to discuss specifics, but Hormel recently secured
a favorable settlement of $2.5 million in a case
against a competitor in which, he said, it “vigorously
defended” trade secrets. It is suing another for mis-appropriation of trade secrets. In a suit that reached
the U.S. Supreme Court, Hormel’s Unitherm subsidiary prevailed in a case concerning the development
of a patent for browning precooked meats.
According to Cavanaugh, electronic information and
forensic discovery methods were crucial elements of
LEGAL TEAM AND OUTSIDE COUNSEL
There are six attorneys, including Cavanaugh, on
his team. All have areas of excellence, and each is
also a generalist. Although Hormel is not staffed to
perform big cases internally, 65% to 70% of the legal
work is done in-house.
Cavanaugh ultimately makes the hiring decisions,
but like everything with his group, it is a “very col-
laborative” process. He tends to sign on lawyers,
rather than firms. Securities work is handled by
Dame (a bachelor’s in 1971), Saint Louis University
School of Law (a juris doctor in 1974) and George-
town University (a master’s in 1978). He served four
years in Vietnam with the U.S. Air Force.
If we are not involved, somebody else is, so it’s good
business to stay involved in critical issues.”
these cases. He said that the new Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure have made oldfashioned discovery “go
the way of the horse and buggy,” and that “it’s a land-mine or a goldmine.” Hormel’s legal department and its
chief now focus on all aspects of record retention.
Hormel was “way ahead of the learning curve”
with Sarbanes-Oxley (Cavanaugh calls the act a
“good development, although we won’t see the
positive changes for a few years”) and New York
Stock Exchange requirements. It executes a compliance “road map” , giving it more time for strategic
planning. Such planning resulted in four major acquisitions in 2005, with team member Ryan Johnson
playing an active role: Farmer John’s, Lloyd’s Barbeque Co., Markland Foods and Mexican Accents.
Bob Rosenbaum of Dorsey & Whitney’s Minneapolis office; Tim Costello of Milwaukee’s Krukowski &
Costello is used; Richard Duncan of Minneapolis’
Faegre & Benson receives antitrust assignments;
and Larry Hanson gets litigation in the Hugo, Minn.,
office of Moore, Costello & Hart. Cavanaugh reports
to President and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey M.
Ettinger.
PERSONAL
Cavanaugh was born in Fort Dodge, Iowa, “a meat-
packing town not unlike Austin.” He and his wife,
Annie, are the parents of Bridget, James, Matthew,
Kevin, Michael and Mark. The legal honcho’s hobbies
include hiking, bicycling, skiing, basketball, reading
and “staying up with my children.”
Cavanaugh identified two pivotal moments in his
career. The first was in 1983, when he was asked to
consider a focus on labor and arbitration. Hormel was
soon thereafter embroiled in a strike that became
national in scope. Then, in 2001, with minimal expe-
rience in the securities arena, he became corporate
secretary. Ten months hence, the Sarbanes-Oxley reg-
ulations were unveiled. In both instances, Cavanaugh
said, he was forced to acquire “compressed and
comprehensive” expertise.
ROUTE TO THE TOP
A desire to return to his Midwestern roots, and an
ambition to ply his trade in a corporate environment,
brought Cavanaugh to Hormel in 1982. He has been
the firm’s general counsel since 2005. Cavanaugh
holds a trio of degrees from the University of Notre
A BOOK AND MOVIE
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham
Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Million Dollar
Baby.
—ROGER ADLER
An earlier version of this profile appeared in The
National Law Journal on Feb. 20, 2006.
