Larysa Kautz

Larysa Kautz is the Chief of Staff & General Counsel, serving as the chief legal advisor to the President & CEO and the Board of Directors. As well as being responsible for the supervision of Melwood's legal and risk management, Ms. Kautz provides general coordinating leadership to all departments working behind the scenes to execute Melwood's strategic goals, address challenges, and handle day-to-day issues that impact Melwood.

Ms. Kautz has more than 15 years of experience in law, corporate governance, risk management, government relations, and communications. Prior to joining Melwood, Ms. Kautz was a partner at the Schaner & Lubitz, PLLC law firm. Before that, she served as counsel at Bingham McCutchen, LLP. She has also lent her expertise to the Obama Administration and the Foundation for the National Archives as pro bono counsel.

Ms. Kautz holds a Juris Doctor (JD) from Yale Law School and a Master of Laws degree (LLM) in the field of taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center. Ms. Kautz has been admitted to practice law in New York, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. She lives in Alexandria, VA, with her husband, Ryan; their son, Symon; and their dogs, Lucky and Ziggy. When not working, Ms. Kautz enjoys sailing and ballroom dancing.