Catherine serves as General Counsel, U.S. for Forward Global, where she provides strategic legal counsel to U.S. and French leadership across governance, regulatory compliance, contracts, employment law, risk management, and intellectual property. With over 20 years of legal experience spanning BigLaw, global corporations, and high-growth startups, Catherine brings a versatile, business-oriented approach to the legal function. Prior to joining Forward Global, she was in-house at Sodexo, providing legal strategy and regulatory guidance for the company’s Schools and Seniors business segments. Before that, she served as Head of Legal at Petra, a robotics startup, where she managed cross-border M&A, fundraising, and complex commercial agreements. Earlier in her career, she served as Senior Counsel at Accenture, leading compliance due diligence for global mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures, and as Corporate Counsel at Interstate Hotels and Resorts, overseeing litigation and regulatory matters across approximately 350 properties. Catherine began her career at Reed Smith LLP, where she spent eight years advising clients on regulatory compliance and litigation. She holds a J.D. from the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America, a B.A. in Government and Theology from Georgetown University, and is currently pursuing an M.B.A. at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.