Shannon McGuire, a member of the Senior Executive Service, is the Principal Deputy General Counsel of the Department of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. She is the Senior Civilian Career Attorney in the department and provides oversight, guidance and direction regarding legal advice provided by the five divisions in the General Counsel’s Office.

Prior to her current position, Ms. McGuire was the Deputy General Counsel for Fiscal, Ethics and Administrative Law for the Department of the Air Force. She advised the Secretary of the Air Force, Assistant Secretaries, Air Staff, and General Counsel on matters within her division’s portfolio including fiscal law, budgeting, appropriations and authorizations, ethics rules and standards of conduct, administrative organization and delegation of authorities, civilian personnel law and policy, negotiation and dispute resolution, and legislative matters.

Ms. McGuire also previously served as the Director of the Air Force Ethics Office in the Office of General Counsel and as Special Assistant to the Vice Chairman at the National Transportation Safety Board. She retired as a colonel in the Air Force Reserve.

Ms. McGuire is a graduate of Illinois Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. She was commissioned into the United States Air Force as a Distinguished Graduate from the Reserve Officer Training Corps. After receiving an educational delay to study law, she received her Juris Doctor from Creighton University School of Law and entered the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps, serving nearly 11 years on active duty before switching to the Air Force Reserve. She is licensed to practice law in the State of Nebraska, the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the United States Supreme Court.

EDUCATION
1996 Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, high honors, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago
1999 Juris Doctor, cum laude, Creighton University School of Law, Omaha, Neb.
2002 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., by correspondence
2010 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by seminar
2016 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence

CAREER CHRONOLOGY
1. September 1999–May 2001, Assistant Staff Judge Advocate, 90th Space Wing, Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo.
2. June 2001–August 2002, Area Defense Counsel, Air Force Legal Services Agency, Francis E. Warren AFB, Wyo.
3. August 2002–November 2003, Circuit Defense Counsel, Air Force Legal Services Agency, Randolph AFB, Texas
4. November 2003–February 2005, Chief of Education and Training, Office of Professional Development, Office of The Judge Advocate General, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
5. February 2005–July 2007, Chief of Recruiting and Accessions, Office of Professional Development, Office of The Judge Advocate General, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
6. August 2007–July 2010, Deputy Chief, Appellate Defense Division, Air Force Legal Operations Agency, Bolling AFB, Washington, D.C.
7. July 2010–June 2015, Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official and Assistant General Counsel, National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, D.C.
8. August 2010–September 2014, Air Staff Counsel, Administrative Law Division, Headquarters United States Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va. (U.S. Air Force Reserve)
9. June 2015–June 2018, Special Assistant to the Vice Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, D.C.
10. September 2014–December 2018, Reserve Executive Officer, Office of The Judge Advocate General, HAF, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va. (U.S. Air Force Reserve)
11. December 2018–May 2019, Assistant Staff Judge Advocate, 18th Air Force, Scott AFB, Ill. (U.S. Air Force Reserve)
12. June 2018–July 2020, Director of Ethics and Assistant General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, Department of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
13. May 2019–July 2020, Senior Individual Mobilization Augmentee, 316th Wing, Joint Base Andrews, Md. (U.S. Air Force Reserve)
14. August 2020–April 2023, Senior Individual Mobilization Augmentee, United States Transportation Command, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois (U.S. Air Force Reserve)
15. July 2020–January 2025, Deputy General Counsel for Fiscal, Ethics and Administrative Law for the DAF, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
16. January 2025–present, Principal Deputy General Counsel for the Department of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Meritorious Civilian Service Award
Defense Superior Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster

(Current as of January 2025)