obtained through FOIA and public records requests to identify trends, summarize findings, and support advocacy, policy, communications, and legal initiatives. 
• Assist with special research projects by compiling, cleaning, and analyzing large datasets, including using emerging technologies, preparing summaries of findings, and developing materials for reports, presentations, publications, and advocacy campaigns. 
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive Regulatory Tracker to facilitate organization-wide monitoring of rulemaking activities, comment periods, and implementation timelines. 
• Coordinate with Program colleagues to identify opportunities for regulatory advocacy. 
• Assist in drafting and submitting regulatory comments, petitions for rulemaking, requests for reconsideration, and other administrative advocacy documents. 
• Stay informed on emerging and relevant regulatory trends and issues in animal welfare and recommend strategies that advance ALDF’s mission and strategic goals.

Please note, this job description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties and responsibilities of the position, which are subject to change in order to best advance ALDF’s strategic objectives and mission.

We Are Looking for Candidates With: 

• A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, PhD in an animal-related discipline, or advanced degree in a related field. 
• 5 or more years of professional experience in regulatory affairs or administrative law. Professional experience in a federal agency that regulates animal industries such as animals used in agriculture, research, breeding, and/or entertainment preferred. 
• Strong working knowledge of issues facing animals abused and exploited in laboratories, roadside zoos, puppy mills, or on factory farms.
• Knowledge of federal administrative law and agency rulemaking processes. 
• Experience reviewing, organizing, and analyzing large datasets or document collections. 
• Familiarity with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and/or public records laws. 
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously, prioritize competing deadlines, and work independently. 
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills, with exceptional attention to detail. 
• Demonstrated interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence, including the ability to build positive relationships with colleagues, attorneys, donors, and external partners. 
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across teams, navigate differing perspectives, and foster productive working relationships. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate professionally with students, faculty, attorneys, donors, and external partners. 
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel, and experience working with databases, spreadsheets, and project management platforms. 
• An understanding of and demonstrated commitment to the mission of the Animal Legal Defense Fund. 
• The ability to travel approximately 4-5 times per year, including for staff meetings, retreats and other events. 

We Offer Competitive Compensation with Excellent Benefits, Including:

• Annual salary of $115,006 for most geographic locations
• For candidates located within 25 miles of Washington D.C., Cotati, CA, and Los Angeles, pay is $121,059
• For candidates located within 25 miles of New York City and San Francisco, pay is $127,111

To ensure salary equity, we do not negotiate salary outside of the published starting rate. Rate is determined by role, using set geographical factors. 

• Comprehensive health care, dental, life and vision benefits (100% employer paid); Flexible Spending Account (FSA) and Dependent Care Account (DCA) are also available
• 192 hours of PTO
• 19 paid holidays
• 1-month paid sabbatical after 5 years of continuous employment 
• 16 weeks paid parental leave 
• 401k plan with a maximum 5% employer contribution match after one year of employment
• Alternative work schedules (at manager’s discretion)
• One-time remote work allowance of $750
• Annual professional development reimbursement of up to $1,000.  

Maintaining a healthy work/life balance is a core value for the Animal Legal Defense Fund. 

Additional Information:

This role is included in a collective bargaining unit that is represented by the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU). Certain terms and conditions of your employment, including wages and benefits, have been negotiated with the Union and are included in a collective bargaining agreement between ALDF and the Union.

This is a U.S. based position. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) is an equal opportunity employer and committed to providing an employment environment which is welcoming of persons from diverse backgrounds and free from unlawful discrimination and harassment, and in which all legal rights of our employees are recognized and protected. ALDF conducts all internal and external operations, programs, and employment-related decision making (including hiring decisions) without regard to actual or perceived race, ancestry, color, religion, national origin, citizenship, immigration status, sex or gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender identity or expression, political affiliation, disability or medical condition (including physical, intellectual, or psychiatric), sexual orientation, marital status, military or veteran status, genetic information, age, or other protected category, and in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local anti-discrimination and anti-harassment laws. 

Consistent with the organization’s mission, our offices and events are free of animal products and byproducts.