Alice O’Brien

General Counsel, National Education Association

Alice O’Brien serves as General Counsel to the National Education Association which represents three million educators who serve in our nation's schools and institutions of higher education.  She has served in that role since March of 2010.  Prior to that, Alice served as the Chief Counsel to the California Teachers Association (from 2008-10) and as an associate and then member of the labor law firm of Bredhoff & Kaiser PLLC.(from 1995 until 2008).

During her tenure at NEA, Alice has expanded the civil rights and student rights legal advocacy of the union including by creating Law Fellowships devoted to that work.  Alice is currently leading NEA's legal efforts to ensure that schools and colleges reopen safely in a manner that protects students, staff and the surrounding community.  Alice also has overseen the defense of NEA and its affiliates against the array of litigation brought against public sector unions in the wake ofJanus v. AFSCME, as well as challenges to the rollback of public sector collective bargaining rights in Iowa, Missouri and Wisconsin, and challenges to the rollback of payroll deduction dues arrangements in Alabama, Arizona, Michigan and North Carolina.  Alice also has expanded NEA’s judicial nominations work.

Alice earned her B.A. from Yale University and her J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.