Callista Puchmeyer

Callista Puchmeyer is the chief counsel of NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. In this position, she provides expert legal advice to Glenn’s center director and other senior leaders. She also manages Glenn’s Office of the General Counsel, a legal staff that advises Glenn customers on a broad spectrum of federal matters including procurement, human capital management, equal employment opportunity, ethics, intellectual property, fiscal, environmental, security, privacy, and all other legal matters. 

Puchmeyer has been operating as acting chief counsel since July of 2018. She has over 20 years of professional experience, which includes more than 18 years of legal experience with both private industry and the U.S. government. Puchmeyer has successfully defended a myriad of complex legal matters before federal administrative and judicial bodies. Of note, Puchmeyer successfully defended six bid protests before the Government Accountability Office. Prior to her current assignment, Puchmeyer served as Glenn’s deputy chief counsel from 2015 through 2018. She came to Glenn in 2011 as an attorney advisor. 

Before joining NASA, Puchmeyer was an attorney in the corporate and securities group of a large law firm, Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP, at the Cleveland location. She rendered legal advice on complex contract law issues and advised on complex multimillion-dollar transactions. 

A Cleveland native, Puchmeyer earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a minor in political science from Ohio University, as well as a law degree from Cleveland State University. She is licensed to practice law in Ohio. 

Puchmeyer has been recognized with awards for the NASA Legal Team Attorney of the Year, as well as Teamwork Awards, multiple Silver Achievement Medals, and multiple Group Achievement Awards. Most recently, Puchmeyer was inducted into Cleveland State University Law’s Hall of Fame.