Lisa Guffey

As Founder/Co-Director of the Federal Defender Leadership Center, LISA GUFFEY draws on a wide range of leadership and teaching experiences, from her days as an active-duty officer in the United States Navy JAG Corps to her more recent role as an attorney advisor with the Defender Services Office consulting with chief Federal Defenders regarding their leadership and management. In addition to those, Lisa served in a variety of leadership positions with the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia (PDS), the George Washington Law School Community Legal Clinics, ABA Rule of Law Initiative in Baku, Azerbaijan, and a non-profit board of directors. 

Lisa has been involved in creating leadership training opportunities for federal defenders since 2015, including several national CDO Board Meetings and the Federal Defender Leadership Forum. She has also held teaching positions with GW Law and the American University School of Public Affairs.

Through her leadership, consulting, and teaching roles, as well as the insights from working in a variety of legal office environments and teams across the country and overseas, Lisa has experienced the power of continuous leadership and development training. She is grateful for this wonderful opportunity and platform to create comprehensive development training and resources for federal defenders in critical leadership roles.