Paul Schott Stevens

Former CEO of Global Financial Services Trade Association, Attorney, Senior Government Official

Paul Schott Stevens retired in 2020 after more than sixteen years as CEO of the Investment Company Institute (ICI), the global association of regulated funds.  Outside of ICI, Paul had a varied career in private law practice, as corporate counsel, and in senior government positions at the White House and Pentagon.  He was appointed Special Assistant for National Security Affairs to President Reagan, served as the first Legal Adviser of the National Security Council (NSC), and later as the NSC’s chief of staff.  At the conclusion of his government service, Paul received the Defense Department’s Medal for Distinguished Public Service, its highest civilian decoration.  Prior to joining ICI, he was a leader of the financial services practice of Dechert LLP.

Throughout his career, Paul has been strongly committed to a range of professional, cultural and religious activities.  He was resident in Japan in 1990 as a US-Japan Leadership Fellow.  He chaired the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Law and National Security.  While head of ICI, he chaired the International Investment Funds Association (comprised of national associations from around the world).  He is a longtime member of the Life Guard Society of George Washington’s Mount Vernon, and has served on the board of the Eisenhower Foundation.  For eleven years, he was a member of the Finance Council of the Catholic Diocese of Arlington, and for most of that time chaired its investment committee. Currently he is active on the boards of National Review Institute, Catholic Investment Services, Catholic International University, and Catholic Charities of the Arlington Diocese.  In 2022, he received the Grato Animo Medal from the Custody of the Holy Land in recognition of his longtime support for the work of the Franciscans there.

Paul is a graduate of Yale College and the University of Virginia School of Law.  He and his wife Joyce have four sons and three grandsons and reside in Alexandria, VA.