APA General Counsel
Deanne M. Ottaviano, JD, general counsel for APA, has extensive experience as both general counsel and outside counsel for dozens of nonprofit, professional and trade association clients, primarily in the automotive, retail and health care fields. She has represented clients in a variety of contexts, including general commercial matters, insurance recovery and risk management techniques, anti-trust claims and securement of governance rights. At APA, Ottaviano leads the Office of General Counsel which has responsibility for legal issues faced by the Association with respect to its internal operations and its policymaking activities. She also oversees the Ethics, Governance, Division Engagement, Professional and Legal Regulatory Affairs and People Experience Offices.
Ottaviano also runs the association’s well-respected amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) program which provides the U.S. Supreme Court and other federal and state appellate courts with the unique scientific perspective of psychological professionals on matters of importance to key legal decisions.
Prior to joining APA in June 2016, Ottaviano spent 24 years at Arent Fox LLP, where she had been a partner, and also was chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Publico Committee. Before joining Arent Fox in 1992, Ottaviano clerked for two years with Arnold & Porter LLP. From 1986-90, she was legislative assistant to then-Rep. Dan Glickman, D-Kan.