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May 18, 2011

Former GC of NASA jumps ship

According to reports, EADS North America does not have a general counsel in place.

EADS North America, the world’s second largest aerospace and defense company, has recently appointed Paul Pastorek as chief general counsel and corporate secretary of the company’s legal department.

Pastorek is expected to direct the company’s legal activities, including the contracts, export control and compliance functions, while serving as secretary to the company’s board of directors, says EADS.

Most recently, the veteran lawyer served as the Louisiana State Superintendent of Education. He was appointed in 2007 by the Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Previously, the attorney was associated with Adams and Reese, a nationwide multi-disciplinary law firm where he served in the capacities of partner, litigator and corporate attorney for over 27 years.

In 2002, Pastorek was appointed general counsel of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). In that position, he oversaw the activities of a 150-attorney legal team and operated as the administration’s chief ethics officer.

According to Virginia-based EADS, Pastorek played a significant role in the agency’s return to space following the loss of the space shuttle Columbia in 2003.

‘He has held a number of senior positions at both the state and federal level in which he demonstrated an in-depth knowledge of government customers and an unwavering commitment to meeting their needs,’ says Sean O'Keefe, CEO of the corporation that pumps almost $11 billion into the US economy each year.

Aarti Maharaj

Aarti is deputy editor at Corporate Secretary magazine