President Pitney announces Wayne Mowery as UA System’s next General Counsel
December 20, 2024
President Pitney has announced that Wayne Mowery will become the UA System’s next General Counsel. Wayne Mowery was appointed Interim General Counsel after the departure of Matthew Cooper. Mowery joined the General Counsel’s Office in November 2020 as an associate general counsel.
The General Counsel is a vital part of the èßäÉçÇø¹ÙÍø leadership team, serving as the chief legal officer to the Board of Regents, system leadership, and all campuses throughout the system, and I have great confidence in his leadership in this position.
Many of you already know and have worked with Wayne over the years. He joined the èßäÉçÇø¹ÙÍø’s legal team in November 2020 as an associate general counsel, having practiced law with a focus in higher education, intellectual property, and international trade compliance for more than 25 years.
In his tenure in the General Counsel Office, Wayne provided legal advice and support for èßäÉçÇø¹ÙÍø regulatory and investigatory activities, including human resources, Title IX, student affairs, institutional compliance, risk, and research integrity issues; advised on intellectual property matters; served as a principal legal resource for portions of the èßäÉçÇø¹ÙÍø’s COVID-19 response; negotiated contracts; and assisted in a variety of other legal matters. He regularly served as acting General Counsel when needed, including his recent appointment as Interim. He is well-positioned to officially transition into the lead role for our legal team.
Throughout his professional career, Wayne also obtained national recognition as an expert in several areas of knowledge, practice, and skill, including numerous local, regional, and national speaking engagements at professional conferences, workshops, and webinars.
Immediately before joining the Office of General Counsel at UA, he served as Senior Director of Compliance, University Export Compliance Officer, Empowered Official, and Federal Procurement Ethics and Compliance Officer at Penn State. In these roles, Wayne helped develop, implement, and operate various centralized ethics and compliance programs.