WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Chairman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) today announced the hiring of Stephanie Tsacoumis as the new General Counsel for CPSC. Ms. Tsacoumis will begin her tenure with the agency on December 10, 2012.
“Ms. Tsacoumis brings more than 25 years of award-winning legal experience to CPSC and our vital safety mission on behalf of American’s consumers,” said Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. “Adding her impressive skill set to the fantastic team we have at CPSC will make us even more effective and help us sustain our position as the global leader in consumer product safety.”
Ms. Tsacoumis joins CPSC after serving as Vice President and General Counsel at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., from 2009 through 2012. She was responsible for all legal affairs and compliance matters at the university, including health and safety regulations, litigation, federal contracts and grants, and intellectual property. Ms. Tsacoumis was named “Outstanding Chief Legal Officer” in 2011 by Washington Metro Area Corporate Counsel Association and “Non-Profit Lawyer of the Year 2012” by the American Bar Association. Her leadership of the Office of Georgetown General Counsel was recognized by Corporate Counsel magazine as a finalist for “Best Legal Department” nationwide.
Prior to working at Georgetown University, Ms. Tsacoumis was a Corporate Partner and Co-Partner in Charge at the international law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. During her time at the firm, she represented government-chartered entities, nonprofit organizations, and top public and private companies in regulatory, advisory, corporate and transactional matters. Among Ms. Tsacoumis’ achievements at the firm was increasing the administrative capacity of the Girl Scouts of the USA by 50 percent through the implementation of an innovative reorganization that merged 309 local councils into 115 entities.
She is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law and The College of William and Mary.
The Office of the General Counsel within CPSC performs several key functions, including providing advice and counsel to the Chairman and Commissioners, coordinating petitions and rulemaking, pursuing civil penalties and administrative lawsuits, and enforcing federal safety standards.
La Comisión de Seguridad de Productos del Consumidor de EE.UU. (U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC) está encargada de proteger al público contra riesgos irrazonables de lesión o muerte asociados al uso de miles de tipos de productos de consumo bajo la jurisdicción de la institución. Muertes, lesiones y daños a la propiedad asociados a incidentes con productos de consumo le cuestan al país más de $900,000 millones anualmente. La CPSC está comprometida con proteger a los consumidores y las familias contra los productos que presenten un peligro de incendio, eléctrico, químico o mecánico. Los esfuerzos de la CPSC para asegurar que los productos de consumo —tales como juguetes, cunas, herramientas eléctricas, encendedores de cigarrillos y productos químicos para uso doméstico— sean seguros, contribuyeron a la disminución en el índice de muertes y lesiones relacionadas con productos de consumo en los últimos 30 años.
La ley federal prohíbe que cualquier persona venda productos sujetos a un retiro del mercado anunciado públicamente y llevado a cabo por el fabricante; o a una orden de la Comisión obligatoria.
Para reportar un producto peligroso o una lesión relacionada con un producto, visite SaferProducts.gov (en inglés) o llame a la línea de información de la CPSC al (800) 638-2772 o al teletipo (800) 638-8270 para discapacitados auditivos. Los consumidores pueden obtener información sobre noticias y retiros en www.cpsc.gov/espanol, vía Twitter @OnSafety o suscribiéndose para recibir los boletines electrónicos gratuitos de la CPSC.