American Board of Surgery promotes Adanwimo Okafor to general counsel 

American Board of Surgery (ABS), the national certifying body for general surgeons and related specialists, has named Adanwimo Okafor (pictured) as general counsel, effective October 1st.  She succeeds Abby Pozefsky, who has retired from her role as general counsel on September 30th. Okafor is the first woman of colour to hold the position of general counsel in ABS’s 84-year history. 

In the general counsel role, Okafor will lead the ABS legal department and oversee the organisation’s legal, compliance, ethics and enterprise risk management functions. She also serves as ABS’ inaugural chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer (CDEIO).  As CDEIO, Okafor leverages data analytics, coaching, facilitated discussions, workshops, and educational training to promote diversity within the house of surgery, cultivate a culture of belonging, and foster employee well-being, innovation, productivity and retention. 

Okafor joined ABS in June 2021 as associate general counsel and chief diversity equity and inclusion officer. Prior to that, she was of counsel, employee benefits and executive compensation at Ballard Spahr. She started her career in 2012 as an associate with Groom Law Group followed by Reed Smith.