OGC - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
Agnetha Jacob-Chen joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2024 as Associate General Counsel. Before coming to Columbia, she served as Deputy General Counsel at the Clinton Foundation. She also previously worked as a Senior Counsel in the General Litigation Division of the New York City Law Department and as a Litigation Associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP.
Ms. Jacob-Chen received her J.D. from Cornell Law School and her B.A. from the Macaulay Honors College at CUNY Hunter College. She is admitted to practice law in New York.
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- Deputy General Counsel
- General Counsel
Donna Fenn joined the Office of the General Counsel in June 2007 as Associate General Counsel. She provides legal advice in the areas of labor and employment, employee benefits and student issues. Prior to coming to Columbia, Ms. Fenn served as Employment Counsel in the corporate legal group at Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (2003-2007) and as a Labor and Employment Associate in the Boston and Los Angeles offices of Jackson Lewis LLP (1999-2003).
Ms. Fenn received her B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University in 1995. She then earned her J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law (1998), where she was an Articles Editor of the Hofstra Labor and Employment Law Journal. She is admitted to practice law in New York, Massachusetts, and California.
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Dwayne Shivnarain joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2021 as Associate General Counsel. Prior to coming to Columbia, Mr. Shivnarain was the General Counsel of Gwathmey Siegel Kaufman Architects LLC. He was an Associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP. He was also a Law Clerk to the Honorable Thomas P. Griesa in the Southern District of New York.
Mr. Shivnarain received his J.D. from Fordham Law School. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Shivnarain received his B.A. from Occidental College. He is admitted to practice law in New York.
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant to the General Counsel
Felice B. Rosan joined Columbia's Office of the General Counsel in March 1999. She provides advice in the areas of University governance and policy, tax-exempt issues, charitable giving, executive compensation and in connection with the University's Manhattanville project. Before joining Columbia, she was Vice President and General Counsel for MovieFone, Inc. prior to its acquisition by AOL and an associate in the general corporate department at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft working on mergers, acquisitions, financings and other corporate transactions.
Ms. Rosan earned her undergraduate degree in English from the University of Pennsylvania in 1984. She received her J.D. cum laude from Temple University School of Law in 1991, where she was an editor of the Temple Law Review. She is admitted to practice law in New York State.
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- Chief
Jeffrey M. Sears serves as Associate General Counsel and Chief Patent Counsel for Columbia University. His practice encompasses all aspects of patent law, including prosecution, portfolio management, strategic counseling, licensing and post-licensing compliance, litigation, and legislative and regulatory patent matters.
Jeff holds an S.B. in physics from MIT, an M.A. and Ph.D. in physics from SUNY Stony Brook, and a J.D. from NYU. He is admitted to practice law in New York and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Jeong Lee - Chief Legal Officer
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Jeong Lee joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2022 as an Associate General Counsel. She is a member of the Patent & Licensing Group and focuses on intellectual property and licensing. Prior to joining Columbia, Ms. Lee was a partner at Lee & Lin IP, PLLC. She also worked as an associate at the law firm of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP in the Intellectual Property Group.
Ms. Lee received a B.S. in Chemistry from SUNY Binghamton and attended Columbia Law School where she received her J.D. She is admitted to practice law in New York State and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Job Titles:
- Director - Policy Development
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
- Associate General Counsel Practicing in the Areas of Labor and Employment
Jessica Fenton joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2013 as Associate General Counsel practicing in the areas of labor and employment, employee benefits, and student affairs. Prior to coming to Columbia, Ms. Fenton served as Senior Counsel, Labor & Employment at Kaplan, Inc. (2010-2013) and as a Labor & Employment Associate at Ropes & Gray LLP (2005-2010).
Ms. Fenton received her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, where she was an Executive Editor of the Journal of Law Reform. Prior to attending law school, she received her A.B. in Psychology from Dartmouth College. She is admitted to practice law in New York and Massachusetts
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Maame Agyeiwaah joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2016 as Associate General Counsel. Prior to coming to Columbia, Ms. Agyeiwaah served as an Associate Coprorate Counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union (2012-2016) and as a Capital Markets Associate at Jones Day (2008-2012).
Ms. Agyeiwaah received her J.D. from Columbia School of Law. Prior to attending law school, she received her B.A. in Political Science from Yale University. She is admitted to practice law in New York.
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
- Associate General Counsel in June
Manasa Gopal joined the Office of the General Counsel as Associate General Counsel in June, 2011. She comes to Columbia with specialized experience in health law, previously working as a Director of Legal Management at the nation's largest free-standing public health sciences university.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant
- Legal Assistant
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Melissa Cohen joined the Office of the General Counsel in 2008 as an Assistant General Counsel. Her practice focuses on intellectual property and licensing as a member of the Patent & Licensing Group. Prior to joining Columbia, Ms. Cohen was Counsel for Licensing & Technology Acquisitions at Paramount BioSciences, LLC. She also worked as an associate at the law firm of Dewey Ballantine LLP in the Intellectual Property and Technology Transactions Group.
Ms. Cohen received a B.S. in Biology from Cornell University in 1999. She then attended law school at Columbia where she received her J.D. in 2004. While at Columbia she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. She is admitted to practice law in New York.
Job Titles:
- Director of Budget & Human Resources
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Patrice Le Melle joined the Office of the General Counsel in January 2008 as an Associate General Counsel practicing in the areas of general contracts & purchasing, privacy and data security, sponsored research, and real estate. Previously, she served for a year as an Administrative Law Judge for the Department of State and for six years as Deputy Secretary of State and Counsel to the Secretary of the State of New York. She began her career as an Associate in the corporate group at the law firm Richards O'Neil followed by a position as First Deputy General Counsel of the Off Track Betting Corporation.
Ms. Le Melle obtained her J.D. from Rutgers-Newark Law School where she was an editor of the Rutgers Law Review. Prior to law school, she received her B.A. from Yale University. She is admitted to practice law in New York State.
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Remi Silverman joined Columbia's Office of the General Counsel in November 2010. She advises the University's Office of Alumni & Development on trust, estate and gift matters and handles copyright, trademark and related issues throughout the University. Previously, Ms. Silverman was a Trusts & Estates Associate at Hughes Hubbard & Reed, LLP and an Associate at Perlman and Perlman, LLP where she counseled charities and not-for-profit organizations on formation, governance, tax and compliance issues. Ms. Silverman also served as an Acting Assistant General Counsel at The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and was an Adjunct Professor at Brooklyn Law School where she taught Art Law.
Ms. Silverman earned her B.A. magna cum laude in English from Temple University in 1995. She received her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School and her M.P.A. from CUNY-Baruch College in 2002. Ms. Silverman is admitted to practice law in New York State.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director of Business Operations
Job Titles:
- Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of Columbia Investment Management Company and Deputy General Counsel
Job Titles:
- Associate General Counsel
- General Counsel
Teresa Chen joined the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) in February 2014 as an Associate General Counsel. As a member of the OGC's patent and licensing group, she manages patent prosecution in the life sciences area. Ms. Chen comes to Columbia with specialized experience in patent law, previously working as a patent agent and as an associate at the law firm of Winston & Strawn from 2006 to 2014. Prior to joining Winston, Ms. Chen was an assistant professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Ms. Chen received a B.S. in Biochemistry from Fudan University, a Ph.D. in Genetics and Development from Columbia University, and a J.D. from Fordham Law School. She is admitted to practice law in New York State and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.