Career Biography

Heather Mullen, is head of legal and corporate secretary for Kenvue Canada Inc., where she serves as the country’s chief legal officer and leads all legal, governance, compliance, risk management and corporate secretary functions for the Canadian organisation. She is a member of Kenvue Canada’s leadership team, serves as a director and corporate secretary for multiple Canadian entities, and is a member of the Canadian Pension Committee. Heather also acts as executive sponsor for Women at Kenvue and supports numerous diversity, equity, inclusion, business continuity and employee engagement initiatives across the organisation.

With more than 25 years of executive legal leadership experience, Heather has built an exceptional career spanning the food, pharmaceutical, consumer health, medical device and consumer packaged goods sectors. Prior to Kenvue, she held senior legal leadership positions with Johnson & Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline and McCain Foods, advising businesses operating in highly regulated and complex environments. Her expertise spans corporate governance, strategic transactions, regulatory affairs, litigation management, intellectual property, privacy, competition law, employment law, marketing and advertising, government affairs, supply chain, manufacturing, quality and safety, and crisis management.

Heather joined the Johnson & Johnson family of companies in 2012 as vice-president, law for the medical devices business before assuming leadership of the Canadian consumer health legal organisation in 2016. In addition to her Canadian responsibilities, she was selected to serve on the US customer development leadership team, acting as the senior legal adviser to North America’s commercial sales organisation and providing strategic guidance on retailer negotiations, e-commerce, brand protection, pricing governance, bankruptcy matters and digital sales strategies from 2021 to 2024. She also served as the Canadian legal lead for Johnson & Johnson’s global employment group, advising senior executives and human resources leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic on complex employment, workplace safety and public health issues.

Throughout her career, Heather has been recognised for combining business acumen with practical legal judgement. She has played key leadership roles in corporate restructurings, acquisitions, divestitures, enterprise risk management programmes, pension governance initiatives, compliance transformations and the successful separation of Kenvue from Johnson & Johnson in Canada. She is widely respected as a strategic adviser who helps organisations achieve commercial objectives while maintaining strong governance and regulatory compliance standards.

Heather is equally well known for her contributions to the legal profession. She currently serves as chair of the board of Women General Counsel Canada (WGCC), providing strategic leadership and governance oversight for one of Canada’s leading organisations supporting women general counsel and senior legal executives. During her tenure with WGCC, she has strengthened governance practices, developed the organisation’s board governance manual, led succession planning initiatives, expanded mentorship opportunities and championed member engagement programmes. As membership lead, she introduced WGCC Networking Circles and Coffee Connections, initiatives that became foundational components of the organisation’s programming and contributed to significant membership growth.

Beyond WGCC, Heather plays an active role in industry and professional associations. She serves as chair of the consumer fraud committee for Cosmetic Alliance Canada, co-chair of the general counsel roundtable for Food, Health & Consumer Products of Canada, and has held leadership positions with organisations including Consumer Health Products Canada and MedTech Canada. Her work has helped shape industry discussions on legal, regulatory, governance and public policy issues affecting the healthcare and consumer products sectors.

Heather is a passionate advocate for mentorship and the advancement of women in law. She regularly speaks at leadership forums, legal conferences, governance programmes and community events, sharing her experience on topics including leadership, governance, compliance, career development and inclusion. She mentors law students, junior lawyers and emerging general counsel, and is recognised for creating opportunities for others through sponsorship, advocacy and professional development.

Her leadership and contributions have been recognised through numerous honours and professional distinctions, including induction into the WGCC Hall of Distinction, receipt of the WGCC Vanguard Award, recognition as a member of the GC Powerlist Canada 2025, being named an Excellence Awardee for Law Department Leader of the Year, nominations as one of Canada’s Most Influential In-House Lawyers, and receipt of the Women’s Law Association of Ontario General Counsel Award. She was also nominated for the 2026 WLAO President’s Award in recognition of her sustained contributions to the legal profession and the advancement of women in law.

Heather holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Acadia University, a Bachelor of Laws/juris doctor from the University of Alberta, and an MBA from the University of New Brunswick. She holds both the GCU.D and ICD.D designations and is called to the Bar in Ontario and Nova Scotia.