June 03, 2019
Vavonese is Division Counsel for Northrop Grumman Corporation. Prior to joining Northrop Grumman in 2015, Ms. Vavonese served as Senior Counsel with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP and as litigation counsel for VeriSign, Inc. Ms. Vavonese has represented government contracting firms on all aspects of dealing with the federal government, including procurement, contract negotiations, protection of intellectual property, changes and compliance. She also represented clients on litigation matters relating to claims against the U.S. Government, contract disputes, intellectual property disputes and construction disputes. She has defended and prosecuted lawsuits, governmental investigations and subpoenas. She has handled patent, trademark, domain name, unfair competition, earnout and employment litigation.
Vavonese received her B.S. in accounting from the State University of New York at Geneseo in 1991, where she remains actively involved in the Alumni Council Career Committee. She became a certified public accountant in 1993. She received her J.D. magna cum laude in 1997 from the Catholic University of America, where she was a member of the Catholic University Law Review. She is a member of the District of Columbia and Virginia Bars and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and various federal trial and appellate courts. Vavonese is committed to supporting the needs of children. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for the National Council For Adoption, she has been involved with several other non-profit organizations that focus on the care, education and inclusion of children, including those with special needs. Her most rewarding and challenging role has been as an adoptive and biological parent, with her husband, Dan, to two beautiful daughters.