NutraWomen Wednesday: Rend Al-Mondhiry, Partner, Amin Talati Wasserman, LLP
Rend Al-Mondhiry advises the dietary supplement, food, cosmetic, and over-the-counter medicine industries on a broad range of regulatory and compliance matters, with a focus on helping companies navigate the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape for hemp and CBD products at both the federal and state level. Long before law school, her parents knew they were raising a future attorney.
“At an early age, my parents saw in me the skills and qualities of an attorney—arguing, negotiation, all of those things. But in true teenage rebellion fashion, I wasn't really interested in it, but there are certain aspects of it, personality traits that I had [such as] helping others, being an advocate, being very loyal to the people and issues that I'm passionate about, all the qualities that you would want in a lawyer. So after college, I landed a job in state government in Pennsylvania. And after a few years doing that, it seemed like the next logical step was law school and that background in state government is what led me to CHPA, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, and then eventually to CRN (Council for Responsible Nutrition). And CRN is where I really honed my passion for regulatory law and got interested in food and dietary supplements,” explained Al-Mondhiry.
Her family, made up of mostly conventional medical doctors, found Al-Mondhiry’s area of law curious.
“The fact that I was doing dietary supplement law was kind of mind-boggling to them and still today, they ask a lot of questions and don't really know what I do.”
When it comes work life balance, the mother of two said she’s been fortunate to have had very positive experiences throughout her career, from the trade association world, state government and currently at Amin Talati Wasserman, LLP.
“What I would say to other women is to find a mentor or a trusted colleague that can help you navigate the difficulties and they can share with you what has worked for them. Also also finding an environment and doing some investigation and finding a work environment that is supportive, inclusive, and values everyone's contribution.”
